Instant Egg Bites with Broccoli and Ham

I understand. Mornings can be harried and stressful. Sometimes breakfast is the last thing you can think about and you end up heading out the door with nothing or just anything you can grab easily. But... it doesn't have to be that way. Enter instant egg bites...

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Pick up a case of 4-ounce jars and you’ll never have the rushed morning breakfast problem again. 

4 jars of Instant Egg Bites on a marble table with one jar open.

I often make egg bites using my sous vide circulator to cook the eggs low and slow, but there’s no reason why you can’t make them super fast in the pressure cooker or Instant Pot® instead. The texture is a little different, but some people prefer the eggs out of a pressure cooker, which has a more traditional, firmer, scrambled egg texture rather than the silky smooth sous vide egg bite. Either way, the beauty of this dish is that you can make them, store them in the refrigerator and then grab a jar as you head out the door. They can be eaten cold (like a quiche) or you can remove the lid and microwave the glass jar for warm version. Popping a jar into your bag is also much tidier and easier than a bagel wrapped in a paper towel too. 

Instant Egg Bite on a white plate with toast and salad greens tossed with apple. All on a marble table with jars of egg bites on the side.

The other nice feature of this recipe is that you can easily swap out ingredients for different flavored egg bites. Try cooked bacon and chopped tomato with Swiss cheese, or crumbled cooked sausage with pepper Jack cheese, or cooked spinach and gouda instead of the broccoli and ham. It’s a great way to use up that tiny quantity of leftovers that you don’t know what to do with.

Instant Egg Bite with toast and salad on a white plate

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Instant Egg Bites with Broccoli and Ham

  • Prep Time: 5 m
  • Cook Time: 5 m
  • Pressure Release: 10 m
  • Total Time: 10 m
  • Servings:
    8

Ingredients

  • 6 eggs
  • ½ cup heavy cream
  • ¼ cup cream cheese softened
  • ½ cup grated cheddar cheese
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 cup chopped broccoli
  • ¾ cup diced ham
  • 8 4-ounce jelly jars with screw top lid

Instructions

  1. Combine the eggs, heavy cream, cream cheese and cheddar cheese in a blender or mini food processor and blend until smooth – it won’t take much. Stir in the chives and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. (Go easy with the salt since you’ll be adding ham, which is quite salty.)
  2. Spoon the broccoli and diced ham evenly into the 6 jars and then pour the egg mixture into each jar. Screw the lids on, only fingertip tight. It should be easy to unscrew them.
  3. Pour 1 cup of water into the pressure cooker or Instant Pot®. Place a rack on the bottom of the pressure cooker insert. Stack the jars on top of the rack. Cover and lock the lid in place.
  4. Pressure cook on HIGH for 5 minutes. Allow the pressure to release NATURALLY for 10 minutes, and then open the valve and release the rest of the pressure.
  5. Carefully remove the jars with tongs. Let the egg bites rest for 5 minutes before serving or allow to cool and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
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Comments (10)Post a Reply

  1. 5 stars
    This is so easy to make. I drive truck and make a large batch and keep them in a electrical cooler. This is very tasty.

  2. 5 stars
    Absolutely delicious. I used the sous vide method in my multi-cooker (170°/1 hr.) and substituted bacon for ham. Definitely making again.

  3. 5 stars
    Thank you Meredith! This is definitely the best “Egg Bites” recipe I’ve tried. I would suggest spraying the jelly jars with vegetable or olive oil spray.

  4. 5 stars
    This recipe sounds just terrific. My partner and I are still ‘getting to know’ our Instant Pot but we LUV recipes like this, especially me because I am a breakfast and egg “nut.” I can’t wait to try this, but will probably first do it with ham & cheese (our omelet fave) and then next with sausage crumbles, etc.

    I will try to remember to get back and let you know how all goes, but first we have to get the little jars!

    1. Yes, you can freeze egg bites. Store them in an airtight container or bag with as much air removed as possible and then re-heat in the microwave for 1 – 2 minutes.

    2. You can freeze the egg bites for up to 2 to 3 months and reheat them in a microwave or air fryer. It’s best to defrost them before reheating.

  5. I have seen silicone egg bite molds – if i used one of these in my instant pot would you recommend the same cooking times?

    1. Yes, you can use the same cooking time for glass, metal or silicone inserts in your pressure cooker.

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