Hoja Santa leaves cooking in olive oil
Fried Eggs with Hoja Santa
Fried Eggs With Hoja Santa
by Victoria Challancin
OK. I know. This dish is humble. It's no beauty either. But it is delicious--absolutely delicious. Ever since I hauled an hoja santa plant back to San Miguel de Allende from Oaxaca, in the south of Mexico, I have looked for new ways to serve it. I even wrote an article for the local newspaper about it. One of my favorite local restaurants, Posada Corazon, makes their signature egg dish with hoja santa as a wrapping for fried eggs--lovely. Because my plant is in a pot, however, the leaves are small, not large enough for wrapping more than a disk of goat's cheese for grilling. But as a simple base for cooked eggs or fish, the leaves from my plant work just fine.
Sometimes simplicity is best. Sautéd in a tiny bit of olive oil, these leaves really shine. The unusual root beer flavor jumps out with just a hint of heat. Sauté the leaves for about 30 seconds, drain on paper towels, plate, and top with fried or poached eggs, salt and pepper. What could be easier? Or better.
Wow. I learned something I thought was not ate able! My mom used to use this herb for medicine up in the Andes of Peru, but I had forgotten about it. She made medicine teas with it, but I don't remember her cooking with it. Thank you very much for the article.
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