The Controversial Topping Johnny Cash Dumped On His Morning Eggs

Some dishes are deeply personal, especially when it comes to eggs. The method for making perfect scrambled eggs can differ from person to person, as does how an individual likes to eat them. Some like them served with salsa or hot sauce, while others, including country music artist and outlaw poet Johnny Cash, like theirs with ketchup. While ketchup and eggs seem perfectly normal to some, it's also a controversial way to use this condiment and can cause quite the food fight. In fact, Anthony Bourdain once shared on X, "Major chain hotel breakfast. That the eggs come automatically with a ramekin of ketchup makes me sad and worried for the fate of the world."

However, Cash, who ate his ketchup-topped scrambled eggs with fried bologna, was a man who wouldn't back down. He liked what he liked, and growing up in the hill country of southern Arkansas during the Great Depression probably had a little bit of influence on him when it came to this pairing. Ketchup, with its impressive shelf life, was often used to make dishes more appealing and hearty. From spaghetti to eggs, this sweet, tomato-based food was the common ingredient households could rely on to up the flavor when the cabinets were bare.

As with all dishes, it comes down to the entire food experience — how it tastes, smells, and feels in your mouth. For some, ketchup adds both a sweet and salty element that can enhance the taste of scrambled eggs. Others note the smell of the two together can lead to gagging and dry heaving just at the thought of someone putting a forkful of this combination in their mouth. It also seems like Johnny Cash and other lovers of this sometimes eye-raising duo are in the minority. 

According to the Original Pancake House in Denver, a poll was conducted about eating eggs with different toppings, and 47% of respondents would choose cheese over any other topping for their eggs, while only about 25% of participants said they reach for ketchup when they are eating the breakfast food. Still, if ketchup is okay for dipping chicken nuggets in and squirting onto a burger, maybe it needs to be part of your list of sauces to use to season eggs. Its tangy, umami taste and acidic nature are perfect for cutting through the richness of eggs, and who knows? You might like it.