Lekker Brekker Monday: Smashed peas on toast with a fried egg

Here’s an unusual breakfast recipe that’s sufficiently filling but not so much that you feel you’ve overindulged. You can either enjoy it as it is, or top it with a fried or poached egg – or two.

I always use frozen peas, which are undeniably the best frozen vegetable. The freezing keeps them at optimum freshness, and in any case, it’s not every day you find fresh peas in the stores.

But if you do use fresh peas, the recipe is exactly the same. Just remove them from their pods, of course.

It’s important to work quickly once the peas have been blanched, as they may still lose some of their lovely bright green hue.

Ingredients

2 cups frozen (or fresh, podded) peas

3 or 4 fresh mint leaves

Water to cover

To finish:

Juice of half a lemon

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tbsp chopped mint leaves

2 or 3 spring onions, chopped

Zest of half a lemon

4 slices of toasted ciabatta

Butter for the toast

2 to 4 eggs, fried in butter

Salt and black pepper

Method

Toast the ciabatta and have the toast ready, on plates.

Have a frying pan at the ready, too, with butter in it, so you can fry the eggs quickly.

Boil a pot of water and add the peas. Bring to a boil and cook for 3 minutes.

Drain through a sieve or colander and immediately run cold water through.

Place them in a bowl and squeeze lemon juice over. Toss or stir gently.

Add the olive oil, grated lemon juice and chopped mint.

Mash them as well as you wish to. I mashed them mildly, but you can really smush them for a more thoroughly mushy finish.

Fry the eggs and put one on top of each slice of toasted ciabatta, or share one egg over two slices, as I did. Sprinkle chopped spring onion over. Season with salt and black pepper. DM

Tony Jackman is twice winner of the Galliova Food Writer of the Year award, in 2021 and 2023.

Follow Tony Jackman on Instagram @tony_jackman_cooks.

This dish is photographed on a plate by Mervyn Gers Ceramics.