Pork Benedict with a Touch of Heat

Did you give those Pork Carnitas a try? Hope so. If not, please do. You’ll need the reserved pork for this recipe. Truth be told, Carnitas Eggs Benedict is the real reason I made the shredded pork in the first place.

I adore breakfast. Back in the day, when global travel was a part of our lives, often I selected a hotel based on it’s breakfast presentation. And no, I don’t mean a Holiday Inn with a complimentary waffle iron. I mean a chef that knows his or her way around the breakfast table with flair. One of my favorites had to be Egg Benedict. Not an easy task. Not only do the egg need to be cooked perfectly (whites fully cooked with yolks of liquid gold), but the Hollandaise sauce had to be silky smooth. Perfection is hard to come by on a massive scale. At home it’s easy to scrap a mistake and begin again, but with an entire restaurant waiting, perfection is mush more difficult. Yes, I guess I’m a bit of a breakfast snob. And I do admire the skills of a seasoned chef.

Hubby thought I was kidding when I told him I wanted to make Pork Carnitas so we could have Carnitas Benedict. Really? You are cooking dinner to get leftovers for breakfast? Sure. It’s no crazier than making extra mashed potatoes for mashed potato pancakes the next day, right? Or roasting extra potatoes for skillet potatoes at breakfast. We’ve saved steak for the next morning, so why not pork roast?

Before we get started, I have a little disclaimer of sorts. You might notice that one of the eggs in the poacher has a broken yolk. That one is for Kiddo. Eggs, all eggs, must be hard cooked. Dry scrambled eggs. Broken yolks on the fried eggs that are then flipped and cooked hard. Same goes for a poached egg. What can I say about Kiddo’s egg preferences except to each their own. I’m just as picky. If the whites are even a little undercooked, I’ll pass. It’s such a fine line between perfect, over or under cooked when it comes to eggs. Timing is everything. And that comes from years of trial and error. Sometimes mere seconds in either direction can make all the difference in the world.

Just a few additional notes before we get started – having a thermos filled with hot water will allow you to hold the Hollandaise Sauce beautifully until just that right moment. Spicy guacamole is also a must. It brings the entire dish together. Enough rambling. It’s time to make an amazing Eggs Benedict. Oh, and one more thing. Today is Have Ice Cream For Breakfast Day. I’d rather have eggs smothered in Hollandaise sauce. But that’s just me.

Carnitas Eggs Benedict
Carnitas Benedict
6 oz Pork Carnitas
2 English Muffins
4 tablespoons Spicy Guacamole

Set 1 oven rack in the middle and another rack about 6 inches from the top. Heat the oven’s broiler. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.

Place carnitas in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Place on the top rack under the heated broiler and reheat until edges of carnitas beginning to crisp, about 3 or 4 minutes.

Toast English Muffin halves. Remove from toaster, wrap in foil.

Remove Carnitas from oven, wrap in foil. Turn broiler off. Lower oven to about 200 degrees. Keep toasted muffins and pork warm in the oven until ready to assemble.

Chipotle Hollandaise Sauce
4 Egg Yolks
1/2 tablespoon Lime Juice
1/2 teaspoon Chipotle Powder
10 tablespoons Butter

Fill a thermoses with boiling hot water.

Place egg yolks in the blender. Add lime juice and chipotle seasoning. Blend on low.

Melt butter. Pour in a slow, steady stream into the blender while blender is running.

Empty water from thermoses. Pour Hollandaise Sauce into the thermoses, set aside to keep warm.

Poached Eggs and Finishing Touches
4 Eggs
Salt to taste
Black Pepper to taste
Cilantro for Garnish
Pickled Red Onions, optional garnish

Heat water in the bottom of egg poacher. Spray cups, place over water base.

Crack 1 egg into a small ramekin. Pour into the cup of the poacher. Repeat with remaining 3 eggs. Cover and let eggs “poach” until the whites are set while the yolks are runny. Season as desired.

To Assemble and Serve
Place an English Muffin on each plate. Spread a tablespoon of guacamole on each muffin, top each with a rounded mound of carnitas. Gently place a poached egg on top, then drizzle of Hollandaise Sauce. Garnish with onions and cilantro as desired. Serve and enjoy.