The perfect poached egg
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Original Poster:

3,676 posts

264 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
quotequote all
What is the secret to the perfect poached egg?

I tend to boil a pan of water and chuck it a dash of white wine vinegar, wait until the water simmers, drop in the egg, turn the heat down and voila, a poached egg of sorts!

Any ideas to improve my technique.

ad551

1,502 posts

241 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
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RichB

56,079 posts

312 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
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Give the water a gentle swirl round just before you put the egg in, crack the egg into a cup which makes it easier to place it gently into the hot water and you don't need the vinegar.

okgo

41,959 posts

226 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
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ad551 said:
BOOM

that's how I shall be rolling from here on in.

RVVUNM

1,913 posts

237 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
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This is something that really bugs me, how do I stop the egg from becoming a complete stringy mess. I've tried simmering water, boiling water, swerling the water, vinegar, please someone must know the ultimate secret to the perfect poached egg?

LordGrover

34,138 posts

240 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
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If you want to do it properly, without cheating, you MUST have VERY fresh eggs. As eggs age the white gets thinner and it's nigh on impossible to poach properly.
Conversely, boiled eggs should NOT be fresh. If they are 'too' fresh they're next to impossible to peel.

Mobile Chicane

21,959 posts

240 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
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RDMcG

20,787 posts

235 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
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I use a dash of vinegar, water just below boil. Break egg into a cup, and gently slide egg into water.use a slotted spoon to gather and stringy bits, (should not be many). remove with a slotted spoon and turn it out onto a thick wad of kitchen paper to drain. You will have a perfect, dry, poached egg.

Si 330

1,306 posts

237 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
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RichB said:
Give the water a gentle swirl round just before you put the egg in, crack the egg into a cup which makes it easier to place it gently into the hot water and you don't need the vinegar.

I do the above but first once the water is boiling place the egg (in it's shell) in to the water for 20 seconds. Then do as above, this way the white sets alittle holding the shape.

stumpage

2,209 posts

254 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
quotequote all
The hairy bikers had a good method on telly the other week.

Boil the water.
Drop the egg in as if you are going to hard boil it for 30 seconds.
Remove egg.
Add little vinegar, bring water off the boil and stir.
Crack the egg into the vortex.

Works a treat as the little boil before hand gives the egg a little cooked skin to hold it together as you crack it into the pan.

paulmurr

4,203 posts

240 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
quotequote all
I use a frying pan filled with water and a dash of vinegar. Being non-stick and lower sided than a pan it's a lot easier to remove the egg once it's done. The water is also not quite simmering as any amount of bubbles will break up the egg.

Once it's done I drain it on some kitchen paper and serve on hot buttery toast with a bit of salt and white pepper.

ETA - I tried the clingfilm method and found it too much of a faff.

Edited by paulmurr on Tuesday 12th January 16:34

Soovy

35,829 posts

299 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
quotequote all
okgo said:
ad551 said:
BOOM

that's how I shall be rolling from here on in.
^^^^ This


It's awesome.

okgo

41,959 posts

226 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
quotequote all
Soovy said:
okgo said:
ad551 said:
BOOM

that's how I shall be rolling from here on in.
^^^^ This


It's awesome.
No washing up either. Then again to say I wash up the normal one would be stretching the truth biggrin

soad

34,550 posts

204 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
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Some good tips; can't beat 2 poached eggs on toast for breakfast. Lovely stuff.

Frying pan method is interesting, will have a go.

http://www.perfectpoachedegg.com/perfect_egg.htm

Fort Jefferson

8,237 posts

250 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
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You don't get much better than these Lakeland egg pods.

bint

4,664 posts

252 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
quotequote all
stumpage said:
The hairy bikers had a good method on telly the other week.

Boil the water.
Drop the egg in as if you are going to hard boil it for 30 seconds.
Remove egg.
Add little vinegar, bring water off the boil and stir.
Crack the egg into the vortex.

Works a treat as the little boil before hand gives the egg a little cooked skin to hold it together as you crack it into the pan.
MOH has tried all the methods previously mentioned on here, but nothing compares to the Hairy Bikers suggestion above. It works a treat and is less fiddly than cling film etc.

thumbup from me!

V8mate

45,899 posts

217 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
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paulmurr said:

ETA - I tried the clingfilm method and found it too much of a faff.


Definitely. Especially when you're doing two eggs each for four people!

Poaching pan and 'get over yourself' is my advice.
Always works; tastes as good as the quality of the eggs you put in and...well... they're eggs FFS.

Plotloss

67,280 posts

298 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
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Poaching pans?
Clingfilm?

For fks sake.

Gnits

1,124 posts

229 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
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This had me baffled for some time - stringy mess city.
Then I found that cold eggs are $h!t for poaching. Warm the little fellas up first as mentioned by dropping into the water before removing the shells.

Cotty

42,150 posts

312 months

Tuesday 12th January 2010
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Fort Jefferson said:
You don't get much better than these Lakeland egg pods.
Mobile Chicane said:
But arn't they coddled eggs not poached? Im no expert though.
Might as well use one of these