Chicory Stoemp & Fried Egg

📝 Ingredients

• 900 g floury potatoes (6 medium, about 150 g each)
• 4 heads of chicory (Belgian endive, about 125 g each)
• 1 brown onion (about 100 g)
• 20 g unsalted butter (10 for the chicory, 10 for the stoemp)
• 1 tsp caster sugar
• 150 ml semi-skimmed milk
• 6 eggs
• 1 tbsp rapeseed oil
• Salt, black pepper, nutmeg

🍴 Utensils

• Large saucepan
• Large non-stick frying pan with lid
• Potato masher
• Peeler
• Spatula

📖 Steps

1. Peel the potatoes and cut into evenly sized pieces (about 4 cm). Put them in a large pan of cold salted water, bring to the boil, then cook at a gentle boil for 15 to 20 minutes, until the tip of a knife slides in without resistance.
2. Meanwhile, remove any damaged leaves from the chicory, trim the base and use the tip of a knife to cut out the small hard core at the bottom, where the bitterness is concentrated. Slice the chicory into 1 cm strips and the onion thinly.
3. Melt 10 g butter in the large frying pan over a medium heat. Add the onion and chicory, season lightly with salt, cover and leave to soften for 10 minutes, stirring now and then: they'll release their liquid and turn translucent.
4. Remove the lid, sprinkle with the sugar and cook for another 8 to 10 minutes over a medium-high heat, stirring often, until the liquid has evaporated and the chicory is soft and golden in places. Turn the heat down if it starts to blacken: burnt bits make the bitterness harsh.
5. Drain the potatoes and return them to the hot pan for 1 minute over a low heat to steam off the moisture. Heat the milk (1 minute in the microwave). Roughly crush with a potato masher, pouring in the hot milk and 10 g butter: there should still be some lumps.
6. Stir in the caramelised chicory and its juices, grate in 3 or 4 scrapes of nutmeg and season with salt and pepper. Mix with a spoon, taste and adjust the seasoning, then cover the pan to keep the stoemp warm off the heat.
7. Wipe out the frying pan with kitchen paper and heat it over a medium-low heat with the oil. Crack the eggs one at a time into a bowl before sliding them into the pan (in two batches if it's small). Cover and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, until the whites are set and the yolks still glossy.
8. Lightly salt the whites, not the yolks (salt leaves spots on them). Divide the stoemp into domes on 3 warm plates, top each with 2 fried eggs, add a grind of pepper and serve straight away.