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You are here: Home / Recipes: All / North Indian Egg Curry Recipe (Anda Masala)

North Indian Egg Curry Recipe (Anda Masala)

August 3, 2011 By Andrea Nguyen 19 Comments

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image from www.flickr.com
It was about ten years ago when I first tasted an Indian curry made with hard-boiled eggs. It was at a dinner hosted by an Indian-American friend who’d planned a menu of her family favorites.  Her mom was in town and among the dishes that Aradhna prepared was an egg curry. The soft-chewy texture of the whites and richness of yolk was unexpected and captivating.

Up to that point, my curry experiences were with meats, seafood, and/or vegetables. Boiled eggs? It never occurred to me until that day to use eggs as the protein element in a curry. On the other hand, how could I have been blind for so long? Viet cooks simmer boiled eggs in caramel sauce. Chinese cooks simmer eggs in tea. Why not simmer the eggs in a thick sauce? Duh!

I’ve occasionally thought about the dish since then but didn’t go looking for the recipe. It’s not the first curry that comes to mind when I think of an Indian dish to prepare. However, this past weekend, while reading Julie Sahni’s Savoring India, a cookbook that’s rich in history, culture, and photography, I came across this recipe for “eggs braised in fragrant gravy.” Sahni’s recipe for anda masala comes from Uttar Pradesh in northern India.

I had some great local eggs and tomato from the farmers’ market so I was game. Plus, the recipe was very simple. Despite its ease, the dish involved classic Indian approaches to layering flavors that involves frying up cumin seeds during the initial tadka process, cooking down the onion until it starts to caramelize, adding the spices and simmering with the wet ingredients (tomato and water, in this case).

The result was fabulous and achievable with little stress. If you’re a vegetarian or new at Indian cooking, this is a good recipe to try.


RECIPE

Northern Indian Egg Curry
Anda Masala

image from www.flickr.com
I found Sahni’s recipe on Saturday night and decided to make it for lunch on Sunday. My husband picked some fresh green beans from the garden and boiled them in salted water for a side. Warm corn tortillas were our instant flatbread. You could use wheat tortillas, naan or chapati. Basmati rice would be terrific too. When good tomatoes are out of season, use 3/4 cup of canned tomato puree.

Serves 2 as a main dish, 4 as a side dish

4 large or extra large eggs, hard-boiled
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon cumin seed
1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
3-inch piece cassia bark or cinnamon stick, broken in half
2 teaspoons ground coriander or coriander seed, toasted and pounded
1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
About 1/2 teaspoon salt
2 medium or 1 large ripe tomato, pureed (about 3/4 cup)
1 cup water
1 tablespoon coarsely chopped cilantro leaves

1. Peel the eggs and let them soak in water to cover while you prepare the sauce. This soaking seems to prevent the whites from getting too rubbery. Set aside.

2. In a medium skillet or wide, shallow pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the cumin seed and cook, stirring, for about 15 seconds, until slightly darkened and fragrant.

image from www.flickr.com
Add the onion and cinnamon. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 6 minutes, until the onion has taken on a bit of brown. Add the coriander, red pepper flakes, turmeric, garlic, and salt.

image from www.flickr.com
Continue cooking for about 2 minutes, until the garlic has lightly fried and aromatic. Lower the heat as needed to coax the cooking.

Add the tomato and cooking for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring, until it no longer smells raw. Add the water, bring to a boil. Lower the heat to low, cover, and gently simmer for 5 minutes to develop the flavor.

3. Meanwhile, drain the eggs, pat them dry, then halved each lengthwise. When the sauce has finished simmering, uncover and slide the eggs in, cut side up. Increase the heat to medium-low and simmer the eggs, spooning sauce on the top, until the eggs are hot. Adjust the heat as necessary. The sauce should cook down and thicken a bit during this final stage.

4. Transfer the eggs and sauce to individual serving dishes or a communal dish. Garnish with the cilantro and serve immediately.

