Huevos En Camisa
"Póngase á hervir en una cazuela y á fue go vivo una poca de agua con una poca de sal y un chorro de vinagre; cuando hierva á borbollones se rompen los huevos uno tras otro dejándose caer de arriba de la ca zuela hirviente, procurando caigan enteros para que queden las yemas envueltas con la clara que desde luego cuajarán en me nos de un minuto si el agua no deja de her vir. Cuando la yema no se ha solidificado se saca el huevo con una espumadera, y se tiene preparada de antemano una salsa, según el gusto, en la que se bañarán los huevos al servirse á la mesa."
English Translation
"Put some water with a little salt and a splash of vinegar in a pan and bring to a rapid boil over high heat; when it is boiling vigorously, break the eggs one by one and let them drop from above into the boiling pan, making sure they remain whole so that the yolks are enveloped by the whites, which will immediately set in less than a minute if the water keeps boiling. When the yolk has not solidified, remove the egg with a slotted spoon, and have a sauce prepared in advance, to taste, in which the eggs will be bathed when served at the table."
Note on the Original Text
The recipe is written in a conversational, almost oral tradition style, with generous assumptions about the cook’s intuition and familiarity with visual cues like 'borbollones' (rolling boils). Spelling reflects late 19th-century Mexican Spanish, with forms like 'á' for 'a' and the use of 'cazuela' instead of simply 'cacerola.' Ingredient measures are delightfully vague ('poca de agua,' 'poca de sal'), trusting the reader to extrapolate based on experience and household size. Such brevity is typical of recipes meant for cooks managing bustling kitchens and varied appetites.
Title
La Cocina en el Bolsillo No. 12 (1890)
You can also click the book image above to peruse the original tome
Writer
Antonio Vanegas Arroyo
Era
1890
Publisher
Unknown
Background
A delightful pocket-sized treasure from the numbered series 'Cocina en el Bolsillo', this volume serves up a tempting array of recipes, inviting culinary enthusiasts on a tasteful journey through a variety of traditional foods.
Kindly made available by
University of Texas at San Antonio
This recipe for 'Huevos en Camisa' (literally 'Eggs in a Shirt') hails from late 19th-century Mexico City, as recorded in Antonio Vanegas Arroyo's 'La Cocina en el Bolsillo No. 12' from 1890. Part of a popular pocket-sized series designed for the urban home cook, this book showcases how common European culinary techniques like poaching found their way into Mexican kitchens during the Porfiriato era, where French culinary influence was keenly felt. The approach reflects the era's desire for refinement and Europeanization, promoting light, digestible dishes ideal for breakfast or a light lunch. While sauces are left 'to taste,' this echoes the flexibility of period cooking, where pantry supplies and personal palettes varied widely.
The original preparation would have used a cazuela, a wide, earthenware or enameled metal pan, heated over a lively coal-fired or wood-burning stove. Water would be boiled directly over an open flame. Eggs were perhaps gathered fresh that morning. A long-handled spoon, often perforated (the 'espumadera'), served to both handle the eggs and remove any scum from the water. No modern gadgets were required—just a keen eye, steady hand, and a sense for timing drawn from habit rather than timers.
Prep Time
3 mins
Cook Time
1 min
Servings
4
We've done our best to adapt this historical recipe for modern kitchens, but some details may still need refinement. We warmly welcome feedback from fellow cooks and culinary historians — your insights support the entire community!
Ingredients
- 4 cups water
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 tablespoons vinegar (white or apple cider)
- 4 fresh eggs (or as desired)
- Sauce of choice to serve (such as tomato sauce or melted butter)
Instructions
- Bring about 4 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat.
- Add a generous pinch (about 2 teaspoons) of salt and a splash (about 2 tablespoons) of vinegar to the water.
- When the water is at a vigourous boil, crack eggs one by one and gently slide them into the water, taking care not to brake the yolks.
- Allow the eggs to cook for less than a minute, just until the whites have set but the yolks are still soft.
- The water should maintain its boil throughout to ensure the whites wrap neatly around the yolks.
- Use a slotted spoon to retrieve the eggs as soon as the whites are set and the yolks are still runny.
- Serve immediately with a sauce of choice, such as a simple tomato sauce or a buttery dressing.
Estimated Calories
70 per serving
Cooking Estimates
You can prepare and cook poached eggs quickly. It takes just a few minutes to get your ingredients ready, and cooking each egg only takes about 1 minute. Each serving gives you one delicious poached egg, which is low in calories.
As noted above, we have made our best effort to translate and adapt this historical recipe for modern kitchens, taking into account ingredients nowadays, cooking techniques, measurements, and so on. However, historical recipes often contain assumptions that require interpretation.
We'd love for anyone to help improve these adaptations. Community contributions are highly welcome. If you have suggestions, corrections, or cooking tips based on your experience with this recipe, please share them below.
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