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1
Clean the Pito Flowers
10 Mins
Room temperature, about 20°C (68°F)
Work through the pito flowers one by one: pull the red petals and tender green buds away from the tough central stem, and pick out the hard green centre inside each flower. Drop the cleaned petals into a bowl of cold water, swish them around, and lift them out, leaving any grit behind.
The hard green centre is the bitter part — if you leave it in, the whole scramble tastes bitter.
Done when: A bowl of clean red petals and green buds, with no stems, hard centres or grit.
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2
Blanch the Flowers
5 Mins
Boiling water at 100°C (212°F)
Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil, add a pinch of salt and the cleaned flowers, and boil for 4 minutes until they turn soft and olive-green. Drain them in a colander, rinse once with cold water, and press them gently with a spoon to squeeze out as much water as you can.
Squeeze the flowers well — wet flowers water down the scramble and stop the eggs from setting into soft curds.
Done when: Flowers soft, darkened to olive-green, and wrung almost dry.
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3
Sauté the Tomato, Onion and Chilli
5 Mins
Medium heat, about 160°C (320°F)
Heat the oil in a wide pan over medium heat. Add the diced onion and chilli and fry for 2 minutes until the onion turns soft, then add the tomato and cook for 3 minutes more, stirring, until the tomato softens and its juice thickens slightly.
Let the tomato juice cook down a little before the eggs go in, or the scramble will be watery.
Done when: Onion soft and translucent; tomato softened with most of its juice cooked down.
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4
Scramble in the Eggs and Flowers
4 Mins
Medium-low heat, about 140°C (285°F); eggs cooked to 71°C (160°F)
Stir the blanched pito flowers into the pan, then pour in the beaten eggs. Cook over medium-low heat, pushing the eggs gently from the edges to the centre with a spatula so soft curds form around the flowers. Cook until the eggs are just set and still look slightly glossy — about 4 minutes — then stir in the cilantro.
Take the pan off the heat while the curds still look a little wet; they keep cooking for a minute and finish soft instead of dry.
Done when: Soft, moist curds with the flowers folded through; no runny egg and no dry, browned bits.
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5
Rest a Minute and Serve
1 Min
Off the heat; serve hot, about 60°C (140°F)
Let the pan sit off the heat for 1 minute so the curds settle, then spoon the scramble straight onto warm plates, about 175 g per person, and serve at once.
Serve it immediately — scrambled eggs go cold and firm fast, and this dish is at its best straight from the pan.
Done when: Hot, soft scramble on warm plates, ready to eat with tortillas.
auto_awesome Finishing Touches & Plating
Spoon the scramble onto warm plates straight from the pan, about 175 g per person, and serve at once with tortillas and beans while the curds are still soft and glossy.
El Salvador
1h 15m
