My absolute favourite breakfast of the moment, is poached egg on crisp double toasted rye spread with rich wholegrain mustard. I’m generally eating it 5 times a week, it is so good!
Yummm!
As a kid we had a poaching pan (looks like a frying pan with individual little cups sat in water that you pop an egg into to keep its shape) but I figured there had to be a ‘proper’ way of doing it without the need for another pan in our teeny kitchen. Also that poaching pan was such a pig to clean that it rarely got used.
So, mum & I researched all we could on poaching the perfect egg. We tried vinegar in the cooking water, swirling the boiling water to create a vortex, even cling filming the egg for goodness sake.
The lot. All nonsense.
The only way to make a perfect poached egg is to use a super fresh egg, ie one that is less than 2 days old. That’s it. If you don’t have your own chooks and have trouble getting really fresh eggs then you’d be better off investing in a poaching pan.
As a note if someone asked to buy my eggs who was also mad about poaching I would gladly sell them just laid fresh ones (as opposed to ones that are 4 or 5 days old), ask your farm gate supplier, even if they charge you a little more for them it will be money well spent.
This duck egg was laid an hour before, look how it holds together.
The science bit to back my very bold statement above; an eggshell is porous, it slowly ‘breathes’. The older the egg is the more air is inside, the more air inside, the more watery the white will be. When you break a super fresh egg into a pan the white is jellylike and holds itself together, with an older egg the white is all runny and just dissipates into a mess in the pan. Yuk.
Roll on tomorrow morning!
Oh my goodness, was that one of the chicklets you poached!!! poor ickle fellow. :-(Looks good enough to eat. :-) Love and hugs Honey Mwah X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X
What a facinating post I too love poached eggs, though shall never have one as nice looking or as tasty as one of yours, I dont have one of those panny things, so maybe I should co out and buy one :)Thanks for the wonderful post :)X
Has Daisy been on here again ;)its me MP ;)x
Phwoar! That’s a very gorgeous looking egg! When I see pics like that I really do miss having our own chooks and getting their eggs. I don’t miss the cleaning out one bit … but I do miss the eggs!
It looked scrummy!!
Oh, that lovely picture brings back my aching to visit again soon – it looks such a lovely scene. Yummy, I’ll drop in for breakfast soon. xxx
Yum – I love a poached egg. I usually have odd shaped ones as I don’t have a poaching pan – I remember mums and yep – pig to clean is being polite ;) xxx
I threw our poaching pan away about 2 weeks ago, they are a nightmare to clean arent they?! Mmmm, i havent had a poached egg in ages though, that may be on the menu for tomorrow as we have plenty of eggs here!Aqeela xx
I’ve not long had yummy egg sandwiches in Mozzers and you still managed to make me drool!!!Love and blessingscccccc
Love, love, love this!!! Now I am about to go and try my hand at the perfect poached egg! Thanks you! :)
Your life will never be the same again Len!
Thanks for popping by :)
Janie x
My pleasure, Jane. This has quickly become one of my favorite web destinations – superb content! :)
Aw shucks! You’ll make me blush :)
Pingback: Weekend Breakfast ~ Poached Egg and Asparagus » The HedgeCombers
If it is done in little pans then it is a “steamed” egg. A poached egg is dropped directly into the water.
That’s a very good point Deborah. I wonder why they are called Poaching Pans then?
Thanks for popping by
Janie x
Pingback: Poached Duck Egg Salad » The HedgeCombers