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How To Make Poached Eggs

Question:

How to make poached eggs? A common question is how to poach eggs?

Answer:

Poaching, when talking about eggs, is a process of cooking the egg without its shell either in or above boiling water. This can be done in a regular pot or with a special pan designed to keep your cooked eggs in perfect shape. Either way, you are using the water to cook the eggs instead of direct heat. Making poached eggs is a healthier alternative to fried eggs since you don’t need to grease the pan.

How To Make Poached Eggs

Steps for How to Make Poached Eggs

Fill a pan or pot with water, about 1/2 way (at least enough to fully cover the eggs).

Boil the water and then add a cracked egg to the boiling water. The water should be at a gentle boil and not a full rolling boil or the egg will be scattered all over the place when it hits the water. The best way to add the eggs is to crack each egg individually into a little cup or bowl and then get the water swirling into a circular motion. Then gently pour each egg into the water one by one. This is best because if a piece of shell should fall into the boiling water, there is not an easy way to retrieve it and because the egg can be dropped closer to the water for less chance of breakage.

CAUTION: Be careful when dropping the eggs, keeping your hands back to avoid a burn from either the steam or splashing water.
NOTE: When adding multiple eggs – try to add them in order in a clockwise fashion so that they can then be removed in a first in, first out order.

Set the timer for 3 minutes. No more, no less. If you are using a regular pot, no lid is needed and it’s fun to watch the egg turn white. You will notice that the egg starts at the bottom of the pan and then rises to the surface when it is done. If you have a special pot, made for making poached eggs, then put the lid on the pot to collect the steam.

Remove the eggs from the pan with a slotted spoon. Touch the spoon onto a clean kitchen towel after removing the egg, so that it can absorb any excess water from the spoon and egg.

Place the poached egg over toast for smashing, serve fancy Eggs Benedict or whatever way you wish to enjoy your perfectly poached egg.

Enjoy your perfect poached egg!

How To Make Poached Eggs

Additional Information

If you like your eggs firmer, check our post on how to make hard boil eggs.

And if you make extra hard boiled ones, try turning them into deviled eggs.

To find out the difference between brown and white eggs, check here.

To find out how long eggs last, visit our egg page.

To find out how long other foods are good for, please visit the Dairy, Drinks, Fruits, Grains, Proteins, Vegetables and Other sections of Eat By Date or use the search function below.