The Clever Ramekin Trick Bobby Flay Uses For Flawless Fried Eggs

Cracked your last egg into a hot skillet and accidentally broke the yolk? It's the pits. Luckily, there's a nifty little insurance policy that you can employ the next time you're making a batch of sunny side up eggs to save yourself from that particular first world problem. Simply follow the advice of celebrity chef Bobby Flay and use a ramekin to make flawless fried eggs every time.

The key is to gently crack your egg directly into your ramekin instead of splitting it open over a hot frying pan and risking the shell from piercing the yolk. This trick is simple but it guarantees that your egg yolk will stay whole when you delicately transfer it to your skillet. The result? Insta-worth fried huevos that have a gooey, soft-set centered hump instead of a dry, flat mass that looks like a busted pancake.

Cracking your eggs into a ramekin — or any other small dish or glass — also means that you can easily fish out any fragments of shell that may have accidentally chipped off into the whites (FYI the easiest way to remove shells from your cracked eggs is to scoop them out with the curved edge of your used eggshell). This is particularly useful if you're making several fried eggs at one time; just crack them into your ramekin one by one and check for any cheeky stowaway shells before adding them to your pan.

The best way to crack eggs is to tap them gently onto a flat surface, like a countertop. This works because the natural force of gravity causes a clean spilt in the shell without breaking through into the membrane beneath it. One of the biggest mistakes you're making with eggs is to crack them on the rim of a mixing bowl or sharp object, which causes the shell to go inwards on impact. The sharp edges of the shell can then pierce the membrane and the yolk, resulting in a broken yellow. This doesn't pose a problem if you're using the eggs to make a cake, whip up a scramble, or prepare a quiche, but it's definitely an issue if you're making fried eggs.

Worried about your easy-over eggs breaking when you flip them? There's a solution to that too. All you need for the best over-easy eggs is a dash of water. Simply cook your huevos as usual until they're translucent, add a tablespoon of water to the pan, and pop on the lid. The steam generated from that little splash of water will finish cooking the surface of the eggs, eliminating the need to flip them.