How do I cook eggs in an egg poacher?

[helen196]

I've just bought a 4 egg poacher and there were no instructions about how to cook eggs in it. So I filled the bottom part with water, cracked eggs into the little cup things and set the thing off. It took absolutely ages to cook. Not sure if I should have put the pan lid on? Anyway the result was like a plasticky hard boiled egg - not very appetising! Can anyone tell me where I went wrong?

Well, this is how I do them and they turn out lovely.....

Put plenty of water in the bottom and put on the heat. Wait for the water to boil and then remove from heat and add a tiny bit of butter in each egg poacher. Put back on the heat just for a minute to melt butter.

Remove from heat again and crack eggs into poachers. Replace lid and put back on the heat. Time for 5 minutes (you may need to play around with the time but 5 mins works for me and I like them with slightly soft yolks).

HTH

Aha, so I did have to put the lid on! Thanks very much

I think the important bit is to wait till the water is boiling before putting the eggs in, so you're cooking them much faster than what you tried the first time round. PLus the lid will help the tops of them cook faster too, because they'll be getting steamed.

Yes, I was waiting ages for the tops to cook.

you really don't need a poacher unless you want perfect round eggs. To do it without one do the following:

Put about 2 inches of water in a saucepan with a few drops of vinegar or worcestershire sauce (sauce is better cos you don;t risk the eggs picking up a vinegary taste). When its simmering, just crack the eggs directly into the water and cook for about the length of time it takes toast to pop. Simples!