5.7.13

perfect poached eggs

I love breakfast food. And I love going out for breakfast because I hate cooking breakfast food. Mostly because I'm bad at at it, I can't time the sides to be ready at the same time as the mains, and I'm slow and lethargic in the morning - so what better time to have someone cook for you? But secretly, my main breakfast food nemesis was the poached egg. My very favourite style of eggs is poached but it's SO hard to get them right!



I've tried tips and tricks from the greats - Julia Child, Martha Stewart, Jamie Oliver, you name it. And all of them failed me. Or maybe I failed them, but either way, I was no closer to easy poached eggs at home. They all recommend a technique where you stir the hot, but not boiling water into a tornado and then slip the eggs into the cyclone of water. This made my eggs go crazy every time and I'd loose all my white - even with the vinegar added to the water which is supposed to help keep them together.

Enter my parents - both amazing cooks and series lovers of food. How did it take me so long to ask them if they could poach eggs well? Last weekend we were at their house for a bit and my dad shared his tricks and for the first time I made great poached eggs. I've made them twice since already!

PERFECT POACHED EGGS:

  • fill a pot with water, add salt and white vinegar, bring to a boil
  • in the meantime, crack open a couple eggs and put them in a dish together
  • once water is boiling, turn off heat and wait for all bubbles to leave the surface of the water
  • once water is calm, empty dish of eggs and put the lid on the pot
  • put your toast in the toaster, and when it pops up (probably 1 minute? 1.5 minutes?) take the lid off and remove your perfectly poached eggs with a slotted spatula (or spoon with holes in it).
THAT'S IT. It's seriously that easy. No water cyclones needed or fancy techniques. Cook them with the lid ON and for a very brief time, and they're poached like pros. While I was waiting for my water to boil, I sauteed some spinach in garlic, salt, pepper, and olive oil and served my eggs on toast topped with the spinach. Yum town. Thanks dad :)

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