A lot of people tell me they’re scared of poaching eggs and prefer to use egg poaching contraptions, instead of doing it old-school (mind you, these egg poachers are usually made of plastic so I can’t imagine what kind of chemical nasties are leaching into your eggs).
In the past I gave you guys a step-by-step PTJ tutorial on how to get these little clouds of goodness right, but I thought maybe a four dimensional demonstration would help along any doubtful minds. So what do you have to lose? You might surprise yourself, and most definitely impress people who you make ’em for.
You will need:
2 fresh, room temperature, free range or biodynamic eggs
2-3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
olive oil to serve
salt and pepper
Fill a saucepan with water and bring to a simmer. Meanwhile, crack your first egg into a small vessel that can me submerged into hot water (I use a metal measuring cup). When the water in the saucepan starts to bubble, add the vinegar and turn down to the lowest heat possible (you don’t want any large bubbles breaking up the whites of your eggs).
Slide the first egg into the hot water (I literally submerge my measuring cup into the water so that the egg can stay as whole as possible). Keep an eye on the water to make sure it remains at a super gentle simmer and watch the egg white transform from a translucent state to an opaque state (about a minute). Once all of the white has become opaque, use a large slotted spoon to gently lift the egg out of the water from underneath. Place onto a plate and repeat with the second egg. Once you get the hang of this technique, you can start to poach 2 eggs at a time, making sure that the eggs are far apart from each other in the saucepan.
I like to serve my poached eggs on home fries with extra virgin olive oil and pepper, or on a bagel with a good knob of butter on top. Give this poached egg & white asparagus recipe if that sounds like your kinda thing. This is super simple and easy when you get the hang of it, give it a try!
