Poached Eggs with Green Chutney + Yogurt
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Makes 2 servings 1x
Ingredients
Green Chutney
- 2 Tbsp pumpkin seeds
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 bunch [200 g] cilantro, tender leaves and stems, plus a few sprigs for garnish
- 1 green chilli, such as bird’s eye, serrano, or jalapeño
- 1/4 cup [60 ml] ice-cold water
- 2 to 3 Tbsp fresh lime or lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
- 1 garlic clove, chopped
- 1 tsp sugar, honey, or maple syrup, plus more as needed
- Fine sea salt
Yogurt
- 2 cups [480 g] plain full-fat Greek yogurt
- 1 to 2 garlic cloves, grated
- Fine sea salt
Poached Eggs
- 4 large eggs
- 4 tsp lemon juice
- Toasted slices of sourdough, preferably buttered or drizzled with olive oil, for serving
Instructions
To make the chutney, in a small dry saucepan over medium heat, toast the pumpkin seeds, stirring often. After 1 minute, add the cumin seeds and continue toasting until the cumin seeds turn fragrant and light brown, an additional 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. If they burn, discard them and start again. Add the toasted pumpkin and cumin seeds with the cilantro, chilli, ice-cold water, lime juice, ginger, garlic, and sugar to a blender. Blend until smooth. If the herbs need help to blend, add a few more tablespoons of ice-cold water, one at a time; the chutney should not be very runny.
Taste and season with salt and more sugar if needed. The chutney can be made a day ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. The chutney should taste fresh, herby, and spicy, with a mild hint of sweetness.
Place two medium saucepans on the stove. Fill one with enough water to submerge a whole egg, bring it to a boil over medium-high heat, and then lower the heat to a simmer. Add 1 in [2.5 cm] of water to the second saucepan and bring it to a low simmer.
To make the yogurt, in a medium metal mixing bowl, add the yogurt and garlic (avoid using glass, as it doesn’t conduct heat efficiently). Season with salt. Place over the second saucepan, whisking until smooth and creamy. In 2 to 3 minutes, the yogurt should reach the consistency of lightly whipped cream. Spoon the yogurt into two serving bowls.
To make the poached eggs, into a fine-mesh strainer set over a small bowl, crack one egg, letting the loose, liquid portion of the egg white drain for about 10 seconds. Gently transfer the egg to a separate small bowl and add 1 tsp of lemon juice. Stir the simmering water of the first saucepan with a spoon. Carefully slide the egg into the saucepan, ensuring that the water barely bubbles so the whites do not spread. Repeat the process with the second egg. Allow the two eggs to poach undisturbed until the whites turn opaque, 3 to 4 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, lift the eggs, draining any excess water, and place them atop the yogurt in the serving bowls. Repeat with the remaining two eggs.
Top the poached eggs with generous spoonfuls of the chutney and garnish with the sprigs of cilantro. Serve with warm, toasted sourdough bread. This dish does not store well.
The Flavor Files
- Stick to whole-milk Greek yogurt. I noticed low-fat versions don’t work well when heated, and their yogurt proteins are more sensitive to denaturation and curdling. Icelandic skyr is another excellent option.
- Pumpkin and cumin seeds are different in size and shape and absorb heat at varying rates because of their different colors. Cumin toasts faster and is at risk of burning, so the two seeds are toasted to varying times in the same saucepan.
– Excerpted from Fundamentals of Flavor by Nik Sharma. Published by Chronicle Books. Copyright © 2026 by Nik Sharma