Martha's One Ingredient That Makes Scrambled Eggs Even Better (and It's Already in Your Fridge)

Scrambled eggs are a simple dish that can be sublime—or not. If you're wondering how to take your scrambled eggs to the next level, we have a one-ingredient answer for you. It comes courtesy of Martha herself. You know that Martha makes scrambled eggs regularly at home, and she always uses farm-fresh eggs—but that’s not the secret we’re sharing here. It comes down to the other main ingredient in scrambled eggs besides the eggs, one you most likely already have in your refrigerator—butter. Specifically, clarified butter.

Scrambled eggs are often made with butter plus cream, milk, or water, and salt and pepper. Martha’s upgrade streamlines this short ingredient list. There's no milk, cream, or even water in her go-to recipe. Learn more about clarified butter and how to channel Martha when preparing the day’s most important meal. 

decorvow's Scrambled Eggs Technique

You can use clarified butter to make scrambled eggs, just as you would use unclarified butter or even olive oil. Clarified butter yields amazing results with no difference in method. If you’re not sure how to start, try Martha’s method, which she assures us yields the most tender, fluffy, buttery scrambled eggs.

1. Crack the eggs into a bowl and whisk well with a fork to combine. Season with salt and pepper. 
2. Add clarified butter to a skillet—a good rule of thumb is 1 tablespoon per egg. 
3. Heat the butter over medium-high heat, and add the eggs, stirring them immediately and often with a rubber spatula while they cook to your desired doneness. Ideally, they should be cooked just until set but not browned, about two minutes.
4. Serve the scrambled eggs on warmed plates (another Martha trick), and drizzle with even more clarified butter for additional richness and flavor. 
   

What Is Clarified Butter?

If you are not familiar with clarified butter, it's what you get when you melt butter and remove the milk solids—the remaining clear, golden liquid is clarified butter. Clarified butter is also known as ghee. "I may be biased because of my heritage, but I love cooking with ghee," says culinary professional and food stylist Namrata Hegde. It is great for nearly everything—poaching seafood, sauteing vegetables, making sauces, or even drizzling over popcorn. And, of course, for scrambling eggs.

The Benefits of Using Clarified Butter in Scrambled Eggs

Hegde explains that clarified butter has a higher smoking point than unclarified butter. This is the main benefit of using it in scrambled eggs. When using unclarified butter for scrambled eggs, the milk solids in the butter can burn, and the scrambled eggs can taste burnt. Using clarified butter imparts all the great, nutty flavor of butter without any chance of the bitterness that results from burning. 

How to Make Clarified Butter

Making clarified butter is simple: 

1. Melt unsalted butter slowly in a saucepan over low heat. 
2. Once the butter is melted, let the solids sink to the bottom and skim off any foam. 
3. Pour the butter into a heatproof container, letting the solids remain behind in the saucepan. 

As easy as it is to make at home, you can also buy it at the grocery store as either clarified butter or ghee. 

Storing Clarified Butter

Since the water and milk solids have been removed from clarified butter, its shelf life is longer than that of regular, unclarified butter. It should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator and will last for up to six months. 

Experiment With Using Clarified Butter

Once you've made or bought clarified butter, don't stop at using it for scrambled eggs. Try it in a variety of different applications that might already be in your repertoire, or try something new—sweet or savory. "Ghee is used as a flavor enhancer by simply pouring a couple of spoons onto rice dishes or even parathas," says Hegde.