P OACH ED EG GS Perfectly poached eggs consist of a pillowy bed of fluffy whites encasing a golden orange, runny yolk, and the key to a good poached egg is, of course, fresh eggs. The whites of fresh eggs are much thicker and more cohesive than the whites of old eggs, and that’s critical when you’re poaching an egg. You need the whites to hold together in the water as the egg is cooking. In fact, duck eggs, with their super-t hick, gloopy whites, actually poach the best! While some might claim that adding salt or vinegar to the poaching water will result in perfectly poached eggs, I beg to differ. I have tried both methods. I haven’t found that salt makes much of a difference as far as holding the egg white together, and while the addition of a splash of vinegar to the cooking water forced the whites to pucker and form a tighter layer around the yolk, it also seemed to result in a weird texture. However, I couldn’t taste the vinegar in the poached egg, which I expected to. But in my opinion, neither salt nor vinegar are necessary. Instead, my method of swirling the water in the pot works like a charm.
How to Poach an Egg with the Swirl Method 1. Fill a deep pot or saucepan with 4 to 5 inches of water and bring to a boil, then turn the heat to low so the water is barely simmering. 2. Carefully break an egg into a small bowl. Next, use a wooden spoon to swirl the water in the pot, making a whirlpool. Then stop swirling and, holding the bowl close to the water level, gently slide the egg into the water in the center of the pot. Resume swirling for 1 minute around the edge of the pot, keeping the egg centered in the water. 3. Cook for 2 additional minutes, then gently remove the egg with a slotted spoon. Carefully flip the egg over onto a plate for the neatest presentation and repeat with the remaining eggs. Your end result after about 3 minutes will be a poached egg with a silky golden yolk with a runny inside that’s barely set around the edges. Season with salt and pepper and serve. Once you master this technique and the timing, you’ll be able to swirl an egg, move it
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Fresh Eggs Daily Cookbook
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