Andrew Zimmern's Eggs Benedict Is A Pastrami Dream Come True

A 2021 OnePoll survey conducted with Sabara suggests that in a given week, Americans typically have breakfast just three times (via SWNS Digital). But when they do, there's a good chance they're eating eggs. In a Mashed poll, 43% of those surveyed said that eggs are their favorite breakfast food. During the first months of the Covid-19 pandemic, people were buying millions more eggs each week than usual, likely because they didn't want to give up on eating breakfast just because they were stuck at home (via Adweek). Eggs are just that essential.

Though it seems like the scientific opinion on whether eggs are healthy is always changing, the American Heart Association calls them a good way to obtain protein and vitamins efficiently. We don't know what the organization would have to say about eggs served on griddled English muffins with Canadian bacon and drenched in hollandaise sauce, though we can guess it might be less favorable. But even that meal is tame compared to the eggs Benedict recipe Andrew Zimmern just shared on Twitter, which replaces the Canadian bacon with pastrami. For those who like eggs because they're delicious, and not necessarily because of their health benefits, then this might be one breakfast recipe to try.

Pastrami and latkes Benedict

For those who are bored of eating their eggs the same way every morning, Andrew Zimmern shared a new recipe that's a lot different from the usual diner fare. He posted an excerpt from the cookbook "The Artisan Jewish Deli at Home" by Nick Zukin & Michael Zusman on his website, including their recipe for pastrami Benedict. Not only does the recipe call for cooks to swap out Canadian bacon in favor of the cured spiced beef known as pastrami, but it also skips the English muffins in favor of crispy fried potato latkes. The hollandaise remains, tying everything together with a rich and tangy sauce, and the poached eggs retain their spot atop the tasty throne.

It's more work to make than a traditional eggs Benedict, thanks to the latkes, but it's also more flavorful. While Canadian bacon brings a salty, savory, and subtly sweet punch of umami to the OG recipe, pastrami brings all that and more, thanks to the spices used to make it. The flavor of pastrami comes from a blend of ingredients like black pepper, coriander, mustard seed, garlic, salt, sugar, and more. All of that bold seasoning helps to cut through the richness of the eggs, latkes, and hollandaise, for a non-traditional eggs Benedict that just might be even tastier than the original. Try it with the homemade pastrami from Zukin and Zusman's cookbook, which received rave reviews from one Instagrammer, or channel Ina Garten and tell yourself, "Store-bought is fine!"