Scrambled Eggs with Tomato Sauce

A soft-scrambled egg dish loosened with stewed tomato, from the era when eggs were cooked slowly over low heat rather than fast in a hot pan. The whole success of it rests on temperature control.

• The hinge: low and slow"Cook same as Scrambled Eggs" in this period means over gentle heat, stirring constantly, until the mass just thickens and still looks glossy. Added tomato makes the mixture wetter and more prone to weeping, so pull the pan off the heat while the eggs are noticeably softer than you want them; carryover heat finishes them.
• The tomatoes1 3/4 cups probably means canned tomatoes with their juice, common in household cookery of the period — roughly the contents of a 14-oz can. Fresh tomatoes work if you peel, seed and chop them, but drain off excess liquid or the eggs will not set.
• Reduce before the eggs go inThe recipe gives five minutes' simmering. If the tomato still looks watery after that, it is worth keeping it on the heat until thicker before adding the eggs; watery tomato is the usual cause of a puddled result.
• The onion sliceA single slice steeped in the butter for three minutes and then discarded is a flavouring technique, not an ingredient. Keep the slice thick enough to lift out cleanly, and do not let the butter brown.
• The sugarTwo teaspoons offsets the acidity of the tomatoes. Modern canned tomatoes are often sweeter; start with one teaspoon and taste.
• Butter quantityFour tablespoons is generous by current habit and is part of what keeps the eggs tender. It can be cut to two without harming the dish, though the texture will be firmer.
• Entire wheat breadThis is whole-wheat bread. Any dense wholemeal or rye toast serves the same purpose: something sturdy enough to carry a loose, moist egg mixture.
• YieldSix eggs will serve three at lunch or supper, two if it is the centre of the meal.