The Canned Ingredient You Should Add To Fried Eggs

Fried eggs have a satisfying richness that feels like the result of hours of cooking, rather than mere minutes. They taste even better — their browned edges sweeter, and their yolky centers even more luxurious — when paired with a sweet, umami-rich ingredient, particularly one that might otherwise go to waste. We're talking about canned tomato paste, a powerhouse pantry item that we usually have on hand and rarely finish in one cook.

To put it to work, use olive oil rather than butter for crispy fried eggs, and allow the fat to heat up with one teaspoon of paste. The trick to making the paste — and your eggs — taste deeply sweet and packed with umami is to allow the tomato to caramelize for about one to three minutes before you add your protein. Cooking the red stuff removes any raw or tinny notes from the canned ingredient, making it more savory and concentrating all the fruit's sugars in the process.

When the paste's bright color darkens, the texture thickens, and the tomato fragrance permeates your kitchen, you're ready to crack your eggs into the pan. Make sure to baste the whites with the colorful tomato oil for maximum flavor penetration and to speed up cooking. From there, you're ready to serve. However, for extra flavor, you can also whip up an accompanying savory French toast by dipping bread slices in milk and egg, then smearing them with tomato paste and crisping the exteriors in your hot pan.

Turkish menemen, Chinese tomato eggs, shakshuka ... the list of global, beloved egg and tomato dishes goes on and on. Unlike with french fries and milkshakes, there's seemingly no scientific reason the two ingredients get along so well, but our taste buds can confirm they're a delicious pairing. And with a handful of added seasonings, you can channel the flavors of these elaborate dishes by simply infusing your oil with tomato paste, creating a delicious topping for a crusty slice of bread or soft pita.

Start with an easy tweak. Allow your tomato paste to linger in some hot oil until it chars, transforming into a smoky ingredient that will give your breakfast a campfire feel and evoke shakshuka. It might sound scary to intentionally push an ingredient to the edge of burning, but if you pay close attention and are quick to keep the process moving, you'll find yourself with a challengingly complex paste that contrasts mellow eggs.

For more North African flavor, try adding a spoonful of jarred harissa to your tomato paste before you caramelize it. This will infuse the cooking oil with heat, garlic, and spices, making you appreciate the taming effect of runny yolks even more. Or, channel the Mediterranean or China with another common leftover ingredient: herb compound butter. Swap olive oil for a knob of oregano-laced butter to brown with your tomato concentrate, or mix finished charred paste with scallion butter for a fantastic aromatic nuttiness.