A well poached egg is beautiful thing. Plump and round, with the white wrapped around a beautiful, golden yolk. When eating out, Eggs Benedict does not come cheap. But after having tried it myself, I say, you have to pay for the work and skill that goes into this. It’s not…. entirely easy, but certainly achievable for the home cook.

I struggled with poached eggs for a long, long time. Here’s my take on this “simple” dish. Try it. After all, you can always eat your failed attempts.

Essentials

• Really fresh, large eggs (>65 grammes)
• A thermometer
• A strainer
• A thick bottomed saucepan

Cooking 

You need a thick bottomed saucepan. The egg will be lying on the bottom of the pan, and a thick bottom helps ensure the heat is gentle and evenly spread.

You will need a thermometer, If there is a way to do this by “feel”, I haven’t found it. Bring a saucepan of water to a temperature of 80 degrees Celsius.

The temperature is quite an important parameter, you want the white to be totally opaque, and just set while leaving the yolk completely liquid. You certainly don’t want the water to boil, as it will break up the white, and prevent you from getting a perk, compact egg. On the other hand, the water must be warm enough to set the white and leave the yolk liquid. (Egg yolks actually set at a lower temperature than the white. Eggs are two ingredients, not one.)

Some chefs find it helpful to add vinegar, and quite a lot of it, to the water. The theory is that the acid helps the white set and stay together. I haven’t found this to be too helpful.

You will absolutely need a strainer. A plastic or steel stainer, with holes about 5 milllimeters in diameter works well.

You need the freshest large eggs you can get you hands on. Since I don’t have hens running around in my backyard, I get my eggs from Uncle William at the Farmart Centre. He has lovely large, farm fresh eggs. I keep my eggs in the fridge and for poaching, use them as soon as possible.

I carefully crack each egg onto the strainer, allowing the liquid white to drain off. This is where the freshness really matters. The freshest eggs will have little liquid white, and the white left behind in the strainer will be perk and gel-like.

Now, using a spoon, stir the hot water in the saucepan. You want to create a gentle vortex. Hold the egg in the strainer just above the hot water, and in a single decisive move, tip the egg smack into the centre (you want the egg to stay together). If you have done the vortex part right, you will see the egg fold up on itself and roll into a nice compact ball in the centre of the pan. It feels good to see it. It makes me happy and feel clever.

Set a timer to 3 minutes. Do NOT touch, or in anyway disturb the egg during this time. If you try to do anything before the white is set, you will ruin the egg. At the end of three minutes, the white should be opaque. Prod the egg gently with a spoon, to see if its set to your desired doneness. If not, wait a bit longer. Sorry, I can’t be more precise than that. You will figure this after you cook enough eggs.

When the egg is done, gently remove it with the stainer. Allow water to drain off, and plate onto a muffin or toast. Spoon Hollandaise sauce over it, slab on the salmon, or ham. Garnish with chopped herbs. Season with salt and pepper. (Hollandaise will have to be the subject of another post.)

Stand back. Smile. With a spoon, bravely nick the yolk. And watch as happiness flows. Eat. Use the bread to wipe the plate.