I can't order poached eggs in a restaurant any more. How do
professional chefs eat out? Now that I know how to poach a damn good
egg, I can't order it in a restaurant. Not like seeing the making of
your fast food makes you not want to eat it, but how after spending a
weekend in a 5 star hotel you just can't swallow the Super 8.
Now that I understand the art (skills, technique, the precise care) that has to go into making a great poached egg - I just can't order it in a restaurant. The first one was overcooked and my yolk didn't run. And the egg whites weren't fluffy and playful in my mouth, they were thin rubbery pieces. The second egg was at a much nicer restaurant and they kept the yolk somewhat....not completely solid. But the whites were nicely structured in a contained circle and pretty fluffy. The problem - instead of poaching the egg with all the love and tenderness and attention it demands, they trimmed off the imperfections. I could tell because they most definitely would have used a Large egg and what was on my plate was the size of a Reese's cup. Seeing my excitement when ordering and my disappointment (almost disgust) with the quality of the expensive eggs I was served, Paul set his foot down: No more ordering poached eggs.
So, poaching a great egg isn't rocket science, but it isn't the simplest thing in the world either. You have to start with a basic understanding of what you are working with (and against), and then you have to play the game really well. The latter is what makes you a chef. Sadly, what most are missing is the former - and that is where I come in!
The Water The water in your pan should just barely cover the egg once it is dropped in. So this amount will vary depending on the pan, the size of the eggs, etc. so I can't tell you "2 cups." It should probably be about 2 inches of water. Many say to add vinegar, which supposedly is the magic wand for amateurs. The vinegar supposedly helps the whites to coagulate, or pull themselves together so they cook faster meaning, so you have more solid fluffy whites instead of the runny kind. (I don't think the vinegar really helps. You can screw up royally with it or do a perfect egg without it.)
Hot
and still water is super important. Too hot and the egg breaks apart
and too col and it doesn't really cook (and it spreads out). The water
should be just below a simmer. I'd get the exact temperature for you,
but you probably wouldn't use a thermometer anyway - and you don't have
to. The best way to describe this: If you watch the water heat up
you'll notice that lots of small bubbles appear to be stuck to the
bottom of the pan. If they have enough strength to float to the top of
the pan, you water is too hot. You could also put it just below this
temperature by turning the stove down a bit or stirring the water.
Cuidado! Julia Child tells you to stir the water to cool it down before
dropping in the egg. And that is how I learned to make egg drop soup!
The water has to be still. If the water is moving (waves, current,
bubbles) your egg whites will go along for the ride and your egg won't
stay together.
The Egg This is a little nerdy and foodie-ish. Eggs are very complex and amazing. First - the color.
Every once in a while you crack open an egg and the yolk is BRIGHT YELLOW! Other times it is very pale. Why the color difference? What does it mean? It has to do with what the chicken ate. (In the U.S. the feed is pretty consistent so they are usually always the same color, but in Israel they vary greatly!) I like the bright ones for the color they bring to a dish and because I think they are more rich and creamier (and supposedly there are many more vitamins). You shouldn't worry too much about the color though.
So when you crack open a fresh egg the whites
are very thick and kind of form a blog if you poured it on the counter.
If you start to tip the cracked egg to the side the whole egg follow -
like cars on a roller coaster being pulled over the climax. As an egg
ages (we're talking days) the whites get weaker and start to separate.
When you crack open this egg it is more runny and some of the white may
drip freely from the egg. You want fresh eggs (or again, you
will be having egg drop soup for breakfast). This will be really
important when you first drop the egg into the water: (assuming you have
hot still water) the fresh egg will hold itself together while the old
eggs will spread out in the pan like pancake batter. (Pictured right is
an older egg.)
(Left)
See the large white circle around the yolk? That is the fresh egg
white which stuck together and tenderly protected the yolk as it was
cooked. These thick whites will be fluffy and delicious! The blurry
white above that are parts of the white which started to break down,
they are weaker and so when I put the egg in they started to float
away. These whites will taste drier and slightly rubbery.
The Poaching Part
First, following the directions above, your eggs should be a room
temperature and your water hot and still. Carefully crack the egg into a
small dish. You do this a.) so that you don't get egg shells in your
water and b.) so that you can slowly lower the egg into the water.
Double check the water temperature - if it is too hot you can a.) turn
down the temperature and wait or b.) speed up the cooling by stirring
the water. (Julia Child suggests the latter - but be careful to let the
water fully settle before putting in the egg or...you know...egg drop
soup.)
Lower the dish so that the lip is touching the water and slowly let the egg slide into the pan. If you whites are thick enough, you can let the first half slide into the pan, wait 3-5 seconds for it to start to turn white, and then slowly let the yolk fall on top.
