Over hard eggs are a delicious, quick, and protein packed breakfast. The yolk is cooked all the way through, making them perfect for a sandwich, on top of salads, or as the star next to sausage or crispy bacon.
There are so many ways to prepare and serve eggs. A few of our favorites are hard-boiled eggs, sunny-side-up eggs, and now these over hard eggs.
Over hard eggs have egg yolks that are cooked all the way through so there is a hard yolk, unlike over-easy eggs or over-medium eggs that have runny or jammy yolks. These are perfect for those that want the whites and yolk cooked all the way through.
This method has ended up becoming a favorite way of mine to prepare eggs and makes the most delicious breakfast. Pair them with fresh fruit or use them for breakfast sandwiches, on top of a breakfast pizza, for avocado toast, with a sourdough cheddar waffle.
Make these eggs perfectly every time with this easy step by step.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Simple – Heat up a skillet and cook. This super simple recipe is a great option on a busy morning.
Healthy – Packed with healthy fats like omega 3’s, folate, vitamin D, minerals, and more, eggs are a great source of protein.
Delicious – Full of rich, yummy, salty goodness, the completely cooked solid yolk offers a different texture and the best flavor compared to some other variations. Plus, the slightly crispy egg whites soak up the butter and seasoning and turn golden brown on the edges.
Ingredients for Over Hard Eggs
Eggs – Fresh eggs work best, and high quality pastured organic eggs are the best eggs. These have a beautiful bright yellow yolk.
Butter – I prefer to use butter for that classic buttery flavor. Lard and bacon grease work great, too. A neutral oil with a high smoke point, like avocado oil, works also, but it is not near as effective as an animal fat. I would not recommend olive oil.
A full ingredient list with exact amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
How To Make Over Hard Eggs
Step 1: Heat a skillet to low heat.
Step 2: Add about 1/2 tablespoon of butter and allow to melt.
Step 3: Crack the egg into a preheated cast iron skillet or nonstick pan, then break the yolk. Cook until the egg is almost cooked through.
Step 4: Turn off the skillet and flip the egg for the yolk to finish cooking all the way through. About 1-2 more minutes.
Step 5: Top with salt and pepper. Add herbs like parsley or thyme (optional).
Tips
- Make sure to heat the skillet first before adding the egg. This will help ensure it doesn’t stick, and gives a more even cook.
- Keep the skillet on low or medium-low heat at most. Cooking too high will cook the white too quickly, while not cooking the yolks enough. It will also potentially burn.
- Use a small, thin spatula, like this one from Rada cutlery because it is so much easier to flip eggs without breaking the yolk, since it is so small and wieldy. A rubber spatula will work as well.
Recipe FAQs
An over hard egg has a completely cooked yolk, so the yolk is a hard. A sunny side up egg is only cooked on one side, leaving the yolk runny, but the white mostly set.
Technically, no. A fried egg is fried in a frying pan or skillet, whereas an over hard egg has been fried in a pan or skillet until the yolk is completely cooked through. So, an over hard egg can be a fried egg, but not all fried eggs are over hard. It’s the whole every square is a rectangle, but not every rectangle is a square type of deal.
The four types of fried eggs are over easy, over hard, over medium, and sunny side up.
Over easy have been cooked on one side, then flipped and cooked briefly on the other side. The egg yolk is still a little runny.
Over-medium eggs are fried on one side, then flipped over and cooked briefly on the other side (longer than over easy), to cook the yolk slightly runny.
A sunny side up egg has only been cooked on one side. If you are a fan of runny yolks, this is for you!
Compare this to over hard, which is cooked longer and has a cooked-through firm yolk. None of those runny yolks here.
More Delicious Recipes From The Farmhouse
Over Hard Eggs
Ingredients
- 1/2 tablespoon butter
- 1 egg
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Fresh herbs, optional
Instructions
- Heat a skillet to low heat.
- Add about 1/2 tablespoon of butter and allow to melt.
- Crack the egg into a preheated cast iron skillet, then break the yolk.
- Cook until the egg is almost cooked through.
- Turn off the skillet and flip the egg for the yolk to finish cooking all the way through. About 1-2 more minutes.
- Top with salt and pepper.
- Add herbs like parsley or thyme (optional).
Notes
- Make sure to heat the skillet first before adding the egg. This will help ensure the egg doesn’t stick, and gives a more even cook.
- Keep the skillet on low or medium-low heat at most. Cooking too high will cook the white too quickly, while not cooking the yolks enough. It will also potentially burn the eggs.
- Use a small, thin spatula because it is so much easier to flip eggs without breaking the yolk, since it is so small and wieldy. A rubber spatula will work as well.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Over hard egg is my favorite appetizer! This one is a must make!
Definitely a good primer on all the types of fried eggs. I’m with you, I think I prefer scrambled the most. Although I admit I’ve become a sunny side up person when I’m not doing scrambled which is funny because I hated the runny yolk when I was younger but appreciate it more now.
I didn’t know there was a difference. Love this info, now I know what it is called whenever I fry an egg. My favorite is sunny side up and eggs over easy. When it is eggs over hard, I pass the yolk to someone else…lol
This is my favorite way to eat fried eggs because I hate a runny yolk lol. I always forget what they’re called when I’m in a restaurant so I have to explain how they’re made. Just a little salt and pepper and they are so delicious!
We love our eggs cooked this way! Years ago someone showed me a trick that, for me, is integral to making the best overhard eggs: To break the yoke, gently slide the prongs of a fork (held parallel to the egg) into the yolk, as close to the pan as you can get without disturbing the white.
Love that! Thanks for sharing that tip. I’ll have to try that next time.