Over Medium

In my last post, I said:

"The cafe didn't know how to cook an egg 'medium easy' for Eric which disappointed him."

I stand corrected (thanks for the catch Eric!). It's "over medium". Whoops! Told you I didn't know what the heck "over medium" was.

And now I know....

North Americans may choose among the following methods:

• 'Over well', 'Over hard', also called 'hard' — cooked on both sides until the yolk has solidified.
• 'Over medium' — cooked on both sides; the yolk is of medium consistency and the egg white is thoroughly cooked.
• 'Over easy', also called 'runny' — cooked on both sides; the yolk is a thin liquid, while the egg white is partially cooked. This is occasionally called 'sunny side down.' These are also commonly referred to as 'dippy eggs' or 'dip eggs' by Marylanders and by Pennsylvania Dutch persons living in southern Pennsylvania, mainly due to the practice of dipping toast into the yolk while eating. Also called 'treasure eggs' in southwestern Pennsylvania.
• 'Sunny side up' — cooked only on one side; yolk is liquid (the oil or fat may be used to baste the sunny side, however.) The egg white is often still rather runny as well. This is often known simply as 'eggs up'. Covering the frying pan with a lid throughout cooking allows for a less "runny" egg.
• Another style known simply as 'Fried' - eggs are fried on both sides with the yolks broken until set or hard. These are common in fried egg sandwiches and in Asian cuisine.

Who knew eggs could get so complicated?