[The Wizard]

Every time i've tried this it just does work. Tried adding white vinegar and doing the whirlpool vortex thing but the egg just explodes or breaks apart into a totall mess which always ends up in the bin. It just refuses to hold together in one neat sphere. They make it look so easy on youtube videos but I just can't do it. I'm pulling my hair out.

Is is because I have an electric hob so my heat is too high or severe? Is it because I don't have a shallow pan and i'm trying to poach it in a saucepan which is too deep? Is the water supposed to be a boil or a simmer or what. Please can someone just explain to me in step by step laymans terms of what I need to do or where i'm going wrong because every time I try to poach an egg it turns out more like boiled scramble with bits of egg randomly floating about in the water and I eventually end up scooping it out with a spoon and throwing it in the bin.

I've tried spinning the water into a vortex and the egg just spins around and breaks up and i've tried not spinning and just dropping it right in but it still just goes all over the place. Makes no difference.

[MrsKAS]

instead of putting the egg straight into the pan put a ladle into the pan and crack the egg into it. If the water is bubbling to violently it causes the egg to break up before it sets nice, the ladle will prevent that

Good luck i love a nice poached egg

[diablo]

Sounds like your eggs are too old. Poaching only really works well with fresh eggs.

Bring the water to a boil then turn off the heat and wait until it stops bubbling, then swirl it and drop the egg in the middle.

[Jennyuk]

You could try

Get some microwaveable clingfilm
Get a cup
Push the cling film into the cup, and crack the egg into the cling film
You should be able to tie the clingfilm around the top of the egg,
Drop egg into boiling water, and poach normally, it'll taste great, and you wont have to spend ages scrubbing cooked on egg of the pan.

[LaChatteGitane]

Quote:

Originally Posted by diablo

Sounds like your eggs are too old. Poaching only really works well with fresh eggs.

Bring the water to a boil then turn off the heat and wait until it stops bubbling, then swirl it and drop the egg in the middle.

It's as simple as this.
And if your eggs are really fresh you don't even have to swirl the water as the eggwhites will stay nicely wrapped around the yolk.

Poaching is meant to be done in water just under boiling point, so don't drop them into bubbling boiling water.

Break the eggs into a small bowl, one by one, before sliding them into the water.

[big_hard_lad]

If you don't know how fresh your eggs are then drop them into a bowl of cold water.....fresh eggs will sink and less fresh will float.

[LaChatteGitane]

Quote:

Originally Posted by big_hard_lad

If you don't know how fresh your eggs are then drop them into a bowl of cold water.....fresh eggs will sink and less fresh will float.

...and rotten eggs will fly

Well, they could with all the gas they contain

[indianwells]

Or just get a couple of these...
http://www.lakeland.co.uk/p12116/poa...49DC937C2.app2

[big_hard_lad]

Quote:

Originally Posted by indianwells

Or just get a couple of these...
http://www.lakeland.co.uk/p12116/poa...49DC937C2.app2

They're not the same, IMO. Not enough contact between the egg and water which means they have a tendency to dry out.

[Aesa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jennyuk

You could try

Get some microwaveable clingfilm
Get a cup
Push the cling film into the cup, and crack the egg into the cling film
You should be able to tie the clingfilm around the top of the egg,
Drop egg into boiling water, and poach normally, it'll taste great, and you wont have to spend ages scrubbing cooked on egg of the pan.

This is the method I use and it works every time I'd suggest greasing up the clingfilm a little before adding the egg as occasionally it can be a bit hard to peel the clingfilm covered in boiling water from the very hot eggs. But the eggs taste loverly

[jmclaugh]

Not how I do them but you could try this.

http://www.deliaonline.com/how-to-co...ch-an-egg.html

[The Wizard]

I want to be able to do it the traditional way because I prefer the way they come out unlike the way these pods or microwave poaches work which basically dries them out and they look more like a poached version of a fried egg rather than the round moist sphere with the yolk in the centre.

[The Wizard]

Quote:

Originally Posted by indianwells

Or just get a couple of these...
http://www.lakeland.co.uk/p12116/poa...49DC937C2.app2

Thanks but I don't wanna cheat. If I do then it's beaten me and I need to master this thing. It's more something I want to be able to do because I can't and it's bugging me that something so simple should be so difficult.

Besides I want the egg yolk incased inside the white. With a poach pod or the ladle technique the yolk sits on top like a fried egg. I want it like a ball with the yolk in the centre so it remains intact until you slice into it then the runny middle oozes out.

I've just bought some fresh eggs today so i'm gonna give it another try. Do I need vinegar in the water or should I avoid putting anything in? Because it's an electric hob i'm going to bring it up to the boil, turn the heat off and when it's just stopped boiling i'll pour in the egg. So what's the best way to put it in? Crack it straight in to the water or crack it in a bowl first then pour it in?

[indianwells]

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Wizard

Thanks but I don't wanna cheat. If I do then it's beaten me and I need to master this thing. It's more something I want to be able to do because I can't and it's bugging me that something so simple should be so difficult.

Besides I want the egg yolk incased inside the white. With a poach pod or the ladle technique the yolk sits on top like a fried egg. I want it like a ball with the yolk in the centre so it remains intact until you slice into it then the runny middle oozes out.

I've just bought some fresh eggs today so i'm gonna give it another try. Do I need vinegar in the water or should I avoid putting anything in? Because it's an electric hob i'm going to bring it up to the boil, turn the heat off and when it's just stopped boiling i'll pour in the egg. So what's the best way to put it in? Crack it straight in to the water or crack it in a bowl first then pour it in?

