Eggs are one of the most diverse kitchen essentials as they can be transformed into a tasty dish for morning, noon or night. They can be served in a variety of ways, but one of the most popular ways to cook them is by frying.

While a fried egg might not be the healthiest meal in the world, it’s a tasty and relatively quick meal to whip up, particularly if you’re planning to just pop it on a slice of toast. But perfecting a fried egg can be deceptively tricky, as it’s all too easy to misjudge the cooking time, leaving it burnt and somewhat rubbery. If a fried egg is overcooked, then this can ruin its flavour, as the yolk won’t be runny, and the whites will taste a bit charred, but too far the other way can leave the whites sloppy, so there’s a delicate balance to be struck.

But celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay has explained how to make a “deliciously crispy” fried egg with a runny yolk centre that is loaded with flavour thanks to three added ingredients.

Ramsay says you should start by adding a tiny drop of oil to a heated frying pan, followed by three ingredients that will help to flavour your fried egg.

The 58-year-old says you should add a knob of butter to the pan and allow this to melt, then turn down the heat and add a seasoning of salt and pepper before your egg goes in. Together, the seasoning and the butter will later be used to baste the egg as it cooks to seal in flavour.

Once the egg is in the pan, turn the heat back up and give the pan a gentle shake and wait for the egg to bubble and blister on the outside. Ramsay then adds a sprinkle of chilli flakes to the egg, but this is an optional addition, depending on whether you like a kick of heat or not.

But the important part now is to use a spoon to scoop up the melted butter and seasoning in your pan and baste around the yolk of the egg. This will not only enhance the flavour, but it will help ensure your egg fully cooks.

Explaining the process in a YouTube video, Ramsay says: “All I do now is literally get the butter, shake that [pan] gently, and just baste the egg whites around the yolk. And that helps cook.

“Sometimes, with that raw egg white around the yolk, it is uncomfortable, and the best way is to take the spoon and just baste your egg. And look at that, blistering is beautiful.

“Now bring [the pan] onto a cold surface that’ll help separate, and then underneath, if you want your eggs over easy, you flip that. I like my yolk really nice and runny.

“When we come to serve, use a spatula to drain off your egg. And there we have a beautiful, stunning, delicious fried egg. Runny yolk, nice crispy delicious egg white and when you finish it with that little touch of chilli flake it elevates that amazing flavour.”