For many home cooks, eggs and potatoes are the backbone of comfort food—a quick breakfast, a hearty brunch, or the side dish that brings a Sunday roast together. But getting these staples just right? That’s a task even seasoned chefs can struggle with. Enter Mary Berry, Britain’s beloved culinary icon, whose timeless advice and recipes have helped generations master the basics. With her signature blend of practicality and warmth, Berry’s latest guidance on eggs and roast potatoes, as reported by Express on March 29, 2026, offers foolproof methods for achieving perfection every time.
Eggs, in particular, seem simple, but anyone who’s wrestled with rubbery whites or chalky yolks knows the devil’s in the details. According to Berry’s 2011 classic, How to Cook, there are four essential ways to prepare eggs—poached, scrambled, fried, and boiled—and each demands its own technique.
Let’s start with poached eggs, that brunch staple whose reputation for difficulty is well-earned. Berry’s advice? Use a nonstick milk or sauté pan, fill it two-thirds with water, and bring it to a boil. “Turn down the heat so the water is simmering gently, before adding the eggs. Rapidly boiling water will break up the whites,” she writes. A pinch of salt goes in, and if you’re feeling fancy, a nonstick egg poacher with butter is fair game. The egg should be slid gently from a bowl into the simmering water, heat turned low, and left to poach, uncovered, for around three minutes. The goal is an opaque white with a runny yolk—lift the egg out with a slotted spoon, letting excess water drain back into the pan. It’s a method that rewards patience and a gentle hand.
Scrambled eggs, meanwhile, are all about low and slow. Berry insists on a nonstick pan—no one likes bits stuck to the bottom—and a gentle touch. “For creamy scrambled eggs, the secret is to cook the eggs very gently and slowly, stirring all the time,” Berry notes. Her formula: two eggs and a tablespoon of milk per person, whisked with a bit of salt and pepper. Melt a tablespoon of butter until foaming, pour in the eggs, and stir gently over low heat. Remove from the heat just before they’re fully set, stir for another minute, and serve immediately. The result? Soft, creamy curds that are a far cry from the rubbery scramble many of us have endured.
For those who prefer their eggs fried, Berry recommends a mix of sunflower oil and butter—one tablespoon of each—heated until foaming. Slide the egg in from a bowl and fry over medium heat for three to four minutes. Spoon the hot fat over the yolk to help it set, then lift the egg out with a fish slice, letting excess fat drain off. If you’re making more than one, cut the whites apart in the pan so each egg keeps its shape.
Boiling eggs seems straightforward, but Berry’s method ensures consistency. For soft-boiled eggs, lower them into simmering water with a slotted spoon, bring to a boil, then gently simmer for four minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and slice off the top. Expect a lovely runny yolk—perfect for dipping toast soldiers. For hard-boiled eggs, follow the same steps but simmer for ten minutes. “Do not boil for longer or a black ring will form around the yolk,” Berry cautions. After boiling, plunge the eggs into cold water for at least five minutes before peeling. This stops the cooking and makes the shell easier to remove.
While eggs are a breakfast classic, no Sunday dinner would be complete without a side of roast potatoes. Here, too, Berry’s wisdom shines. Her twice-roasted potatoes, as recently featured in Express, use a humble ingredient—semolina—to achieve an “extra crunchy” finish that’s the envy of many a roast dinner. The recipe, which serves six, can be prepped up to 12 hours ahead—perfect for hosts who like to get ahead of the game.
The process begins with 1.5kg of old potatoes, peeled and cut into medium cubes. They’re placed in a saucepan of cold, salted water, brought to a boil, and cooked for about five minutes until the edges begin to soften. After draining and drying thoroughly, Berry instructs cooks to return the potatoes to the saucepan and shake vigorously to roughen the edges. Here’s where the magic happens: sprinkle over 40g of semolina and shake again until every potato is evenly coated. Semolina, a coarse wheat flour, creates tiny ridges on the potatoes’ surface. These ridges trap heat during roasting, resulting in a golden, crunchy exterior, while also absorbing excess moisture to prevent sogginess.
Berry’s approach is as economical as it is effective. With a 500g pack of semolina from Sainsbury’s costing £1.45, the 40g needed for this recipe works out to just 12p—a small price for a big payoff.
The next step is all about heat. Preheat a large shallow roasting tin in the oven at 220°C (or 200°C for fan ovens), add four tablespoons of goose fat or vegetable oil, and let it get smoking hot. Carefully add the potatoes, turning them in the fat until well coated, and scatter over three sprigs of thyme for a fragrant touch. Roast for 45 to 55 minutes, turning halfway through, until the potatoes are golden and crisp. If you’re prepping ahead, Berry suggests partially roasting for 35 minutes, then giving them a final 20-minute blast in a hot oven just before serving. The result? Potatoes that are shatteringly crisp on the outside and fluffy within—just as they should be.
Berry’s recipes, rooted in decades of experience, are about more than just technique. They’re a reminder that the simplest foods, made with care, can be the most satisfying. Whether you’re perfecting your poached egg or elevating your roast potatoes with a sprinkle of semolina, her methods make success achievable for cooks of all skill levels.
In an age of viral food hacks and ever-changing culinary trends, Mary Berry’s advice endures. As kitchens across the UK and beyond prepare for family breakfasts or Sunday roasts, her practical wisdom ensures that the basics—eggs and potatoes—are anything but ordinary.