Khadro Burger

Khadro is the Parsi term for a glutton, a fitting name I think for a double egg burger that’s going to have you asking for seconds.

The Parsi love for eggs is legendary. There’s no question that for Parsis, everything tastes better per eedu, or topped with eggs. Not surprisingly almost every Parsi cookbook has a separate section just for egg recipes which mostly consists of a base of vegetables topped with eggs.

I’m not sure where their love of eggs comes from but I can quite easily relate to it. I ate a lot of eggs as a kid, as a teenager, as a young adult. A little less as an old adult, but even today bacon and eggs is still my favourite way to start the day. I haven’t quite mastered the art of making a rolled omelette but my egg sandwiches and scrambled eggs are second to none.

Last week was a touch eggciting (I’ve allowed myself one clichéd wordplay a post). I received a dozen eggs to sample from Farm Made, a free range egg supplier based out of Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu. I wanted to try their eggs before visiting the facility this month.

Rather than make the standard egg dishes I wanted to do create something new, which for me is usually a re-interpretation of the traditional. How I landed on this particular combination of Parsi egg dishes is still something of a mystery to me – perhaps it was all those omelette videos I watched. Anyway, the double egg burger draws inspiration from two of their classic dishes; salli per eedu and the lesser known masala omelette poro. The spicing and flavouring for both are traditionally quite similar but since this is an eedu per eedu I’ve changed it so that there isn’t too much of an overlap.

There is one element which is not Parsi but is connected to a Parsi dish: the Goan(ese) balchao, which I believe is what the Parsi prawn patio is based on, gives the egg burger a sharp vinegary pungent edge. For me, it rounds off the Khadro Burger with the Indian love for punchy flavours and completes the Konkani connection.

And there you have it: the world’s first Parsi Egg Burger.

Ingredients
2 eggs
2 burger buns
2 tbsp mayonnaise
2-3 tbsp potato salli (straws)
a couple of salad leaves (I prefer rocket, but you could use romaine or iceberg as well)
tomato ketchup as per taste
4 rashers bacon, or 2 long cut into four (optional)
2 cheese slices
2 tsp prawn balchao pickle
4 egg rings
1 tsp ghee
For the Salli per Eedu tomato base
1 small tomato, chopped
½ tsp green chillies, chopped
1 tsp fresh coriander, chopped
½ tsp ginger-garlic paste
¼ tsp sugar
a pinch of red chilli powder
¼ tsp coriander powder
¼ tsp turmeric powder
salt to taste
1 tsp ghee
For the Poro
2 eggs
1 tbsp onion finely chopped
1 tsp green chilli, finely chopped
½ tsp ginger paste
½ tbsp fresh coriander, chopped
¼ tsp cumin powder
¼ tsp black pepper powder
1 tbsp grated cheese (optional)

Method
For the Salli per Eedu tomato base
Heat ghee in a pan on a medium flame.
Add the chopped tomatoes and fry for a 2-3 minutes. Add ginger garlic paste and fry for another 30 secs. Add the chillies and continue frying, mixing well.
Finally add the chilli, cumin and turmeric powders and stir well. Add a little water if it’s become too dry. Continue cooking for another 3-4 minutes till the masalas are cooked.
Turn off the heat and mix in the fresh coriander.
Remove, keep aside.

For the Poro
Mix everything apart from the eggs together in a bowl. Beat the eggs into the mixture just before you’re ready to cook.

To cook
In a large pan fry the bacon rashers till crisp. Remove and place on paper napkins to absorb extra fat.
There should be a layer of bacon fat in the pan. If there isn’t enough fat, add ghee, oil or butter till there’s enough oil to cover most of the base of the pan.
Heat the pan on a medium flame. The oil should be hot and just about smoking
Place the four egg rings in the pan. (If you don’t have rings slice ½ inch thick rings from a large onion and remove the centre till you have a just a thick outer ring. You can use green peppers or capsicum as well.)
Pour the omelette batter into two of the rings. The oil should be hot enough and the batter shouldn’t escape from the ring. Lower the heat.
Layer the salli at the base of the next two rings. It should just cover the base.
Quickly spread the tomato base over the salli as evenly as you can, starting from the edges. Make a slight depression in the centre, it doesn’t matter if the salli isn’t covered completely.
Gently break the one egg into each ring over the tomato base. Cover with a lid and cook on a slow flame for about 1-2 minutes.
Meanwhile start on the burger.

To Assemble
Cut the bun into two horizontally. Spread about a tbsp of mayonnaise on the base of each bun. Arrange the salad leaves on top. Place the rashers of bacon on top of the leaves.
Check the eggs. The yolks of the egg should be just about set but not hard. The top of the omelette should be cooked.
Remove from the pan. They should slide out easily from the rings, but if they don’t use a sharp knife to pry them from the sides. If you used onions or capsicums, you can use them as is.
While still hot place the poro on top of the bacon, the base facing up. Smear a tsp of prawn balchao over the poro. Place a slice of cheese over. Place the salli per eedu on the cheese slice, egg facing up.
Squeeze some tomato ketchup/ mayo/ aioli/ mustard over and close with second half of bun.
Before eating, arrange on a decorative plate or platter and take lots of pictures. Post to social media. Remember, if no one sees it did you really cook it?

Preparation Time: 20 minutes
Serves 2 (or maybe 1)

Note: You could also omit the burger buns and just have the eedu per eedu with the bacon/ sausages on the side