Eggs to Order

I heard the phrase “Eggs to Order” for the first time as a teenager from my father who is a naval veteran and has served in the Indian Navy for more than 28 years. He used to always tell me that “One who cannot get his eggs to order correctly, cannot win a war for the country!!” I used to laugh it off then as I was still a youngster and never paid any attention to it till I followed my father’s footsteps and joined the Navy and found it to be so true!!

I distinctly remember the date of 01 Jan 1995 as the day of my first encounter with “eggs to order” dilemma onboard a naval warship, when I was promoted to the rank of Midshipman (A rank between cadet and an officer who is also part of a wardroom and is allowed to have only beer when others can order any type of liquor!!). I was seated on dining table when all of a sudden I heard someone whisper in my ear “Sir Eggs to Order”? It took me a while to understand what the steward was asking and seeing my hesitation, another officer seated next to me politely told the steward to take his “Eggs to Order” first and ask me the same question after some time. Slowly I saw all other officers ordering their “Eggs to Order” and that gave me a little confidence and I also raised my hand and told the steward to take my eggs to order too!!

Onboard several warships that I have served, I have watched very keenly everyone placing their “Eggs to Order” and relishing it as and when it arrived. Slowly, I also experimented with egg dishes and started ordering a different “Eggs to Order” At that time, I didn’t know cooking and it took me sometime to realise that the taste of food is dependent on the skill & motivation of the cook. Since Navies all over the world follow a watch system (a naval terminology for carrying out daily hourly duties!!), one’s fate of “eggs to order” was dependent on the morale of the duty cook!!

I was made to understand by cooks onboard many warships that there are numerous ways of cooking eggs and the names of the dishes were generally given by the British or in some cases even French/American. I have also experienced Indian egg dishes and realised that eggs are generally prepared in a similar manner by both Indian and foreign trained cooks and the same has been claimed by many cooks who have been my shipmates.

Like Pai’s Dosa Corner in Ernakulam(Kochi, Kerala) who are very famous due to their claim of preparing 32 types of dosa(including egg dosa!!), it is rumoured that there are either 16 or 32 ways of preparing eggs. One might ask the relation between 16 & 32, well the safest answer that comes to my mind is that 32 comprises 16 names in English and another 16 are in hindi/local languages!!

Over a period of time, I also started believing what my father had told me, that those who cannot decide their “Eggs to Order” during breakfast are not only poor decision makers but also remain upset/grumpy throughout the day. I have seen it with many of my seniors and juniors but did not tell them as it was considered to be a “Very Private Matter!!” However, I have also seen that those who had a bad experience with their “eggs to order”, were gracious enough and told the steward that “it was not what they wanted or expected” and pardoned the steward/cook for “their misdeeds!!” Sometimes I have carried out a small investigation and found that either the steward or the cook did not understand “firang language english!!” and prepared the dish as per their own understanding or they were too scared to ask the “eggs to order” again to the individual who had ordered owing to the reputation!!

I have seen some “Safe Players” who despite being hard-core non vegetarian food lovers, quietly ordered “Vegetarian dish” during breakfast as one of my shipmate’s later on explained to me “Why to spoil your day with a bad case of eggs to order”!!. To me it was a clear case of low risking ability and had I been their Commanding Officer, then I would have marked them accordingly in their Annual Confidential Report!! To me these kind of officers are not only poor risk takers, they do not want to take a well thought of decision first thing in the morning!! (I am glad that the Navy follows a tradition of Commanding Officer dining separately in his/her chamber, except when he/she is invited for either a Pre-lunch Drinks in the mess/ wardroom when generally” nobody orders Eggs to Order” !!

I have realised that the safest Eggs to order is “Anda Bhurji” which is liked by one and all despite caste/creed/gender/age. I myself simply love it and the dish can be taken as breakfast/lunch/dinner/snacks and is also cherished by all Old Monk Rum fans!!

I also feel that Arnab Goswami/Barkha Dutt can call eminent cooking experts and can debate as to why individuals are not able to decide on their “Eggs to Order” and what remedies can be told to them for placing their order correctly that can spice up their lives!! These experts can also possibly highlight whether an individual is Type A/B Personality depending upon their risking ability of placing an “eggs to order”

A quick research on the internet reveals that there are 11 types of “eggs to order” and being a true Indian, I feel that we can contribute an equal number more by using “Make in India” approach of innovative & unique ways of preparing egg dishes. Lastly, the famous question of “Whether the Chicken or the Egg came first” can only be answered by those who are confident and have a good risk taking ability of their “Eggs to Order”