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Original poster

The Perfect Poached Egg Club

75 replies

PurplePansy05 · 02/10/2020 22:41

DH and I are big fans of poached eggs. We've tried everything (I think?) - vinegar, Poachies, you name it. They're pretty good, but not perfect IYSWIM.

Mumsnetters, please throw your Perfect Poached Egg recommendations at me!

  1. How do you make one?
  2. Your perfect poached egg combination. Mine is: avocado, smoked salmon with lemon juice and rye sourdough with real butter. Alternatively, avocado & chilli flakes on sourdough. Heaven.
OP posts:
lightlypoached · 03/10/2020 07:41

To get them like. that you need quite deep water, just under a simmer and you need to break the egg into a cup 1st. Dip,the rim of the cup in and slide the egg in. That way it keeps its eggy shape.

fairydustandpixies · 03/10/2020 07:46

🤢

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General food
30under · 03/10/2020 07:53

Ah, here you need your own chickens for the freshest eggs - 3 mins for the big brown eggs, 2 ISH mins for the blue Arucana eggs.
Ideally on home-made bread 1 day old, toasted and buttered.

DH and I have put a lot of time into making poached eggs Blush

Never made the whirlpool method work though.

Doje · 03/10/2020 08:22

If you whirlpool, how do you cook more than one egg at a time?

I'm low maintenance when it comes to poached eggs. Get the water simmering, then lower the egg in gently. Give it 2 mins then take a look. If all the white is set, then take them out.

Eggs Benedict / Royal is my fave, and loads of hollandaise sauce! Which I made myself once, and realised it's basically just warm butter... 😮

Hardbackwriter · 03/10/2020 08:26

I whirlpool and I break the eggs (I'm normally doing five) into ramekins first so that they can all be slid in one after the other rather than the delay of cracking each one. That works fine - they don't go together into one giant egg or anything!

ThousandsAreSailing · 03/10/2020 08:27

MsEllany
Do you cook the egg in the tea strainer or top it out?
I struggle to get a perfect poached egg and I don't like egg poachers because that is a coddled egg. To poach an egg it must be in touch with the water

WhatWouldJKRDo · 03/10/2020 08:38

First, build your hen house.

I’m serious - freshly laid poached eggs are always perfect and make all other eggs disappointing. Hens are wonderful pets.

A pot of boiling water, slide the eggs in, turn the heat down to just simmering. 3m 20s for the extra large eggs we usually get.

Eggs florentine’s my all time favourite. On baked beans with chipotle paste is a good quick lunch. Mashed avocado with smoked salmon is good too.

We have poached eggs about 5 times a week during laying season.

MsEllany · 03/10/2020 11:14

@ThousandsAreSailing no I tip it into the water. I suspect you could do it in the strainer but I’ve never tried.

I agree the freshest eggs are the best but quite frankly I’m not prepared to wait to buy a new box when I fancy a poached egg!

I’m going to make one (or maybe two) now. This thread has got me in the mood.

MsEllany · 03/10/2020 11:24

Done! Grin

I broke the yolk of the one in the back, what a disappointment!

The Perfect Poached Egg Club
Original poster
PurplePansy05 · 03/10/2020 11:26

I can't build a hen house sadly, my cats would go crazy 😂

Oooh, @MsEllany that's a great effort! I'm just about to go shopping, guess what I'm having for breakfast tomorrow 😊

OP posts:
WouldBeGood · 03/10/2020 11:28

Poach it in cling film for five minutes,,unwrap, voila!

Method: cling film in top of cup, crack egg in, season, wrap, stick in boiling water.

I like asparagus with mine, or now after seeing it on here, on marmite toast.

Karwomannghia · 03/10/2020 11:29

The thing that made poaching eggs easy for me was doing them in a small frying pan. They don’t fall as far into the water and are easier to scoop out.
Pour boiling water into the pan, crack the eggs in, turn it right down and put lid on. Toast down. When toast is up and buttered it’s ready. Slotted spoon to get the eggs out.
I love it with smoked salmon and hollandaise
Avocado
Hot sauce

Dmtush · 03/10/2020 11:37

The perfect poached egg comes of the freshest of eggs, I keep chickens and will only make poached eggs with eggs laid that day.

SlopesOff · 03/10/2020 11:37

I used the vortex method, with a dash of vinegar, and perfected it, until the hob broke.

I found the one minute poached egg videos on YouTube and now cook them in a small Pyrex bowl in the microwave. If you get the timing right to suit your taste they are just as good, doesn't have to be a minute, in fact removing them before the time is up and leaving them on the side allows you to see when they are how you like them, so just quickly scoop and drain.

PrimalLass · 03/10/2020 11:40

I don't think the electric poachers etc actually poach? The egg has to be in water. I use poachies but would love to master it without wasting a whole box of eggs.

CorianderLord · 03/10/2020 11:41

Boil the water. Take the pan off the heat, drop in the egg and wait.

Or use a frying pan full of water so a tiny part of the egg is above water. It keeps it in place

PrimalLass · 03/10/2020 11:44

Poach it in cling film for five minutes,,unwrap, voila!

Not technically poached (needs water to touch) but i bet it's good.

OublietteBravo · 03/10/2020 11:46

I cook mine in the same pan as fresh pasta (and eat the two together). Add boiling water to fresh pasta. Put on the hob. Set timer for 4 minutes. Crack the egg into the centre of the pan. Drain when the timer goes off.

CorianderLord · 03/10/2020 11:47

Oh and I have it with avocado, tomato, red cabbage, sriracha, coriander and mint on rye sourdough

WouldBeGood · 03/10/2020 11:48

@PrimalLass it’s great! Changed my life 😂

HappyThursdays · 03/10/2020 11:49

I use the @Karwomannghia method.

I absolutely love poached eggs. I feel like I've spent my life trying to perfect them.

Worst thing that happened to me poached eggs wise was moving house. On the gas hob in old house, I had them perfected. On the electric hob in new house, I just can't get them quite right ARGH!

picklemewalnuts · 03/10/2020 11:51

I used to use the poaching pan with cups that sit in the water. It was great though not technically poached, good enough. Sadly I put it on the hob without putting water in. Disaster darling.

I'll be trying the cling film method I think.

Karwomannghia · 03/10/2020 11:51

@HappyThursdays you’ll have to get a gas hob! It’s the only way!

Original poster
PurplePansy05 · 03/10/2020 11:57

I have an induction hob and we can't get them quite right either, the gas one in our previous place was better for poached eggs.

Having researched the electric poachers I agree, they don't technically "poach" and from what I can see, the eggs come out rectangular rather than round and plump how I like them yes, I am that kind of an egg snob 😂

The cling film method is the one I'm trying out tomorrow, 100%. Will report back Grin

OP posts: