How to time a full English breakfast (everything hot at 9am)
Sausages, bacon, hash browns, beans, tomatoes, mushrooms and eggs, all hot on the plate at the same moment. The trick is the order: the slowest things go in the oven first, and the eggs always go last.
Want it timed on your phone?
Open the interactive version: set when you want to eat and every step re-times instantly. Free, in your browser, no download or account.
Why a fry-up is harder than it looks
Seven or eight things, all cooked differently, all wanted hot at once, and most of them on the hob. The eggs take three minutes and the sausages take twenty-five. Start everything together and something's cold, burnt or raw. The answer is to work backwards from when you want to eat, and to let the oven do the slow jobs.
The timetable: breakfast at 9am
For 2 people. The highlighted rows are the busy last ten minutes.
| Time | Where | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| 8:20 | Oven | Oven on: 180°C fan / 200°C / gas 6. Put the plates at the bottom to warm. |
| 8:25 | Worktop | Hash browns: grate the potatoes, mix in a good pinch of salt and tip into a sieve to drain for 10 minutes.The salt pulls out the water that would stop them crisping. |
| 8:30 | Oven | Sausages in on a tray, for about 25 minutes. Turn them halfway.The oven cooks them evenly and frees up the hob. |
| 8:35 | Worktop | Squeeze the potato hard in a clean tea towel, then shape into patties. |
| 8:40 | Oven | Tomatoes and mushrooms (halved, seasoned, a little oil) onto the sausage tray. Turn the sausages.Add black pudding slices at 8:45 if you like it. |
| 8:47 | Hob | Fry the hash browns in hot oil, turning once, until deep golden and crisp (about 8 minutes). |
| 8:48 | Hob | Bacon into a second hot pan, turning once. |
| 8:50 | Hob | Beans into a small pan on a low heat. Stir now and then. |
| 8:55 | Oven | Sausages out: check they're cooked through. Move everything onto the warm plates and turn the oven down low to keep them hot. Wipe out a pan. |
| 8:56 | Hob | Eggs last: fry them to your liking (3–4 minutes). Toast on.Eggs wait for nobody, so they always go last. |
| 9:00 | Table | Serve, with the toast and a pot of tea. |
Cooking for more, or your own way?
Photograph your own recipes (your black pudding, your family's bubble and squeak) and Simmour builds one timeline for the whole plate:
- every step in order, worked back from when you want to eat;
- clashes flagged when two things need you at once;
- change the time and everything re-times;
- a live cook mode that keeps your screen awake.
Free, and it runs in your phone's browser. You create a free account to read your own recipes.
Full English FAQs
What order do you cook a full English in?
Start with whatever takes longest and needs least attention: sausages in the oven. Then tomatoes and mushrooms on the same tray, then the hash browns and bacon in pans, beans on a low heat, and eggs last of all, because they're quick and don't wait.
How do I keep everything hot while the eggs cook?
Warm the plates in the oven from the start. When the sausages come out, put everything onto the warm plates and turn the oven down low to hold them while you fry the eggs. It's only a few minutes.
Can I cook the sausages in the oven?
Yes, and it's easier: about 25 minutes at 180°C fan (200°C, gas 6), turned halfway. Pork sausages must be cooked right through, with no pink in the middle and the juices running clear.
How do I make hash browns from scratch?
Grate the potatoes, salt them and leave them in a sieve for 10 minutes. Then squeeze them hard in a clean tea towel, shape into patties and fry in hot oil, turning once, until deep golden: about 8 minutes.
Is it safe to have runny eggs?
For most people, yes. If you're serving runny yolks to someone pregnant, a young child or an older person, use eggs with the British Lion mark, which the Food Standards Agency advises are safe to eat runny.