This Study Found the Most Popular Egg Recipe in Each State

I'm an eggs-over-easy girl myself. But the rest of Illinois disagrees!

Eggs aren’t just breakfast staples that are full of protein, they’re an absolute way of life! OK, that might be a bit dramatic, but almost everyone has eggs on the weekly grocery list. And with all of the amazing egg recipes out there, it can be hard to choose your favorite. Trust me when I say there are recipes for every single egg in your fridge right now. It’s true!

But have you ever wondered about the most popular egg recipes in each state? Well, no more searching—we’ve got it all right here!

How Each State Likes Their Eggs

How Americans Prefer Their EggsVia Pantryandlarder.com

Based on the chart by Pantry & Larder, there are five main ways Americans enjoy their eggs:

  • Boiled eggs: 17 states
  • Fried eggs: 10 states
  • Omelet: 9 states
  • Poached eggs: 10 states
  • Scrambled eggs: 5 states

The most popular egg overall is the boiled egg, with 17 states claiming it as their favorite. Weirdly enough, they’re almost all in the north except for Texas. That includes my home state of Illinois, too. Poached eggs came in a strong second place with 10 states to their name (including DC). Plus, they’re easier to make than ever when you learn how to make a poached egg in the air fryer. I really thought scrambled eggs were going to be higher up on the list, but sadly they came in last with just five states.

Fried eggs are beloved in the southeast, but it seems that poached eggs and omelets like to spread the love around. While I don’t make have all the time, the best egg breakfast I ever had was an eggs Benedict with hollandaise sauce. I’ll never forget it.

How Every State Prefers Boiled Eggs

How Americans Prefer Their Boiled EggsVia Pantryandlarder.com

There are a handful of ways to boil eggs, but the two methods we’re seeing here are hard and soft-boiled.

  • Hard-boiled eggs: 30 states
  • Soft-boiled eggs: 21 states

Hard-boiled eggs take the favorite by a large margin! And, as we mentioned earlier, there seems to be a clear divide between the northeast and southwest states. For the most part, you’ll find that northern states favor hard-boiled eggs while southern and western states seem to prefer soft-boiled.

Not every region is the same, though. Oklahoma, Mississippi, Alabama, South Carolina and Florida are part of the hard-boiled team while Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Jersey, DC and Maryland are team soft-boiled.

Growing up in Chicago, I had hard-boiled eggs all the time as a kid. They’re still some of my favorite snacks today! But it wasn’t until I was much older that I even realized there was such a thing as soft-boiled eggs. I can’t deny my northern roots, though. You can even make Instant Pot hard-boiled eggs!

Don’t forget the best way to peel a hard-boiled egg.

How Every State Cooks Fried Eggs

How Americans Prefer Their Fried EggsVia Pantryandlarder.com

Fried eggs come in many shapes and forms, but we’re focusing on four main styles for this breakdown:

  • Over-easy eggs: 25 states
  • Over-medium eggs: 16 states
  • Over-well eggs: 1 state
  • Sunny-side-up eggs: 9 states

Over-easy eggs take this round with half the country behind them. That’s incredible! Over-medium eggs are next with 16 states. It can be difficult to fry an egg the exact way you want, but all you need is practice. Sometimes they’re too crispy on the bottom, or they’re too hard in the middle. Over-easy eggs should be flipped with a runny center. Over-medium eggs should be flipped with a semi-runny center.

Florida is the lone wolf with its favorite fried egg recipe being over-well eggs. That means the egg is flipped and the yolk is completely hard. (That’s how I used to make them when I first started learning to cook my own eggs.)

The west coast prefers an over-medium egg while the north leans toward an over-easy egg. My mom always made over-easy eggs growing up, and I came to love them quite a bit. I’ll have a sunny-side up egg every once in a while, too. They’re fantastic when you cook them in a ring of bell pepper…trust me!

Egg Recipes You Haven’t Made Yet
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Melany Love
Having always wanted a career in writing, Melany couldn't have found a better place than Taste of Home to begin. When she's not scribbling in her notebook or working at her computer, she can be found experimenting with new recipes or relaxing with a book and her cats.