I don't bother with vinegar, if the egg is fresh enough it's not needed. I just gently pour the egg in from a tiny bowl and 3 and a half to 4 minutes later it's done. If i'm doing a few I transfer them to a bowl of ice cold water and they'll keep fine for hours. When I want to serve i'll transfer them to a clean bowl, pour to cover with boiling water and one minute later they can go on the plate.

[SeasideLady]

The water should just be a gentle simmer - lowest hob temperature. Add a few drops of vinegar, and crack the egg directly into the water from just above the surface ( not drop from a height ). As the white start to firm up take a spoon and gently scoop a bit of the water over the yolk until just done. Remove with slotted spoon, draining well and that's it, ready for your toast !

[TelevisionUser]

You can pick up a proper egg poaching pan and cups for a tenner or so from large supermarkets, cookware shops, etc. Alternatively, do what l do and coat the inside of a poaching cup with vegetable oil, crack an egg into it and it into the microwave* at a low setting for a couple of minutes and you get a nice poached egg without all the clean up mess.

*As microwaves differ in power and irradiation levels, you'll have to do a bit of trial and error to get it right. Do not use high power settings otherwise the poor old egg will explode all over the inside of your microwave.

[farmhand]

I doubt you are doing much wrong. When the white goes whispy it's because the egg is too old and there's nothing you can do to save it. Like people have said, in fresher eggs the albumen clings more firmly together. (I have heard it said that absolutely fresh eggs are no good for poaching, but can't recall why or if it's true.)

Opinion is divided about vinegar and making a swirl - I see no point to either. I doubt the claims made about what they are supposed to do and why would anyone want a vinegar taste on something as sublime and delicate as a perfectly poached egg?

Also, I see little problem with how fast the water is boiling. You don't want it so vigorous the egg is bouncing around, but other than that I doubt it affects the result much. I always drop egg in on a high heat and turn it down as it returns to the boil, but as you don't have that luxury I'd say gently bubbling will be fine.

I always use a frying pan, figuring that the egg has less far to fall and it's easier to access the egg to scoop it out. If you have to use a saucepan, crack the egg into a teacup or ladle first to ensure the yolk doesn't break.

The only real tip I'd give is to bast the egg. I like my yolk completely buried in white so that you don't see that gorgeous yellow ooze till you cut it with your knife. That is whole point of a poached egg and why it is the best dish in the world.

So once I get my egg in there I sort of shape it by making currents in the water with a slotted spoon and then flicking water over the top of the yolk to get it just the way I want, like Seaside Lady. As you can actually see the heat going into the yolk you get a very good feel for when the egg is perfectly done, and you decide how white it looks on top. Playing with your egg makes you completely in control of the process, allows you to put in all your egg-love and builds up the anticipation nicely! (This might be a bit unorthodox, I don't know, but to tell the truth I've been doing it so long I can't imagine just leaving them to simmer.) Damn, just realized that if the egg is totally submerged in a saucepan then this might not be possible, unless the egg floats near the surface.

I cook them till the yolk is still runny but starting to get a bit more viscous, but each to their own. Nothing worse than an underdone egg though, imo.

[norbitonite]

Another tip I heard recently is to pop the egg in its shell into boiling water for about 30 seconds then crack it into simmering water. I haven't tried it myself, so can't vouch for it, but it might be worth a try. Apparently it firms the white up enough to make it 'hold' round the yolk.

[farmhand]

Quote:

Originally Posted by norbitonite

Another tip I heard recently is to pop the egg in its shell into boiling water for about 30 seconds then crack it into simmering water. I haven't tried it myself, so can't vouch for it, but it might be worth a try. Apparently it firms the white up enough to make it 'hold' round the yolk.

That sounds ingenious! Will give it a try next time....

[Gormond]

I make them in a frying pan.

- fill it with water (add a little salt) and bring to the boil
- crack eggs in
- when white becomes hard remove and eat

Works every time, no vortex, vinegar or Amy other nonsense that you hear about.

[Croctacus]

It's not hard, boil the water, turn the heat down a bit and crack your eggs into the saucepan. No vinegar or stirring required. Couple of minutes and done.

As an aside my phone just tried to turn vinegar into Hungarian? Why?

[whoever,hey]

Both Raymond Blanc and Chris evans says its all about being fresh aswell.

[smudges dad]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TelevisionUser

You can pick up a proper egg poaching pan and cups for a tenner or so from large supermarkets, cookware shops, etc. Alternatively, do what l do and coat the inside of a poaching cup with vegetable oil, crack an egg into it and it into the microwave* at a low setting for a couple of minutes and you get a nice poached egg without all the clean up mess.

*As microwaves differ in power and irradiation levels, you'll have to do a bit of trial and error to get it right. Do not use high power settings otherwise the poor old egg will explode all over the inside of your microwave.

Poaching pans and cups do NOT produce proper poached eggs.

I use a deep pan so the egg can be fully under water - a frying pan isn't deep enough.

I use a bit of vinegar as I was told it helps keep the white together, but I've never tasted it.

[shouldbelucy]

Heston cheated when he did it on TV the other week in his latest series. He used a fresh egg but he strained off the runny part of the white, just left the more solid part that is around the yolk. Then he put it in a pan of water (no vinegar) and took it off the heat for 6 minutes. Trouble is he ended up with a very small poached egg.

[Welsh-lad]

The egg must be as absolutely fresh as possible. The white will cohede thickly around the yolk when the egg is fresh