Put A Egg On It is an irreverent digest-sized art and literary magazine printed on green paper out of New York City. It’s about food, cooking and the communal joys of eating with friends and family.
Put A Egg On It was founded in 2008, a forerunner in the indie food magazine explosion. The magazine is inspired by the DIY photocopied music fanzines of the late 80s and early 90s, and eschews the aspirational nature of conventional food magazines in favor of a more documentarian and culturally inclusive approach. Rather than traditional food writing, contributors to Put A Egg On It include fiction writers, poets, musicians and artists writing about their own experiences. The recipes collected in each issue are gathered from chefs, artists, grandmothers and friends, each telling the story around the creation of a dish.
You live in a place without a proper kitchen but you invite your neighbours over for sukiyaki anyway. They’re dancing around your room while you cook dinner in an electric hot pot balanced on a stool near the window. After dinner, the conversation never ends. You’re sitting at the table long after dessert is served, smoking, drinking the last of the wine, picking at the leftovers, making coffee and telling stories. Your pal is taking pictures of the forks stacked up and the wine stains on the table cloth while the cat is asleep on another guest. You wake up late and make more coffee, sweep the remnants of last night into the hallway and wave at George on his way to the bathroom. There’s a little leftover food from dinner. You rummage further into the fridge: rice in a takeout container, a handful of stir fried green beans, sriracha and soy sauce. You get that going on the big skillet hot plate by the desk and the finishing touch is a perfect fried egg on top.