Related posts:

  • Hard-boiled egg tips
  • Video tip: How to easily peel eggs
  • Deviled Eggs Tips: Centering the Yolk & Medium Eggs
  • Indian Rice and Lentil Dumplings with Coconut Cilantro Chutney (Kuzhi Paniyaram)*
  • Modern Indian Chile Pea Puffs*
  • Gujarati Wheat Dumplings in Spiced Lentils (Dal Dhokli)*
  • Egg Curry in Tamarind Sauce (from Vahredva.com)

* On Asiandumplingtips.com

If you're familiar with Indian egg curry, what is your approach?

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Filed Under: Recipes: All, Recipes: Chicken, Duck, Eggs, Recipes: Fast and Easy, Recipes: Gluten-Free, Recipes: Indian, Recipes: Main Course, Recipes: Non-Vietnamese, Recipes: Vegetarian Tagged With: egg curry, Indian egg curry, vegetarian curry recipe

Previous Post: « Nearly Instant Fresh Tomato Puree
Next Post: Deviled Eggs Tips: Centering the Yolk & Medium Eggs »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Rosa

    August 3, 2011 at 10:31 pm

    A wonderful egg curry! That combination is mouthwatering.
    Cheers,
    Rosa

    Reply
  2. Andrea Nguyen

    August 4, 2011 at 8:00 am

    Thanks, Rosa!

    Reply
  3. Mzungu

    August 5, 2011 at 11:26 pm

    Looks good ….. Gonna give it a bash ……

    Reply
  4. febe n. borromeo

    August 6, 2011 at 9:14 am

    egg curry?ill give it a try…been cooking so many kinds of curry but this one is new,,,thank’s for posting….

    Reply
  5. Andrea Nguyen

    August 6, 2011 at 10:05 am

    Give egg curry a try. It is really interesting and you probably have most or all of the ingredients in hand!

    Reply
  6. Sodium lauryl sulfate

    August 11, 2011 at 11:05 pm

    So glad that you all enjoyed the photos and story. We were a lucky, well-fed family! It’s definitely a time to think about moms, being a mother, women we admire — all those good things.

    Reply
  7. chan

    August 17, 2011 at 5:56 am

    The curry looks very very delicious… It is absolutely a must try recipe! The ingredients are very easy to get in most supermarket. I think I’ll try it soon.

    Reply
  8. Diane

    August 17, 2011 at 8:12 pm

    I make egg curries a lot – for breakfast or a light supper. I make mine Kerala style, which is similar to this but no garlic – and lots of black pepper and more sweet spices (cloves, cardamom, fennel, cinnamon).

    Reply
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    August 20, 2011 at 1:22 am

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    Reply
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    December 26, 2011 at 3:39 am

    For man is man and master of his fate.

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    January 6, 2012 at 10:59 pm

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    January 9, 2012 at 11:52 pm

    Much cry and little wool.

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  13. GiGi Eats Celebrities

    April 17, 2012 at 8:40 pm

    THIS looks phenomenal!! I love cinnamon and eggs! 🙂

    Reply
  14. marlon

    April 20, 2012 at 6:42 am

    It is absolutely a must try recipe! The ingredients are very easy to get in most supermarket. I think I’ll try it soon.

    Reply
  15. Mr. Cooking Grill

    April 22, 2012 at 11:58 pm

    you are the best! I’m the greatest! you are invincible.

    Reply
  16. ARVIND BHAKRI.

    August 2, 2012 at 3:59 am

    I TRIED THE EGG CURRY RECIPE WITH POPPY SEED PASTE AND 1 MORE ONION, ADD THESE THINGS TO THE SAME RECIPE. I BLEIVE U WILL ENJOY THIS ALSO.

    Reply
  17. Satwik@private swimming Pools

    September 3, 2012 at 10:12 am

    My daughter is crazy about this recipe and would not mind eating a few more rotis than her usual course and we do not mind her doing so. Thanks Andrea for introducing this lovely diet.

    Reply
  18. pia

    February 9, 2013 at 6:42 am

    Thank you for superb ingredient. Freezing lasted therefore attained fabulous: -)
    Excellent blog page utilizing treat excellent recipes ourselves if you’re involved. I have a blog with cake recipes myself if you are interested. You can find it at http://recipes-for-food.com

    Reply
  19. Nithya

    June 16, 2013 at 2:07 pm

    Mouthwatering delicious egg curry..

    Reply

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