MedRiseFood Science
Science-backed recipe

Egg Curry: Golden Eggs in Onion-Tomato Masala

Also called Anda Curry · Anda Masala · अंडा करी · انڈا کری

Lunch & dinnerInstant Pot

Easy-peel hard-boiled eggs, fried golden with turmeric and chili, simmered in a spiced onion-tomato gravy.

In short

Egg curry is hard-boiled eggs in an onion-tomato masala, a quick high-protein main with about 14 g protein per serving.

From the MedRise Food Science kitchenPublished
Active
40 min
Prep
10 min
Total
40 min
Serves
4
Jump to recipeRead the science
Egg curry with golden-fried eggs in onion-tomato gravy

Why this recipe works

  • ✓
    Easy-peel eggsInstant Pot 5-5-5.
  • ✓
    Golden skinFried in turmeric and chili.
  • ✓
    The Indian baseIn order.
  • ✓
    High proteinTwo eggs per serving.

What is egg curry?

Anda curry is hard-boiled eggs in a spiced gravy, a quick, high-protein weeknight curry across India and Pakistan.

Meet the ingredients

The main ingredients, with their English, Hindi and Urdu names.

Eggs

अंडाانڈا
anḍā

Large.

Its job: The protein.

Grow it yourself: Tomatoes, Cilantro (dhania), Methi (fenugreek), Garlic, Ginger

The lab notes

The science behind every step

Restaurant cooks do these things by habit. Here’s what each step is actually doing to the food, so you can cook by understanding instead of guesswork.

Lab note01

Why pressure-cooked eggs peel easily

Pressure cook 5 minutes, rest 5, ice 5.

Fast, high heat sets the white before it bonds tightly to the shell membrane, so the shell slips off.

Lab note02

Score the eggs

Make shallow cuts before frying.

Scoring gives the gravy a way in and makes more surface to brown.

Lab note03

The Indian base order

Cumin, then onions, ginger-garlic, salt and powdered spices, tomatoes, and garam masala last.

Each step cooks in the order its flavor needs: whole cumin blooms in hot fat, onions brown and sweeten, ginger-garlic loses its raw edge, ground spices toast for seconds without burning, tomatoes cook down until the oil separates, and garam masala goes in last so its aroma survives.

Technique, step by step

How to peel tomatoes, the food-science way

Score, blanch for 30–60 seconds, chill in ice water, and the skins slip right off. Peeled tomatoes cook into a smoother, silkier masala with no chewy flecks of skin.

  1. Scoring a shallow X on the bottom of a ripe tomato with a paring knife
    1. ScoreCut a shallow X through the skin on the bottom of each tomato.
  2. Scored tomatoes in boiling water with the skins starting to split at the X
    2. BlanchLower the tomatoes into rolling boiling water (a saucepan, or the Instant Pot on Sauté, More/High) for 30–60 seconds, just until the skin at the X starts to split.
  3. Blanched tomatoes going into an ice-water bath with their skins loosened
    3. ChillLift them straight into a bowl of ice water for about 1 minute.
  4. Slipping the loosened skin off a blanched tomato
    4. PeelStarting at the X, slip the skins off with your fingers. Cut out the core, then chop or blend.

Why peel at all?

Tomato skin is a tough, waxy layer that doesn’t break down with cooking; in a long-cooked masala it curls into chewy flecks. The skin is also where almost all of a tomato’s flavonoids sit, mainly naringenin chalcone and rutin, the kind of plant compounds that can taste faintly bitter or astringent. Texture is the bigger, better-proven reason, but peeled tomatoes give the smoothest, cleanest-tasting gravy.

Why the boiling water works

A short plunge heats only the outer layer. The heat weakens the pectin that glues the skin to the flesh, and steam forming underneath pushes the skin away, so it splits and curls back at the X while the flesh inside stays raw and firm.

Why the ice bath

Ice water stops the cooking at once, so the flesh doesn’t turn soft and mushy, and makes the tomatoes cool enough to peel right away. More than about a minute in the boiling water starts to cook the flesh.

