Equipment
Ingredients
Sauce Base
- 15 ml olive oil
- 100 g white onion, diced
- 15 g jalapeño, finely diced
- 2 garlic, minced
- 400 g tomatillos, husked, rinsed, and roughly chopped
Spices & Herbs
- 2 g ground cumin
- 4 g kosher salt
- 15 g fresh cilantro, chopped
Proteins
- 4 large eggs, room temperature
Optional Garnishes
- 30 g cotija cheese, crumbled
- 100 g avocado, sliced
- 1 lime, cut into wedges
Nutrition (per serving)
Method
Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the diced onion and jalapeño, cooking until softened and fragrant, about 5 minutes.
Stir in the minced garlic, ground cumin, and kosher salt. Cook for 1 minute until the garlic is very fragrant.
Add the chopped tomatillos to the skillet. Bring the mixture to a gentle bubble, then reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the tomatillos break down into a chunky sauce, about 10 minutes. Stir in half of the chopped cilantro.
Using the back of a spoon, create 4 small wells in the tomatillo sauce. Carefully crack one egg into each well. Season the top of each egg with a pinch of salt.
Cover the skillet with a tight-fitting lid. Poach the eggs in the simmering sauce for 5 to 8 minutes, depending on your preferred level of doneness. For fully cooked, safe yolks (74 C / 165 F), cook closer to 8-10 minutes. For traditional runny yolks, aim for 5 minutes.
Remove the skillet from the heat. Garnish with the remaining fresh cilantro, crumbled cotija cheese, and avocado slices. Serve immediately with warm tortillas or crusty bread and lime wedges.
Chef's Notes
- Tomatillos have a naturally sticky residue on their skin. Be sure to rinse them thoroughly under warm water after removing the husks to clean them properly.
- For a smoother, more refined sauce, you can briefly blend the cooked tomatillo mixture with an immersion blender before creating the wells for the eggs.
- Heat levels in jalapeños can vary wildly. Smelling the cut stem end of the pepper can give you a hint of its capsaicin levels before adding it to the pan.
- Room temperature eggs will poach much more evenly than cold eggs straight from the refrigerator. Pull them out when you begin prepping the vegetables.
Storage
Refrigerator: 3 days — Store leftover sauce separately. Cooked eggs do not reheat well.
Freezer: 1 month — Freeze the tomatillo sauce only, without the eggs.
Reheating: Reheat the sauce gently in a skillet over medium heat, then poach fresh eggs directly in the hot sauce.
