Savory Bean and Egg Breakfast Bowl
Warm beans and rice under two eggs and a spoonful of salsa, assembled from pantry staples and last night's leftovers — a savory breakfast that costs pennies and eats like a full meal.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup cooked black, pinto or white beans drained and rinsed
- 1/2 cup cooked rice or roasted potatoes
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup salsa
- 2 tablespoons shredded cheese optional
- 1/4 avocado sliced, optional
- 1 green onion sliced, optional
Instructions
- Combine the beans, rice or potatoes and the water in a small saucepan or microwave-safe bowl. Season with the salt and pepper.
- Warm over medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring, until heated through. The splash of water keeps the rice from drying out and loosens the beans.
- While that heats, warm the oil in a small skillet over medium heat and cook the eggs the way you prefer them. Fried with a soft yolk works best, because the yolk becomes the sauce.
- Spoon the warm beans and rice into a bowl and slide the eggs on top.
- Add the salsa, then any of the optional toppings.
- Break the yolks into the bowl before eating so everything is coated.
Notes
Keep the toppings flexible. Salsa, hot sauce, leftover vegetables or a small amount of cheese add plenty of flavor without requiring a separate shopping trip.
Dried beans are the cheapest protein in the store by a wide margin. A pound cooks up to roughly six cups, which is twelve servings of this bowl.
Cook a pound of dried beans on a weekend and freeze them in half-cup portions. They thaw in the pan in a couple of minutes and cost a fraction of canned.
If using canned beans, rinse them. It removes a surprising amount of the sodium and improves the flavor.
Any cooked grain works in place of rice: leftover quinoa, barley, farro, even pasta.
A fried egg over leftovers is the whole idea. Once it is in the rotation, almost anything in the fridge becomes a breakfast.