Sources: National Center for Home Food Preservation: Put It Up! Boiling Water Canning · Muir et al., Nature Biotechnology (2001): flavonoids in tomato peel

How to make it, at a glance

  1. Pressure cook the eggsPlace the eggs on the trivet with 1 cup water. Pressure cook on Low (or High) for 5 minutes, natural release 5 minutes, then into ice water for 5 minutes. Peel.
  2. Fry the eggsScore each egg lightly. Select Sauté, heat the oil and fry the eggs with the turmeric, chili and salt until golden spots form, 2–3 minutes. Remove.
  3. Cumin and onionsSelect Sauté (More). Heat the ghee, add the cumin seeds until they sizzle, then the onions until deep golden, 8–10 minutes.
  4. Ginger-garlic, then spicesAdd the ginger-garlic paste for 1 minute, then the salt, chili, turmeric and coriander for 30 seconds.
  5. TomatoesAdd the tomatoes and cook until thick and the oil separates, 5–6 minutes.
  6. SimmerAdd the water and kasuri methi, bring to a simmer, add the eggs and cook 5 minutes.
  7. FinishStir in the garam masala and cilantro. Serve with rice, roti or paratha.

Exact amounts and timings are in the recipe card below.

Health & nutrition

Health benefits, honestly rated

An inexpensive protein main.

Macros per serving

Calories300
Protein14 g
Carbs10 g
Fat23 g
Fiber2 g
Sodium830 mg

4.7 g protein per 100 calories. Estimated from the ingredients with USDA FoodData Central values.

Gym-friendly tip: Already high in protein. For a leaner plate, serve with salad and roti instead of rice, and use skinless thighs or breast.

Well established

Complete protein and choline

Two eggs per serving.

Keep in mind

  • Eggs are a common allergen.

General nutrition information, not medical advice. Numbers marked “estimated” are calculated from the recipe’s ingredients and vary with brands and portions. If you have diabetes, heart or kidney disease, a food allergy, or are pregnant, ask your doctor or a registered dietitian how this dish fits your diet.

Health sources: NIH Office of Dietary Supplements: Choline

See the full ingredient health guide: benefits, traditional roots and the science →

Questions, answered

How do I make eggs easy to peel?

Instant Pot 5-5-5: 5 minutes pressure, 5 minutes natural release, 5 minutes in ice water.

Can I boil the eggs on the stove?

Yes: 10–11 minutes at a simmer, then ice water.

About MedRise Food Science

Desi restaurant favorites, recreated at home and explained with food science: every recipe is tested in a home kitchen and comes with the why behind each step.

Egg curry with golden-fried eggs in onion-tomato gravy
Recipe card

Egg Curry

Instant Pot egg curry: Instant Pot hard-boiled eggs, lightly fried in turmeric and chili, simmered in a Punjabi onion-tomato masala. High-protein, easy and budget-friendly.

Prep10 minCook30 minTotal40 minServes4 servings

Ingredients

Eggs

Indian base

To finish

Instructions (Instant Pot)

  1. Pressure cook the eggsPlace the eggs on the trivet with 1 cup water. Pressure cook on Low (or High) for 5 minutes, natural release 5 minutes, then into ice water for 5 minutes. Peel.
  2. Fry the eggsScore each egg lightly. Select Sauté, heat the oil and fry the eggs with the turmeric, chili and salt until golden spots form, 2–3 minutes. Remove.
  3. Cumin and onionsSelect Sauté (More). Heat the ghee, add the cumin seeds until they sizzle, then the onions until deep golden, 8–10 minutes.
  4. Ginger-garlic, then spicesAdd the ginger-garlic paste for 1 minute, then the salt, chili, turmeric and coriander for 30 seconds.
  5. TomatoesAdd the tomatoes and cook until thick and the oil separates, 5–6 minutes.
  6. SimmerAdd the water and kasuri methi, bring to a simmer, add the eggs and cook 5 minutes.
  7. FinishStir in the garam masala and cilantro. Serve with rice, roti or paratha.

Notes

Storage
Refrigerate up to 3 days.

Equipment

  • Instant Pot (6 qt) with trivet

Course: Main Course · Cuisine: Punjabi, Indian, Pakistani
MedRise Food Science

Sources & further reading