Poached eggs pics

[Generalpost]

What am I doing wrong . I read that you you should add some salt and white wine vinegar and stir the water so its like a twister then add the eggs.

The first picture is without salt and white wine vinegar the 2nd picture is with.

Creating a vortex is great but you've got to be quick and have seriously fresh eggs otherwise they fall apart

I use a drip of oil only

I use a frying pan, 1 cm of just boiling water (no salt or vinegar). Just like frying an egg in water not oil.

Very fresh eggs (no stirring or vortex) I just scoop up the boiling water over the egg, just like you would when frying an egg.

Perfect poached eggs every-time.

Took me 40 years to learn this from a friend who works in a cafe.

I tried using those egg poaching pockets (single use) from LakeLand I think. Spectacularly unsuccessful (open plan kitchen - dining room) I needed to do 8 for some friends who had stayed overnight. I thought I can have them all prepared 8 cups each with a pocket in. Break all the eggs into the 8 pockets and then lower them individually in to the pan of simmering water. BUT the instructions were break an egg into the pocket and IMMEDIATELY put into the water, cook for two to three minutes, by the time I'd done the last one I couldn't work out which had been in longest... and some of the egg white had bonded with the pocket... oh what a mess. Scrambled eggs with some fried panacette are nice - we'll stick with that in the future!

i don't add vinegar at all! I make sure the water is gently simmering, crack eggs into a ramekin/mug/small bowl, make a vortex with a spoon, put the toast on and drop the eggs in, gently, in the centre of the vortex. When the toast pops the eggs should be done, but I've not got this down yet.

You need the deepest saucepan possible and vinegar

So that the egg is already starting to cook by the time it reaches the bottom - that way it won't spread out

Small deep saucepan, vigorously boiling water with a slosh of white wine vinegar, fresh egg already broken into a ramekin, then slide it in gently and leave it til you think it's ready.

@TwoLeftSocksWithHoles
I had exactly the same issue as you do the next time I did it I wrote numbers on the top of the pockets but you still have to be on the ball to get it right

I use silicone cups now, much easier and you can add the pepper and anything eles you fancy to the cups first then the egg so it all cook all together

Saucepan and scoop up the water like with a fried egg OR just buy an egg poaching pan and get perfect eggs every time even when they're not super fresh.

ex-chef & BnB owner here:

don't stir the water - the more movement, the more the white will spread out and away from the yolk!

For that reason, you only want the water barely murmuring, definitely not a rapid boil

fresh eggs means that the white is firm and will hold together more (and therefore less likely to spread away from the yolk)

break egg into a ramekin/ mug/ glass and then slide very gently into the water.... so the white doesn't slide away from the yolk (you get the picture by now)

my final tip is once the egg is cooked, trim away any untidy/ extraneous white with a spoon before serving so they look more insta-worthy!

Not technically poached I suppose but I butter up a couple of silicone bun cases and crack the eggs into them before putting them into boiling water. I then cover the pan and leave them for 5-6 minutes. Soft and properly cooked every time.

as a funny coincidence I have just today asked DH (who is not working today) to go and purchase those silicone egg poacher thingies from the Range. (Or at least I assume he can get them from the Range becuase you seem to be able to get everything from there).

My freestyle poached eggs are always a travesty.

Taking them out of the fridge the night before so they're an even temperature seems to help too, I think I read it somewhere but can't remember the reason now.

I tried a new technique today that worked quite well - put the eggs into the boiling water with the shells still on for one minute, then crack into a cup and slide into the water as usual.

@Enough4me

Taking them out of the fridge the night before so they're an even temperature seems to help too, I think I read it somewhere but can't remember the reason now.

Eggs shouldn't be in the fridge anyway. They're not in the fridge in the supermarket.

Nigella does the sieve thing, using a small sieve that fits over a cup or mug. The watery part of the white goes through the sieve to be thrown away and she gently slides what remains into the pan. The fresher the egg, the more solid the white.

Works for her. I never use vinegar because I can taste it.

@Enough4me

Taking them out of the fridge the night before so they're an even temperature seems to help too, I think I read it somewhere but can't remember the reason now.

Eggs should not be kept in the fridge!!!!

I've committed a crime against eggs by storing in the fridge, shockingly I'm going to continue...next it's keeping flour in the fridge too

I've given up swirling and vinegar, only use the freshest eggs, and at last am getting them right!
I use fairly deep water in a saucepan, and drop the eggs in with the water barely simmering.

I boil water in a saucepan with a splash of vinegar (you won’t taste it if it’s just splash), chuck the egg in the pan with the flame still pretty high and time for 2 mins. DH says my poached eggs are better than any hotel or restaurant and they are perfect every time to be fair 🤷🏻‍♀️

I bloody love vinegar so it’s boiling water, big splosh of vinegar, swirl so it’s very fast, slide egg in before it slows- if it’s quick enough it swirls the egg together rather than apart..

Only american eggs need keeping in the fridge..

I have a big fridge, I seriously do store even flour in my fridge. Sorry for causing stress, but it works for me.

Can anyone do more than one at a time? The whites don't run together? For those that use the ranekin method... do you have one for each egg and do them all quick in a row or crack an egg into the same ramekin over and over? Also what is the difference for American eggs? I do keep mine in the fridge but I buy pasture raised organic eggs.

I do four or five in a large stainless steel frying pan with fairly deep water. They stay apart. The water has to be barely simmering.

What do you mean about American eggs? From what I know, eggs are washed in the US as an anti-salmonella measure which means they have to be kept in the fridge as they lack the natural protection on the egg. We don't wash eggs in the UK - we vaccinate chickens instead - and eggs can be kept at room temperature. I'm in the UK and keep them in the fridge. When I do poached eggs, I use the eggs straight from the fridge.

I never add vinegar just make sure the eggs are fairly fresh & in individual ramekins before pouring into deep frying pan. I can do 4 eggs at a time. Usually works well. My problem is when I place eggs on kitchen roll to absorb water, they then sometimes break when moving them off so do an extra egg at times.

@GTAlogic that’s coddled eggs, if I remember correctly!