Egg in a Hole, Camp Version
One slice of bread, one egg, one pan. Breakfast for people who brought a cooler.
- calories
- 260
- weight
- 3.5 oz
- cal / oz
- 74
- protein
- 10 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 5 min
- cook
- 10 min
- total time
- 15 min
- water
- none
- cost
- $
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Breakfast
- Campfire coals
- Grill grate
- Canister stove
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Canoe / raft
- Vegetarian
- One pot
- Grab and go
- Needs a cooler
- Basic
Ingredients
| Sandwich bread | 1 slice | a sturdy slice holds together better than soft white |
|---|---|---|
| Egg | 1 | carried in a hard egg case or the carton, in the cooler |
| Butter or oil | 1 tbsp | oil handles heat better over a fire |
| Salt and pepper | to taste |
Method
- Set a skillet over the fire, on a grill grate, or on the stove and let it come up to a steady medium heat.
- Press a mug or cup into the middle of the slice and pull out the round. Leave the crust intact all the way around or the egg runs out.
- Grease one face of the bread and lay that side down in the pan.
- Crack the egg into the hole. Pull the pan off the direct flame or drop the burner low so the egg sets before the bread scorches.
- When the white is firm, slide a spatula under the whole thing and flip. Add more fat if the pan looks dry. Another minute, then salt and pepper it.
- Fry the cut-out round alongside and use it to mop the yolk.
This is the one camp breakfast that needs no water, no boil, and no cleanup beyond wiping a pan. The hole in the bread is not decoration. It gives the egg a wall to set against, so you get a fried egg and toast in the same flip instead of chasing a white around a hot skillet.
Heat control is the whole recipe. A campfire runs far hotter than a home burner, so the bread burns long before the yolk sets if you leave it over flame. Cook it at the edge of the coals, or lift the pan. Egg and bread both need a cooler, which makes this a car-camping and basecamp meal rather than something you carry.
Packing
Eggs ride in a rigid case in the cooler. Bread goes in a hard-sided container or it arrives as crumbs. Carry oil in a small leak-proof bottle.
Variations
- Cook bacon first and fry the bread in the rendered fat.
- Lay a slice of hard cheese on top after the flip and let it melt while the second side cooks.
- No cooler? Rehydrated egg powder poured into the hole works, though it sets flat rather than runny.
https://hedgecombers.com/campfire-cooking-holy-eggs