Should you, like me, usually find yourself with a container of chilly rice sitting within the fridge, let me prevent from watching it slowly harden from neglect—flip it into gyeran bap. The Korean dish of rice, eggs, and some pantry staples is among the easiest, most comforting meals you may make with day-old grains. It is proof that leftover rice is not a tragic afterthought, however an amazing dinner ready to occur.

My love for gyeran bap began in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the place I lived with certainly one of my greatest associates, who was additionally my coworker at America’s Take a look at Kitchen. We finally fell right into a rhythm and each night we would come house from work, set the rice cooker, and let it hum within the background whereas my cat weaved between our legs, angling for an early dinner. Then we would retreat to our bedrooms to unwind from the day—studying, writing, listening to music—and emerge once more round 8 p.m. to scoop the nice and cozy rice into bowls and prime it with no matter fast dinner we threw collectively, often a easy stir-fry, curry, or no matter we scrounged up from the take a look at kitchen’s fridge. We might eat, watch an episode of one thing, discuss, and go to mattress with full, content material bellies—all three of us, the cat included.

My greatest grievance about our rice cooker was that it at all times left us with additional rice—even once we cooked the minimal quantity it allowed. However that turned out to be the perfect half: The leftovers led to my roommate introducing me to Eric Kim’s recipe for gyeran bap, Korean egg rice.

What Is Gyeran Bap?

Gyeran bap—actually egg rice in Korean—is a humble, comforting meal of rice, fried eggs, and some pantry staples. It is each easy and deeply satisfying, proof that an ideal bowl of rice would not want a lot to turn out to be a full meal. In lots of Korean properties, there’s virtually at all times a rice cooker full of heat rice able to go, however usually we made our gyeran bap with leftover rice reheated within the microwave.

In Kim’s model, butter is browned till nutty, then two eggs are cracked into the pan. As quickly as they hit the warmth, soy sauce and sesame oil are drizzled on prime, scorching and effervescent within the butter. The soy sauce reduces and caramelizes when it meets the recent pan, infusing the butter and evenly staining the egg whites as they flip lacy and crisp, whereas the yolks keep gentle and custardy. The eggs, together with all their buttery soy drippings, are poured over a bowl of rice and topped with a beneficiant pile of gim (crushed roasted seaweed). Combined collectively, the yolks coat each grain, the seaweed softens, and every chew tastes buttery, toasty, and deeply savory. This straightforward, quick-to-prepare dish grew to become a staple weekend lunch in our sunny little Victorian condominium.

Gyeran bap can differ from family to family. Some folks brown the butter till it smells nutty, like Kim does. Others merely soften the butter with out browning it. Some fry the eggs till the sides frill and crisp, whereas others prepare dinner them simply till the whites are set and the yolks keep gentle. Some skip the butter altogether and use vegetable oil to fry the eggs, including sesame oil on the finish for taste. And whereas gim is the traditional topping, it would not be out of the bizarre to serve this with a spoonful of kimchi, a scattering of sesame seeds or scallions, slices of avocado, and even some fish roe in case you’re feeling fancy.

Personally, I comply with Kim’s recipe virtually precisely (I can recite it by coronary heart at this level), although I do typically skip the nonstick pan he suggests and fry the eggs in a stainless-steel skillet—the upper warmth offers the sides a fair crispier, lacier end. And if I’ve kimchi or avocado readily available, I am going to add them on prime. I make gyeran bap so usually that I now frequently purchase the roasted seaweed snack packs offered at mainstream grocery shops like Complete Meals.

When’s the Finest Time to Eat Gyeran Bap?

Individuals in Korea eat gyeran bap for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Made with pantry staples—rice, eggs, butter or oil, soy sauce, and sesame oil—it is fast, dependable, and deeply comforting. For me, it is turn out to be my ideally suited work-from-home lunch between conferences and errands. There are days when life appears like a relentless listing—emails, immigration paperwork, annual vet appointments, remembering to name my grandmother, and the longer term planning that is at all times ready its flip. In the course of all of the cacophony, this bowl appears like one of many few straightforward issues—a comforting pause in a day stuffed with to-dos that by no means appears to dwindle.

The Attract of the Rice and Egg Bowl

What makes a rice bowl (particularly this one) so interesting is how easy and adaptable it’s. Rice is a clean canvas—a pantry staple most of us have already got—whereas eggs add substance and protein, turning it right into a filling meal with little effort. From there, it is no matter you may have: a drizzle of sizzling sauce, a spoonful of chili oil, just a few slices of avocado, or some scallions scattered on prime.

After which there’s the bowl itself. It would not ask for a lot past a spoon—you possibly can cup it in your palms on the sofa, tuck it shut whilst you eat standing on the counter, or steadiness it in your lap on the ground. You may discover variations of this sort of meal all over the place. In Peru, tacu tacu is made by searing day-old rice and beans right into a crisp, golden cake, usually completed with a fried egg. For the Japanese dish gyūdon, thinly sliced beef and onions are simmered in a evenly candy soy-and-dashi broth and piled over rice, typically with a uncooked or soft-poached egg on prime. In Indonesia, nasi telur ceplok—which interprets fairly actually to “rice with a fried egg”—is an easy dish of heat rice topped with a crisp-edged egg and sambal on the aspect. Totally different kitchens, completely different particulars, but it surely nonetheless comes again to the identical factor: rice and an egg, heat and full in a bowl.

Some meals maintain you with out asking you to make use of each bowl and pan in your kitchen, with out demanding hours of prep or a excessive grocery invoice. A really scrumptious but easy meal can perk up your day. Gyeran bap is and can at all times be that to me.