Ham and Egg Cups with Kimchi

Baked Ham and Egg Cups with Kimchi! On the go breakfast with a Korean twist!

Every day I spend a couple of hours on Pinterest. When I’m waiting at a doctor’s clinic or at a bank, every time I have to wait for something, I dive into my Pinterest feeds. It’s such an powerful and addictive social media. Don’t you think?

I mainly use Pinterest to see what others are cooking. Ever since I started this blog, browsing through beautifully photographed food became my hobby. It inspires me. It fills my tummy even though I am only looking at them. lol

The other day, I was enjoying myself again browsing through beautiful food photos. In a split second, something grabbed my attention. It was this picture of Breakfast Ham and Egg Cup. As soon as I saw the picture, I knew I had to make it and with Kimchi! But why Kimchi in your breakfast?

Do you know that there isn’t much distinction between breakfast, lunch and dinner in Korean dining culture?

Typical Koreans eat rice, soup and a few side dishes (incl. Kimchi) for breakfast, lunch and dinner. That’s why Kimchi had to be in in this Ham and egg cup. So that’s the story behind this recipe. 😉

Ham and egg cups with kimchi is a great way to sneak in some Kimchi for those who are not used to it. Honestly, the Kimchi taste is very subtle and my husband didn’t even know it was there until I told him. This is suitable for breakfast, lunch or brunch. I particularly loved the crispy edges of the ham.

I hope you enjoy my recipe!

P.S. If you like this recipe, you might like to try my eggs in a basket recipe with a Korean twist too!

Ingredients for Ham and Egg Cups with Kimchi (Makes 6 Cups)

6 Thin slices of honey leg ham (you can use other types of deli ham instead. I tried this with champagne leg ham, which also worked well.)
6 Extra large eggs
1/4 cup finely chopped Kimchi (ideally not too old)
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese (mozzarella cheese will do fine too)
Ground black pepper (optional)
2 tsp cooking oil (I used rice bran oil) or spray cooking oil

*1 cup = 250 ml

**Recipe adapted from Better Homes and Gardens

How to Make Ham and Egg Cups with Kimchi

1. Preheat the oven at 180 Celsius degree (about 350F) for 20 mins. – This is based on the fan forced setting.

2. Lightly coat the 6 muffin cups with cooking oil. (Use the oil brush or spray oil)

3. Gently place a ham slice in each muffin cup. Push it down to the bottom but up the edge. Divide the Kimchi and cheese among muffin cups. For Kimchi, 1 heaped tsp per muffin cup is about right.

4. Break an egg into a small bowl. Then add this into a muffin cup. Repeat this for the remainder. (This process is to prevent the broken egg shells getting into the muffin cup.) Sprinkle some black pepper on top of the eggs.

5. Bake it for 20 mins or until the egg is cooked per your liking. (20 mins cooking will result in hard egg yolk rather than soft runny yolk.) Take it out of the oven and cool down for 5 mins.