Cooking question for you Brits ...

And anybody on this side of the pond too who eats soft-boiled eggs!

I've recently gotten into eating these after a Wodehouse-reading spell, but I'm really not sure what the best way is to cook them; most folks over here eat breakfast eggs either scrambled or fried. I absolutely love them! Especially with toast strips, although I'm trying to limit carbs right now . I've found that exactly 4 minutes and 15 seconds will get an X-large egg to just the way I like it (solid white, runny yolk) IF I put it into an already boiling pot. Unfortunately you can imagine what the thermal shock does to a fresh out of the fridge egg! I lose about 1 in three. I have better luck if I can let them sit out for a while and come to room temperature. Is there a better way to do them?

Oh, and I had to drive 30 miles to a gourmet kitchen shop (Williams-Sonoma) to find egg cups!

I put my eggs into cold water and bring it to the boil - adding salt to the water to prevent the egg leaking if it does split. Then, once the water begins to boil, leave it for three and a half minutes or so!

You can do the eggs directly from the fridge this way!

Boiled eggs and soldiers are the best thing, aren't they!

Another egg lover here Cindy but soft boiled are probably my least favorite. Maybe because I've never cooked them right and they always come out slimey.

Eeeek i hate soft boiled eggs

The others might be able to help you on this though Cindy, but i know my mum used to leave the eggs out like you say at room temperature, then made sure the water was boiling away before slowly putting the egg in.

Oh and those toast strips are what we call "Soldiers"

Hi,
I am not a born Brit, but my family came over a year before I was born and I was brought up everything Brit.

For the perfect soft boiled egg (served with toast soldiers ),
you put the egg in the cold water. You bring the water to a boil with the eggs in the pot.
As soon as the water boils, time for exactly 3 minutes.

Hope that helps!

Now for a perfect hard boiled egg, you do the same but as soon as the water boils, you immediately remove from heat, cover and time for 17 minutes.
Then place the eggs in ice and water to chill.

Cheers!

Love 'em boiled, but gotta be hard boiled, that runny yolk makes me queasey. Hub will tell you that it won't hurt to have them at room temp before you cook them, that's the way he does 'em, but mom does the cold egg/cold water, pinch of salt deal, so either one is an option!

Salt'll stop 'em leaking Sar? How much? Half a teaspoon or so? Or just a good sprinkle? It's hard for me to get them timed just right putting 'em into the cold water and bringing it to a boil; I think because I've got an electric range. Some day I'll have gas !

Thanks guys! Hopefully I'll waste less eggs now ...

Originally Posted by RoseHawke

Salt'll stop 'em leaking Sar? How much? Half a teaspoon or so? Or just a good sprinkle? It's hard for me to get them timed just right putting 'em into the cold water and bringing it to a boil; I think because I've got an electric range. Some day I'll have gas

!

Thanks guys! Hopefully I'll waste less eggs now ...

Click to expand...

I do a good sprinkle and it works okay for me! It just seals any leaked bits of egg to the shell around the crack!

My parents do the cold egg/cold water thing and they have an electric hob, i'll ask them how they manage to get it right!

I feel like boiled eggs and soldiers now!

Ah yes, boiled eggs!

Start with cold water, bring to boil. Once eggs start to boil hard, time for 3 minutes, remove from burner and cool by running cold water over them.

These eggs will have a firm but softish yolk.

BTW, there is a little gadget that you can find in most stores that sell kitchen ware that will pierce the end of your raw egg before you put it in the water. This prevents the egg from cracking during cooking and thus no leaks.

If you don't have one of these gadgets (and I must admit I do have one as I'm one of those dorks that took all these gourmet cooking courses just for something to do), you can simply take any kind of pin/needle and quickly jab it into the shell since that is basically what this little gadget is and does.

my mother gave me a egg cooker, and it broke my eggs.
I boiled them and they didnt break

you know whats also good?

Microwave them... by far to me they are the healthiest!

Get a small saucer (such as a mug saucer) and break the egg as you would in a frying pan.

Cook for 3seconds on medium heat, and keep adding seconds untill its cooked the way you want it.

be ware though, the yolk cooks quicker so you should do a small poke and it will cook slowly like the rest then serve it on butter toast

Is this the same as poached eggs?

Originally Posted by Gilly

Is this the same as poached eggs?

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um i think so, but without any oils

I agree - I love soft boiled eggs, but not too soft! I do them from cold as suggested. A teaspoon of white vinegar in the water stops them leaking.

For true poached eggs you boil a pan of water, with a teaspoon of vinegar and a pinch of salt. Break the eggs one by one into a cup and slide them into the boiling water, then leave them until the whites are firm. The vinegar stops them disintegrating all over the pan. Take them out with a perforated spoon, drain them and serve on toast, or even better, spinach sprinkled with cheese.

If you do eggs in the microwave you MUST pierce both yolks and whites or the egg will explode. Scrambled eggs done in the microwave are yummy and can be done without oil or butter.

I think that's why I've discovered that I like soft-boiled eggs, they're rather like poached eggs, but with the shell still on.

Also, there's just something about the ritual of sitting down to them in their little egg cups and carefully cracking the top off to either dip the eggy soldiers in or scoop the egg out with a spoon. Yummmm! Pity I've already had breakfast today ! I'll try several of these methods and see which seems to work best for me.

Soft boiled eggs are good, I recommend LoveysMummys method - That's how I do it! (Well, when I say 'I' I mean my mum does! )

I cook eggs in the microwave like Fran, but I cook them for 20 seconds, check, 20 seconds, check until they are how I like them then I drench them in lemon pepper! YUM!

Originally Posted by Yosemite

Ah yes, boiled eggs!


BTW, there is a little gadget that you can find in most stores that sell kitchen ware that will pierce the end of your raw egg before you put it in the water. This prevents the egg from cracking during cooking and thus no leaks.

If you don't have one of these gadgets (and I must admit I do have one as I'm one of those dorks that took all these gourmet cooking courses just for something to do), you can simply take any kind of pin/needle and quickly jab it into the shell since that is basically what this little gadget is and does.

Click to expand...

I was going to say the same thing. I love my egg piercer, only had it a couple of months and I havent wasted an egg since. Make sure you pierce the rounder end.

Just wanted to tell y'all that piercing the end of the egg seems to be doing the job! I don't have a piercer as such, but a push pin seems to do as well. So far I've done half a dozen eggs that way and haven't lost a one! I'm still not putting them in 'til the water starts to really boil though, as it's just easier for me to time from that exact point since I'm so picky about them being just right. Instead of thermal shock to the shell itself breaking them, it must have mostly been due to the sudden expansion of the air cell. The little hole gives the air an out when it heats.

Thanks guys ! Cindy's a happy camper!