Poached Eggs with Red Wine Sauce

Cook Time 30 minutes

Ingredients

Onion confit
3 onions, very finely sliced
20g butter
Pinch nutmeg
Salt

2/3 bottle of full bodied red wine
2 French shallots, finely chopped
½ a carrot, boiled until tender then pureed with a little of the cooking liquid
80g butter, chilled and cut into cubes

4 eggs, extra fresh
30ml white vinegar
120g of speck
½ bunch chives, finely chopped

Method

Prepare the onion confit by placing the onions, salt and butter in a deep pan over medium heat. Once it starts to sizzle turn the heat to low, place the lid on and very gently cook for 1 hour or until soft. Stir regularly to ensure even cooking.

For the sauce, put the wine in a medium saucepan, bring to the boil and reduce by half. Now add the shallots and reduce again over a medium heat by half. The reduction should now almost be syrupy.  Now add the pureed carrot to the sauce and pass through a fine sieve into a clean small saucepan. Reserve.

Cook the speck in a frypan until crispy and drain excess fat on paper towelling.

In a large saucepan bring water and the vinegar to the boil, then, turn down to a simmer. Gently crack eggs in a glass, one at a time and slip into the water. Poach for 3 minutes until just set, then with a slotted spoon remove from the water and drain on paper towel. Season the eggs with salt.

To finish the sauce, bring the strained sauce to the boil and reduce to about 3 tablespoons. Remove from the heat and while still hot whisk in small cubes of the cold butter, adding more cubes once the last is incorporated. At this point you not bring the sauce back to the boil however you may gently heat it.

To serve, spoon a tablespoon of the onion confit on each plate then drizzle sauce. Arrange the egg next to the onion mound along with the bacon lardons and chives. Serve with crusty bread.