Gyeran bap is a delicious umami-packed Korean-style breakfast of fried eggs on rice with seaweed (gim). But it's also delicious as a quick dinner for one when you're in no mood to cook. The runny egg yolk forms a flavourful sauce with the browned butter, sesame oil and soy that clings to the plump rice kernels.
Servings1
Equipment
- Small nonstick skillet , or larger if you're making more than one egg
Ingredients
- 1 cup cooked white rice* , short- or medium-grain
- ½ tablespoon unsalted butter
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 1 large egg* , or more if you feel like it
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce , light or all-purpose
Toppings (optional)
- 1 0.14-ounce packet roasted salted seaweed*
- ½ tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- Add the rice to a serving bowl and set aside.
- Melt the butter in a small nonstick skillet or well-seasoned wok over medium heat. Once the butter starts to foam, stir in the sesame oil.
- Crack the egg into the pan. As the edges of the white begin to set (after a minute of cooking), drizzle the soy sauce over the egg white. Cook until the whites set around the yolk, puff up slightly, and crisp around the edges – about 2 minutes. Or cook to your desired doneness.
- Slide the fried egg over the rice and pour over the buttery soy sauce from the pan. Crush the seaweed over the rice and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds. To eat, use a spoon to break the runny yolk and mix everything together, coating the rice in eggy sauce. Adjust the seasoning to taste at the table, adding more soy sauce or salt.
Notes
- Use short-grain rice (like sushi rice) or medium-grain rice (like Calrose rice). See stovetop sushi rice or instant pot sushi rice for short- or medium-grain rice cooking instructions. You can also use leftover cooked rice reheated thoroughly for a quick breakfast with eggs and rice.
- I use one egg when I have Korean egg rice for breakfast, but I'll add a second egg if it's a quick dinner. You can add as many as you want – just use a large enough pan.
- If you unintentionally overcooked your egg, you'll lose out on the yolky goodness. But you can save the day by stirring a raw egg yolk into the hot rice – if that's your style (it sure is mine).
- You can buy Korean roasted seaweed in snack packs of 4 to 5 grams. These small seaweed sheets are seasoned and crunchier than nori. But you can also use a nori sheet cut into thin strips or a generous sprinkle of furikake rice seasoning. It will seem like excessive seaweed, but it will reduce as it wilts from the heat.