You’ve decided to level up your cooking skills with a basic French toast recipe, but something’s wrong. So now, you’re left wondering: why is my French toast eggy, and is it supposed to taste this way?
Although there’s a slightly eggy component to French toast, you could be making it worse without knowing.
In this article, we’ll go over the common mistakes behind eggy toast and how to avoid them.
Why Is My French Toast Eggy?
Despite being a fairly easy recipe, French toast can lose its edge if you miss the minor details. Even one mistake can make your recipe taste a tad bit too eggy.
So, let’s take a closer look at the most common reasons you need to watch out for:
1 – The Eggs and Milk Ratio Is Off
The first thing you have to check is the recipe itself. The ingredients in French toast are simple, and that just means that getting the ratios right is all the more critical.
You can start by checking the balance between your eggs and milk. Maybe you can tone down on using large eggs and try medium or even small ones.
Here’s a nifty tip to try: have at least ¼ cup of milk for every egg you use.
2 – There’s Too Much Egg White
It’s also a good idea to double-check the fine print in the recipe you’re using. For example, there may be the off chance that the recipe requires only egg yolks.
After all, the eggy flavor you may dislike probably comes from the egg whites with all the sulfur compounds.
If you want custard-y toast, all you really need from the egg is the yolk for that soft center and crunchy exterior. So, consider removing the egg whites in your next foray or finding a yolk-specific recipe.
You can save the whites for some other recipe to avoid wasting food.
3 – You Didn’t Beat It Well
If you get tired of blending, you’ll likely leave whole blobs of egg white in the soaking liquid.
Even the tiny unmixed bits of egg white can contribute to a scrambled egg texture since it solidifies with heat.
If you want to avoid those stubborn bits of egg white that refuse to mix with your spices and milk, try to strain the batter before you put in the bread to soak.
You can pick out the white clumps if that doesn’t work.
4 – The Bread Didn’t Soak Long Enough
Another mistake you probably haven’t considered is that you’re not giving the bread time to soak.
Most recipes recommend 10-20 minutes (especially for thick slices!) to soak your bread thoroughly. You want some egg to penetrate to the center and give you that custard filling.
Skipping the soak and simply dipping your bread into the mixture can result in a very eggy sandwich-like exterior with a dry, tasteless center.
5 – You Used Fresh Bread
In every French toast recipe, you’ll find even passing remarks about the state and age of the bread. We can’t stress this enough: using dry, old bread is important!
Stale bread gives the structure your soaking mixture needs to stick, which gives you that iconic custard center. Plus, it absorbs the flavors of your milk and egg blend better.
Meanwhile, fresh bread has more moisture and can leave you with soggy and eggy toast.
6 – You Have the Wrong Cut of Bread
There’s a reason why most recipes recommend a brioche or challah loaf.
You’ll want rich, buttery, and yeasted bread for maximum flavor and softness. These dense loaves are perfect for custard recipes, bread pudding, and, of course, French toast.
For the flavor to permeate your toast, don’t settle for thinner slices. Sure, it might shorten your cooking time, but it also risks eggy flavors.
Instead, opt for thicker slices and give your French toast time to absorb the ingredients.
7 – Your Pan Wasn’t Preheated
The temperature of your pan is also critical.
If you keep it too hot, the sugar in your recipe can burn quickly. However, not heating the pan beforehand can cause your egg mixture to seep out and leave a fried egg residue around your toast.
You’ll want to keep your pan hot enough, around medium to medium-high, so the batter cooks immediately when the toast hits the pan.
Get Cooking!
Now that you’ve found some useful tips on avoiding eggy flavors, we hope you can use some of them the next time you whip up a batch of French toast.
It’ll definitely turn out better now that you know more. Just make sure you’re using thick slices, not overdoing the egg portion, and blending the mix well before soaking.
Don’t forget to dress up your toast with some powdered sugar, maple syrup, fresh fruit, or honey. French toast can make for quite the breakfast treat if you do it right!
I have a bachelor’s degree in Film/Video/Media Studies, as well as an associates degree in Communications. I began producing videos and musical recordings nearly 15 years ago. I am a guitarist and bassist in Southwest MI and have been in a few different bands since 2009, and in 2012 I began building custom guitars and basses in my home workshop as well. When I’m home, I love spending time with my three pets (a dog, cat, and snake) and gardening in my backyard.