From Hannibal · 2013-2015 · Reconstructed
Protein Scramble
Serve when
Hannibal sets the pan down in Will's kitchen the morning after a bad night — breakfast as a house call.
In the series
Season 1
- S1E1 · ~00:06:30 Hannibal cooks Will breakfast at Will's own house, calling it a 'protein scramble' while gently interrogating him about the Minnesota Shrike case.
In the series
This is the first thing we ever see Hannibal cook, and it sets the whole show's table manners: warm, attentive, faintly proprietary hospitality delivered into someone else's kitchen without being asked. The dish itself is plain on purpose — eggs and browned meat, nothing plated for effect — which is exactly why the show can later use "protein" as a loaded word without ever changing its tone.
Ingredients
Method
- Brown the ground pork in a skillet over medium heat, breaking it into small, even crumbles, until no pink remains (160 F for ground pork). Drain off excess fat and set the meat aside.
- Melt the butter in the same skillet over low heat and sweat the shallot until soft, about 2 minutes.
- Whisk the eggs with a pinch of salt, pour them into the skillet, and stir slowly and constantly with a spatula so the curds stay soft and small.
- Fold the browned meat back in just before the eggs finish setting, so it stays distributed rather than sinking to the bottom.
- Plate immediately, finish with chives and a crack of pepper, and serve while the eggs are still glossy.
Substitutions
- Ground pork: Ground veal or a fine dice of cooked breakfast sausage both browns and crumbles the same way. Keep the pieces small — this is a scramble, not a hash.