Eggs en Cocotte with Black Truffle and Crispy Pancetta

A dish that speaks of autumn

Eggs en cocotte with black truffle are one of those dishes that seem difficult but are almost impossible to get wrong: exceptional ingredients, attention to detail, and a little patience. The result is a just-set white, a still-liquid yolk perfumed with truffle — the quintessential autumn mouthful.

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 4 very fresh eggs (organic if possible)
• 25–30 g fresh black uncinato truffle
• 80 g thinly sliced pancetta
• 4 tablespoons full-fat cream
• 20 g butter
• Sea salt and black pepper to taste
• Toasted bread to serve

Method

Preheat the oven to 180°C fan or 190°C conventional. Bring a roasting tray of water to a simmer for the bain-marie.

Prepare the ramekins: Butter 4 cocotte dishes or ramekins generously. Place 2–3 thin truffle slices on the bottom of each. Add one tablespoon of cream.

Crisp the pancetta: In a dry non-stick pan over medium-high heat, fry the pancetta for 2–3 minutes per side until crisp. Drain on kitchen paper.

Assemble: Carefully crack one egg into each ramekin over the cream and truffle. Season the white with salt (not the yolk). Add pancetta fragments to the sides.

Bain-marie cook: Place ramekins in the tray of hot water (water should reach halfway up). Bake for 10–12 minutes: the white should be just set, the yolk still trembling.

Serve: Remove from oven and top with freshly shaved black truffle. Serve immediately with toasted bread soldiers.

Summer truffle variation

Out of season, the same recipe works beautifully with summer truffle (scorzone) or our black truffle cream: add a teaspoon of cream in place of fresh shavings for an equally fragrant result.