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| Poached Egg over Spinach Polenta with Crispy Mushrooms and Herbs |
Ingredients
- 2 heaping cups mixed mushrooms, thinly sliced
- 1 shallot, thinly sliced
- Olive oil
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2-3 cups packed spinach leaves, roughly chopped
- 3/4 cup instant polenta
- 2 cups water, depending on how thick you like your polenta*
- 2 organic, free range eggs
- Water for poaching
- Salt and Pepper
- A few handfuls fresh chevril, roughly chopped
- Freshly grated lemon zest, for serving
Instructions
This recipe has three parts; the mushrooms, the poletnta and the eggs. All it takes is a little bit of organization and the meal comes together in 20 minutes or less. I am a purist when it comes to poaching eggs, no vinegar, no fancy gadgets, just a pot of simmering hot water and you’re good to go. However if you have your own method that works for you, ignore my instructions and do your own thing.
- First, get your mushrooms going. Turn your oven on to broil and add a drizzle of olive oil to an oven proof pan over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook for a minute or two, then add the mushrooms. Stir in the thyme and cook until just tender, 5-10 minutes. Remove from heat, season with a little salt and pepper. Place under the broil to crisp up but be sure to keep on eye on these guys!
- With the mushrooms in the oven, bring two small pots of water to a boil (1 with enough water for your polenta, and one with enough water to poach your eggs). Feel free to season your polenta water with a dash of sea salt. Polenta and egg poaching came be tackled at the same time.
- Polenta: once water is boiling, stir in the chopped spinach and polenta then reduce heat to a minium and cook stirring almost constantly. The polenta is ready when it leaves the sides of the pan but is still runny. Add more water if it seems too dry, before serving stir in a drizzle of olive oil or butter.
- Poached eggs: reduce water to a low simmer, crack the egg into a small ramekin and then pour into simmering water. Give the water a swirl with the end of a wooden spoon then leave to egg to cook. 3 – 3 1/2 minutes and its done. Remove with a slotted spoon and dry on kitchen towl. Repeat for desired amount of eggs.
- Assemble: Place polenta in the bottom of a bowl, top with now crispy mushroom shallot mixture, top with your perfectly poached egg. Grate over a little fesh lemon zest, add the chevril and some fresh cracked pepper. You’re done!
*) I used instant polenta here because its so quick and easy. Mine was ready in under 5 minutes, but if you are using traditional, slow cooking polenta it will take quite a bit longer. So my best advice is to follow the package directions and adjust your cooking times. Both will work just fine.
