6 Things I Learned Watching Alex Make Fluffy Scrambled Eggs

Are you over-whisking? Alex sets us straight in her Food Network Kitchen class.

November 12, 2019

Related To:

Eggs, as seen on Food Network Kitchen Live.

Eggs, as seen on Food Network Kitchen Live.

Photo by: Jason DeCrow

Jason DeCrow

Get The All-New Food Network Kitchen App

Download Food Network Kitchen now to sign up and take advantage of the latest offer and get 40+ live classes a week, hundreds of on-demand cooking classes, in-app grocery ordering and so much more.

In this series, we're showing off some of the coolest recipes, tips and tricks we've learned from chefs in the all-new Food Network Kitchen app.

Leave it to the one and only ICAG — Iron Chef Alex Guarnaschelli — to completely rock our world about something as seemingly straightforward as eggs! We’ve made 'em hundreds of times, and they’re pretty basic to make: crack, whisk, cook. Right?!

Yes and no, actually.

In her recent Live class on the Food Network Kitchen app, Alex demonstrated several techniques for cooking eggs, but it was her go-to scramble method that really wowed us. It was indeed straightforward, with no pomp and circumstance, no fancy tools and no unnecessary ingredients. Just eggs, water and butter. But while they are indeed elementary, they’re easy to mess up.

These are Alex's very best tricks for guaranteeing the fluffiest, most-eggy batch of scrambled eggs ever:

1. Don’t over-whisk the eggs.

After cracking the eggs, whisking will be the first step, and it’s crucial. It will set the stage for your scramble. Remember this: A quick, light whisk is all you need. If you overwork the eggs, they can become too tough, and no one wants that. Alex’s advice is to "just whisk the eggs enough to break them up."

2. Season twice.

Alex admits that there’s a bit of a debate about when to first season scrambled eggs. But she prefers her tried-and-true process: salt the whisked eggs in the bowl so it’s evenly distributed, and then salt again right before plating for added flavor.

3. Skip the cream.

Yes, there’s a time and a place for making eggs with cream, but a basic scramble isn’t it. When you introduce cream, you’re going to get — wait for it! — creamy eggs. That makes sense! But with that creaminess comes a heaviness, and that’s not necessarily what you want. Alex adds just water, which she says "makes them lighter and fluffier because you’re adding less fat to the equation. You leave room for the eggiest of egg moments if you just use water." This is her preferred method for making omelets too.

Photo by: Susan Magnano ©Magnanimous Pictures

Susan Magnano, Magnanimous Pictures

4. Keep the butter in check.

"When you’ve done it right, you can smell that little bit of butter on the bottom melding together with those eggs," Alex says. But believe it or not, just a small pat of butter is all it takes to achieve that. To her, it’s important to taste the egg when all is said and done.

5. Choose your own stirring adventure.

By the time it comes to stirring the eggs in the pan, you have a choice to make. Big curds or small? Depending on what you’re craving, you can move them around more or less frequently to break them up into small pieces or keep them larger or smaller, Alex says.

6. Be ready to plate right away.

Making scrambled eggs doesn’t take long, especially if you’re cooking just a few at a time, and that’s both a good and bad thing. “The most-important thing you can do,” Alex advises, is “have a plate ready.” Get ready to move them form the pan to the plate right, because “they will keep cooking,” she says.

Craving eggs now?! Us too. You can find all of Alex’s egg techniques (her poaching tricks will amaze you) in a now-on-demand class on the all-new Food Network Kitchen app. You’ll be able to drop in to Alex’s classes and learn all about cooking quick dishes with big flavors and so much more.

Next Up

Scrambled Egg Subs — Meatless Monday

Switch up your usual breakfast-for-dinner menu with Food Network Magazine's quick-fix sandwich.

How to Make Scrambled Eggs: A Step-By-Step Guide

Here, how to make fluffy scrambled eggs two ways.

Ellie Krieger's Healthy Scrambled Egg Hack Is Life-Changing

You'll never look at egg whites the same way again.

How to Make Ramen Eggs (Ajitama)

All you need is six ingredients, including the eggs.

12 Things to Do with Leftover Egg Yolks

Eggs are expensive; don't toss their liquid gold centers.

How to Make Soft-Boiled Eggs

It’s as easy as hard-boiling (but faster).

The One Thing You Should Always Do When Making Fried Eggs

High heat (not low heat) is best. Here’s why.

Precisely How Long Should You Boil Eggs?

A quick internet search would lead one to believe that there are hundreds of methods to boiling eggs. While this is true, we are sharing the only foolproof method you will ever need.

This Is the Only No-Fail Way to Tell If an Egg Is Bad

Because who knows how long it's been in the fridge?

How to Fry Eggs: A Step-by-Step Guide

These step-by-step tips will teach you how to make fried eggs, whether you like them sunny-side up or over easy.