Frisee Salad with Lardons, Croutons and Poached Egg

What you need

• 250 g (9 oz) frisee, 1 large head, pale inner leaves
• 200 g (7 oz) slab bacon, cut into lardons about 1 cm thick
• 100 g (3 1/2 oz) day-old baguette, or country bread, cut into 1.5 cm cubes
• 4 large eggs, very fresh
• 1 tbsp white vinegar, for poaching
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• salt, to taste
• black pepper, freshly ground, to taste

Method

Restated from the original video

1. 1

   Tear the frisee into bite-size pieces, wash and spin it dry, then put it in a large bowl.

2. 2

   Put the lardons in a cold frying pan over medium heat. Cook, stirring now and then, until golden and crisp, 8-10 min. Lift them onto paper towels.

3. 3

   Fry the bread cubes in the same fat, turning them, until golden on all sides, 3-4 min. Drain them next to the lardons.

4. 4

   Pour off all but about 2 tbsp of fat from the pan and set it aside.

5. 5

   Fill a wide saucepan with 8 cm (3 in) of water, add the white vinegar and bring it to a bare simmer.

6. 6

   Crack each of the eggs into a small cup and slide them gently into the water one at a time.

7. 7

   Poach for 3-4 min, until the whites are set and the yolks are still runny. Lift out with a slotted spoon and drain on a paper towel.

8. 8

   The yolks stay runny, so use pasteurized eggs if serving anyone young, elderly, pregnant or immunocompromised.

9. 9

   Set the pan with the fat over low heat and cook the shallot for 30 seconds.

10. 10

    Take the pan off the heat, add the red wine vinegar and scrape the bottom. Whisk in the mustard and olive oil, then season with salt and black pepper.

11. 11

    Pour the warm dressing over the frisee, add the lardons and bread cubes and toss.

12. 12

    Divide among 4 plates, set a poached egg on each, grind over more pepper and serve at once.

Imported from debskitchen.com. Recipe Grab pulled out what you need to cook it; the video stays where its author put it.