Exactly. Poached eggs are a strong argument for keeping your own chickens.
I used to think that, but we buy our eggs from the house down the road, and not only are the shells a lot more fragile than commercial eggs, on occasions the whites are terribly watery and disperse like paint in the poaching water - to which I always add a dash of vinegar.
I used to try the swirl method in a saucepan, but recently have had more success using a frying pan filled with water, brought to a simmer, and gently lowering the eggs in from a small bowl. I do three at one that way.
Poached eggs are a bit of a knack. At the start of lockdown I, I set myself the task of becoming generally proficient and consistent at poaching eggs and mostly succeeded. Here's my tips/method:
- it helps if the eggs are reasonably fresh. It helps even more if you use duck eggs (and who wouldn't want to as the joy of a poached egg is that wonderful runny yolk into which one can dip grilled bacon or buttered home-made sourdough bread...............)
- you need a decent amount of water in the pan and a load of salt. I use about a litre of water in a medium-size pan for 2 duck eggs. Get it to a good stable boil- not too vigorous but bubbling steadily
- put a splash of white vinegar into a cup then break the egg into it. Swirl a little so the vinegar mixes with the white. Use a cup (the sort you drink from not an egg-cup
) for each egg- I have 2 cups so I can put the eggs in one after the other so cooking time is consistent for both.
- when putting them in the pan, you don't need any swirling. You slide them in, with half the cup going under water, then use a fork to gently flick/lift the congealing white around the yolk. If you've got plenty salt in the water plus a dash of vinegar in the cup they should congeal readily.
- let the water heat again and start to seethe then knock the heat right down and let the water simmer. Vigourous boiling will make the white go a bit hairy (DAMHIKT).
- I do large hens eggs for 3.5 minutes and duck eggs for 4 minutes.
- lift out with a slotted spoon- I find an Ikea pasta server is ideal. Be very careful to fully support the yolk so it doesn't rupture. Place them onto some kitchen paper in a bowl and fold the ends of the paper over, leave for a minute or so to dry and continue to cook a little whilst you rinse out the pan and place the bacon/bread on the serving plate.
- lift out the eggs (I use my hands) and put onto serving plate.
- Enjoy!
I do poached eggs 5 out of 7 days on average and it's a while since I have had problems. The egg white can vary during the year anyway if you get eggs from a small organic producer, I've noticed with the duck eggs I get the white varies and so does the shell strength. I've not have an issue poaching with this method though.
You'll know if the egg is fresh by seeing how big the air pocket is at the top- if it's small the egg is fresh, it's just the whites may be seasonally varying.
Finally- it's all about temperature control. My gas hob was OK, but it's even easier on the induction hob.
GC