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Shirred Eggs

Shirred eggs are eggs baked in small dishes until the whites set and yolks remain slightly runny, served with coarse sea salt.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 2 ingredients
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Shirred Eggs

Ingredients

Directions

The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point.

Prepare

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

  2. Break 2 eggs into each small oven‑safe dish, being careful not to break the yolks.

Bake and serve

  1. Place the dishes in the oven and bake until the whites are set and the yolks are slightly runny.

  2. Serve directly from the dishes and season with coarse sea salt to taste.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Explore the science

What each ingredient does

Eggs
Heat sets the proteins in the whites and yolks, giving the dish its firm, custard-like structure.

The step that matters

Bake until the whites are set but the yolks are slightly runny. Egg white proteins set with heat well before the yolk thickens. Pulling the dish at that point keeps the yolk soft. Staying in the oven longer firms the yolk fully and dries it out.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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