What Do You Put On It?

…Netsuki

…what do you put on it, nya

Tabasco~♪

…

…Miko?

…are you serious, nya

It’s good though!

…what are you doing to the egg, nya

Making it taste better, obviously!

…eggs already taste good, nya

Hey hey, did you know — in English there are six different words for fried egg?

…the cooking style, nya

Yep yep! Sunny side up is the classic one-sided runny yolk. Over easy is flipped but still soft. Over medium is a little firmer. Turn over goes fully cooked on both sides. Over hard is totally solid. And basted egg is steamed with a lid

…I know all of them, nya

ALL of them?!

…anyone who fries eggs should know them, nya

The thing is though — in Japanese, all six of them are just 目玉焼き. One word. At a diner you’d say “sunny side up, please” and get exactly what you asked for. Japan doesn’t really have that culture

…there’s no word for it, nya. Not the same as no difference, nya

Fair. And Miko’s eggs ARE always the exact same doneness every time

Every. Single. Time. (≧∇≦)

…my hands just remember, nya

So what do YOU put on yours?

…soy sauce, nya

Obviously

…why “obviously”, nya

Just feels very Miko. Traditional, careful with ingredients

…I’m just doing what makes sense, nya

But why soy sauce? Why not salt?

…soy sauce doesn’t get in the egg’s way, nya

Hmm

…it adds salt and umami. That’s it. The egg’s own sweetness stays, nya

…wait, eggs are sweet?

…they are. Eat the white plain, straight off the pan, nya

…(chomp)

…oh. It’s sweet

…nya

…soy sauce doesn’t bury that. It sits beside the egg, nya

…

…okay but here’s the thing, Miko

…nya

Tabasco doesn’t kill the egg either

…

Soy sauce sits beside it, right? Tabasco crashes into it head-on

…nya

The egg’s sweetness hits. Tabasco’s acid and heat hit. They collide in your mouth and BOTH survive. Neither one disappears

…

I like flavors that come at me. Black coffee, peperoncino, whiskey — none of them are polite about it. Tabasco’s the same way. Doesn’t apologize to the egg, but doesn’t fake the egg out either

…

…well

Well?

…Tabasco’s ingredients are simple, nya. Just chili peppers, vinegar, and salt

…Miko, you know what’s actually in Tabasco?

…not knowing what’s in a condiment before you use it is stranger, nya

…

…Miko. That’s kinda acknowledging it, right

…I’m not acknowledging anything, nya. Those are facts. I stated facts, nya. That’s all I did, nya

So I looked it up. What people put on fried eggs in Japan — soy sauce is number one, about 60% nationwide

…of course, nya

But that’s Kanto

…nya?

In western Japan — Kansai — salt wins. Over 50%. Osaka has this strong Worcester sauce streak. Kyoto goes salt too. And the first Japanese-made Worcester sauce? Born in Meiji-era Osaka. What you put on your egg carries the whole history of where you grew up

…nya

…is there even a right answer?

…there isn’t, nya

…Miko saying there’s no right answer. That’s rare

…there are right answers in cooking, nya. For salt. For heat

Yeah

…but for what a person likes, there isn’t one, nya

…

…Miko is soy sauce, nya. Even if it’s not the right answer, soy sauce, nya

…Netsuki is Tabasco. Even if it’s not the right answer, Tabasco

…nya