I haven’t been able to stop thinking about salted egg yolk french toast since I got back from Hong Kong. So last week when I found myself with some stale sourdough and a jar of leftover salted egg yolks from making Joong, I knew it was time to recreate it! In Hong Kong the french toast is normally made with milk bread, stuffed with a salted egg yolk molten lava cake like filling, and deep fried… so this is not exactly the same thing. But you gotta use what you got and I have no time to engineer the lava filling right now (manuscript deadline looming!). So here’s a more casual salted egg yolk french toast, one that comes together quickly!

You can buy salted egg yolks at a Chinese grocery store or make them yourself. I have a recipe in Mooncakes and Milk Bread and also shared the process on IG a few days ago! Salted egg yolks work in both savory and sweet recipes. I especially love them in custard based desserts because there are already eggs for the buttery and rich flavor of the salted egg yolks to play off of. It’s so good! Should I share some savory recipes for salted egg yolks too?

Salted Egg Yolk French Toast

serves 2 to 4

4 large eggs

1 cup whole milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon coarse salt

2 salted egg yolks

4 slices of stale crusty bread, brioche or milk bread

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

strawberries, for serving

maple syrup, for serving

1. In a shallow bowl, whisk to combine eggs, milk, vanilla, and salt. Grate in 1 salted egg yolk and mix to combine.

2. Dip 1 to 2 slices of bread (whatever fits in your bowl) in the eggy mixture, soak both sides for a few minutes to absorb.

3. In a large cast iron skillet, melt 1 tablespoon of butter over medium heat. Once melted, add two slices of soaked toasted (soak the remaining slices while these cook). Cook until the bottom is crisp and golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Flip and cook the other side until crisp and golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the french toast to a platter and cook remaining slices. Add remaining butter into the pan.

4. Top the french toast with strawberries and grate the remaining salted egg yolk over top. Serve with warm maple syrup!