Maybe you can’t teach on old dog new tricks, but I just proved that you’re never too old to learn a new cooking technique or trick. Although I have boiled, scrambled, and fried my way through probably hundreds of eggs over several decades, before last week I had never tried to poach an egg. Maybe I was intimidated or just never thought about doing it because the other techniques sufficed. It doesn’t really matter; I was determined to learn without delay.
Like a good researcher, I checked out cookbooks and web sites for directions. As you might expect, the more I looked the more options I found. Everyone had a secret (or not so secret) ingredient or tip that they swore by. I opted for the simplest ingredients and technique of all, slipping an egg into plain boiling water. Then I remembered that I had once bought an egg poacher, a nifty little gadget that sat, never-used, in the deep recesses of a kitchen drawer. I decided that I would try both the “free form” and egg-poacher gadget methods to see which was easiest and which produced the best results. A veritable poached egg challenge.
My verdict? Both methods are easy if you’re a careful type. If you’re inclined to be klutzy or if you’re timid about slipping an egg into hot water, use the gadget method. I did like the way the free form poached egg looked (much less regular than the egg that sat in the poacher gadget), so free form gets my vote. Either way, if you like eggs, this is a simple and quick way to make a lovely breakfast.
Poached eggs are great on toast, or eaten by themselves in a cup or small bowl. They are also the foundation for Eggs Benedict (poached eggs with ham on a toasted English muffin, topped with Hollandaise sauce – a rich topping made with butter, egg yokes and lemon juice.) Poached eggs are delicious on top of corned beef hash too. St. Patrick’s Day is just around the corner – next Wednesday in case you’re not waiting with baited breath. So if poached eggs appeal, and if you will have access to bit of leftover corned beef next weekend, you are almost ready to make a great post-St. Patty’s brunch. We’ll get to that next week – but first, the poached egg challenge.
Free form poached egg
Ingredients
- Egg
- Water
- Salt (optional)
Equipment
- Small bowl in which to break egg
- Small pot or pan
- Slotted spoon (a large spoon with slots or holes in it so water can run through)
Preparation
- Carefully break egg into the bowl so that the yolk doesn’t break
- Bring about 1-2 inches of water (with or without pinch of salt) in the small pot or pan to a low boil or simmer. Water is at the right temperature when bubbles develop around the edges of the water surface.
- Reduce the heat so that no more bubbles are formed
- Gently slip the egg from the bowl into the water. The egg should slide into the water – don’t dump it in, let it slide off the edge of the bowl.
Poaching “free form” – when the egg began to cook, it took on the look of a cloud forming.
- Cook the egg for about 3-4 minutes until the clear part of the egg turns white and the yellow looks more cloudy.
- Gently lift the egg out of the water with the slotted spoon, allowing any water that got picked up with the egg to drain back into the pot or pan.
Lifting out the egg, ever so gently.
- Put the egg on the plate or on top of a piece of toast and dig in!
Using an egg poacher
Ingredients
- Egg
- Water
- Cooking spray or small pat of butter/margarine unless your poacher is non-stick (in which case you don’t need it)
Equipment
- Small bowl
- Egg poacher
- Knife
Preparation
- Carefully break egg into the bowl so that the yolk doesn’t break
- Put water in the bottom of the egg poacher so that the insert would barely touch the water. Bring the water to a low boil or simmer – bubbles develop around the edges of the water surface.
- Reduce the heat so that no more bubbles are formed.
- If the poaching insert is not non-stick, spray the inside of the insert with cooking spray or grease it with butter or margarine so that the egg will slip out when it is done cooking.
- Put the insert in the poacher and gently slip the egg into the insert.
Using my egg poacher for the very first time!
- Cover and cook for 3 minutes or more, until the yolk is cooked and the clear part has turned white.
Not difficult at all – don’t forget to cover the egg while it cooks.
- Run the knife around the edge of the insert to loosen the egg.
- Take the insert out of the poacher and tip it so that the egg slides onto the plate or toast. Dig in!
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