Don't stick your pretty little spoon into the water and cause waves. Don't let bubbles start to come up. Watch like a hawk (at least until you have a good grasp on how long this takes). When the bottom of the egg is white (solid), use a plastic or wooden spoon to carefully edge the egg off of the bottom of the pan. The top should still be uncooked and the yolk is still very soft.
Once all of the whites have...well..turned white, carefully scoop the egg out with a slotted spoon. Gently tip the egg to and fro to allow as much excess water to drip off as possible. If you want to make your egg look extra fancy, you can set the egg on a cutting board and trim the edges (see below).
After you have mastered the poached egg (no more egg drop soup and no more rubbery pieces in murky water), try getting the perfect yolk: a thick runny yolk that just coats your fork (or bread). Mmmm!
Now that I understand the art (skills, technique, the precise care) that has to go into making a great poached egg - I just can't order it in a restaurant. The first one was overcooked and my yolk didn't run. And the egg whites weren't fluffy and playful in my mouth, they were thin rubbery pieces. The second egg was at a much nicer restaurant and they kept the yolk somewhat....not completely solid. But the whites were nicely structured in a contained circle and pretty fluffy. The problem - instead of poaching the egg with all the love and tenderness and attention it demands, they trimmed off the imperfections. I could tell because they most definitely would have used a Large egg and what was on my plate was the size of a Reese's cup. Seeing my excitement when ordering and my disappointment (almost disgust) with the quality of the expensive eggs I was served, Paul set his foot down: No more ordering poached eggs.
So, poaching a great egg isn't rocket science, but it isn't the simplest thing in the world either. You have to start with a basic understanding of what you are working with (and against), and then you have to play the game really well. The latter is what makes you a chef. Sadly, what most are missing is the former - and that is where I come in!
The Water The water in your pan should just barely cover the egg once it is dropped in. So this amount will vary depending on the pan, the size of the eggs, etc. so I can't tell you "2 cups." It should probably be about 2 inches of water. Many say to add vinegar, which supposedly is the magic wand for amateurs. The vinegar supposedly helps the whites to coagulate, or pull themselves together so they cook faster meaning, so you have more solid fluffy whites instead of the runny kind. (I don't think the vinegar really helps. You can screw up royally with it or do a perfect egg without it.)
Hot
and still water is super important. Too hot and the egg breaks apart
and too col and it doesn't really cook (and it spreads out). The water
should be just below a simmer. I'd get the exact temperature for you,
but you probably wouldn't use a thermometer anyway - and you don't have
to. The best way to describe this: If you watch the water heat up
you'll notice that lots of small bubbles appear to be stuck to the
bottom of the pan. If they have enough strength to float to the top of
the pan, you water is too hot. You could also put it just below this
temperature by turning the stove down a bit or stirring the water.
Cuidado! Julia Child tells you to stir the water to cool it down before
dropping in the egg. And that is how I learned to make egg drop soup!
The water has to be still. If the water is moving (waves, current,
bubbles) your egg whites will go along for the ride and your egg won't
stay together.The Egg This is a little nerdy and foodie-ish. Eggs are very complex and amazing. First - the color.
Every once in a while you crack open an egg and the yolk is BRIGHT YELLOW! Other times it is very pale. Why the color difference? What does it mean? It has to do with what the chicken ate. (In the U.S. the feed is pretty consistent so they are usually always the same color, but in Israel they vary greatly!) I like the bright ones for the color they bring to a dish and because I think they are more rich and creamier (and supposedly there are many more vitamins). You shouldn't worry too much about the color though.
 |
| This egg was slightly older and spread out in the pan. |
Lower the dish so that the lip is touching the water and slowly let the egg slide into the pan. If you whites are thick enough, you can let the first half slide into the pan, wait 3-5 seconds for it to start to turn white, and then slowly let the yolk fall on top.
Don't stick your pretty little spoon into the water and cause waves. Don't let bubbles start to come up. Watch like a hawk (at least until you have a good grasp on how long this takes). When the bottom of the egg is white (solid), use a plastic or wooden spoon to carefully edge the egg off of the bottom of the pan. The top should still be uncooked and the yolk is still very soft.
Once all of the whites have...well..turned white, carefully scoop the egg out with a slotted spoon. Gently tip the egg to and fro to allow as much excess water to drip off as possible. If you want to make your egg look extra fancy, you can set the egg on a cutting board and trim the edges (see below).
After you have mastered the poached egg (no more egg drop soup and no more rubbery pieces in murky water), try getting the perfect yolk: a thick runny yolk that just coats your fork (or bread). Mmmm!
 |
| Starting with a decently poached egg, most restaurants will trim off the not-so-perfect white edges. I think this is waste of good eggs, above is the simple trick. |
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