Can You Really Fry An Egg On The Sidewalk On A Hot Day?

We've all been outside on a hot, sunny day and wondered if the soles of our shoes were about to melt on the sidewalk. You can feel the heat from the sun bouncing back up to hit your legs — and the question does cross your mind: If you cracked an egg on the concrete, would it cook? Our curiosity got the better of us, so we reached out and spoke to an actual expert, Nelson Serrano-Bahri, chef and director of innovation at The American Egg Board, to set the record straight.

Serrano-Bahri explains, "Eggs start to cook when the surface reaches about 158 degrees Fahrenheit, which is when the whites begin to set. Most sidewalks, even on a very hot day, rarely get above 145 to 150 degrees Fahrenheit, and you'd really need 160 to 170 degrees Fahrenheit for an egg to cook properly. That's why egg cooking is best done in the kitchen — on a stovetop, in a pan, or in an air fryer — where you can control the temperature and get perfect results every time."

He also says that the surface you cook the egg on is an important factor. Metal works because it conducts heat well, and provides an even transfer of energy. Concrete, on the other hand, doesn't transfer heat to the egg nearly as efficiently, so much of the heat escapes into the air. Plus, the cold egg would cool the sidewalk surface quickly upon contact, making the egg white much more difficult to set.

Let's say you travel with your trusty laser thermometer (Hey, you never know when that thing is going to come in handy), and you do find a spot of blacktop that clocks in at the right temperature. We asked Nelson Serrano-Bahri how long it might actually take to fry an egg, and he had a realistic answer for us.

He said, "If you somehow found a sidewalk that actually reached 160 degrees Fahrenheit or higher, it could still take 15 to 20 minutes or more for the egg to cook, compared to a few minutes in a pan. That's because of the poor heat transfer and constant cooling effect of the egg sitting on a rough, porous surface." Not to mention that you'd be cooking your egg directly on the ground, which isn't exactly what I'd call sanitary; plus, you know how everyone loves strange non-food objects in their food.

So, no, cooking an egg on a sidewalk isn't exactly something you'll likely be able to do, no matter how hot it is outside. Though the interior of a car can in fact, reach temperatures hot enough to bake cookies or roast hot dogs on your dashboard — and feasibly cook eggs — that's with the windows closed on an extraordinarily hot day. I'd recommend you save your sunny-side up eggs for your stovetop.