He had decided to prepare a special breakfast. After all, It was the only thing he had left, given the circumstances. If he didn't take care of himself, who was going to do it?, it was said. That occasional habit took him back to his distant childhood years.. in your memory, There was no greater pleasure than sitting at the kitchen table at dinner time and finding yourself on the white china plate., perfect, immaculate, a beautiful fried egg.
He opened the refrigerator and, after taking a look at their stocks, He took the cardboard box that was on the highest shelf, at the bottom, almost touching the wall. He opened it and realized with deep satisfaction that he still had five copies of the half dozen he had bought at the market the previous weekend.. The owner of the stall that had sold it to him, He told him that they were very good, of the best, that she also took them home (The only thing missing would be to try to sell her a product that she wouldn't even consume herself., he thought maliciously). That he brought them from a small farm that raised the chickens with the best feed and in good conditions of freedom., thing that, assured, It was so noticeable in the flavor., as in the texture. You will see how they do not look anything like those they sell you in the supermarket., the woman alleged. Even though he had no way of verifying that the information the shopkeeper was offering him was correct, He put aside his usual suspicion for a moment to buy the first thing they offered him and took the box.
He lit the fire. Wanting to be aware of every step I took, He took it out of the drawer under the counter., the small frying pan and put it to heat. Then, took the oil can and, with a deft movement of the wrist, He poured a thin thread of extra virgin olive oil onto the matte bottom of the container.. I didn't need more. He waited patiently. Little by little, He felt how the fire was heating the base of the pan. When he considered that it should already be at the right temperature, He took the egg that he had taken out of the box and, holding it delicately firmly between your thumbs, index and heart, hit him, very determined (that was very important) against the sharp edge, causing the shell to crack, opening a thin, clean crack. Immediately, He took the egg with both hands and stuck his two thumbs into the crack.. Without wasting a second, separated the shell into two almost identical parts, pouring the contents onto the bottom of the pan. Almost immediately, as soon as it came into contact with the oil, the egg started to sizzle. With the same serenity that he had shown until now (in this case, rush was a bad advisor), He took a pinch of salt from the salt shaker on one side and spread it over the entire surface of the egg.. Once this first phase of the process has been completed, He took a transparent glass lid from the same drawer from which he had taken the frying pan and covered it.. The die was cast.
As expected, The first thing that began to take shape was the clarity that, little by little, would go from that yellowish transparency to that characteristic white color. Its surface, smooth at first, gelatinous, quickly began to squirm, forming protuberances of different sizes and shapes. Although he was tempted to do it (someone had sent a message to his cell phone), He didn't take his eyes off the frying pan for a single second.. Thanks to the glass lid, I could follow the process without losing detail. Seeing that the clearing was done too quickly, for a moment he was about to lower the intensity of the fire, but, finally, did not give in to temptation. I had to follow the protocol with mathematical accuracy. In those moments, There was nothing worse than losing self-confidence and giving in to the fear of failure.. very slowly, as the temperature increased inside the small greenhouse he had created in the frying pan, a light mist covered the concave part of the glass lid, wrapping, like on a stormy day, the whole container. The most delicate moment had arrived.
As the vapor blanket became thicker, a faint milky veil was covering the outer layer of the egg yolk. Now, everything depended on his instinct (what, as everyone knows, is brother of experience). Barely the milky veil that covered the yolk, as the egg was cooking, I would hide it completely, had to be taken out of the stove. Otherwise, could be done too much, losing the consistency I was looking for. Without ceasing to monitor the clear, that continued to fry in direct contact with the pan, waited a little longer. How much? The fair thing. Suddenly, with another quick flick of the wrist, He turned the gas key and put out the fire.. with one hand, took the upper hand, He removed the glass lid and gently brought it to a small plate that he had taken from one of the kitchen cabinets.. By tipping the pan onto the plate, the egg slid smoothly over the non-stick bottom until it hit the edge, right there where, just a few minutes before, had broken the shell. Given the possibility that the yolk broke, he was startled. But, immediately, The initial fear gave way to an exultant state of ecstasy as the egg gracefully rose over the edge of the pan to offer itself., feliz, to the plate. It was time to check if everything had gone according to plan..
He left the plate on the kitchen table.. He sat down. The egg, perfectly round, It emitted a light vapor that filled his nostrils. First, He took a knife and lifted the white of the egg to see the underside that, for greater satisfaction, It had a beautiful golden color., proof that just enough had been done to offer a crunchy texture to the palate. That made him smile. Satisfied with himself, he didn't hesitate for a second. He took a piece of bread that he had previously thawed in a small electric oven that he had on the kitchen bench and helping himself, like any good primate, of both hands, cut a piece about five centimeters long. The bread crunched between his fingers as if it were freshly baked and a shiver ran down his spine.. Then, very slowly, aware of the brevity of the moment I was going to live, He dipped the bread into the yolk, after offering slight resistance to pressure, hatched, pure orange, spreading like cream, covering, first, part of the clear, until reaching, like a torrent, the bottom of the china plate. He repeated the operation a couple of times until he was sure that the bread was well soaked.. After, he put it in his mouth. He closed his eyes. To the touch with the tongue, The sweet taste of the yolk quickly filled the oral cavity until it reached the inner end of his jaw., accompanied by a small cramp of pleasure that went up to the back of his ears. At last, He closed his mouth tightly and chewed.. The bread crackled between his teeth. And so, after weeks locked up, the world made sense to him again. Like so long ago, He once again felt like the same child he had been all his life.. GERARDO LEON
