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I don't have a clear memory of how I was thought to cook soft-boiled eggs, which is sad given that I did it a fair bit. I have a dim memory of slipping eggs into boiling water to sit for a couple minutes, but I don't know. What I have done for years is to bring eggs in cold water to a boil, turn the heat off, and let them sit for 3 minutes. (For hard, sit for 15+.) That worked well.
Worked well with my old pot, anyway. Now I'm in a new place, with someone else's pots... so I tried making them against yesterday. "Bring to a boil" was a bit problematic, as the lid has a vent hole in it. And I let the eggs sit for four minutes because I got distracted. Result: eggs much closer to hard than soft, with no runny yolk. :(
I tried again today! I didn't even let the water come to a full boil, and waited exactly 3 minutes. Plus, instead of taking out each egg one at a time, I moved all three to a cold water bath before dissecting them. Result: some runniness, but yolks still partially hardened.
So I'm thinking the greater mass and size of the pot I'm using is a factor. Maybe there was something to the "slip eggs into boiling water" idea, though that has risks of splashing with boiling water, thus why I stopped.
Friends have suggested egg timers, though ones based on temperature sound more useful than simple timers. I can use a stopwatch just fine.
Worked well with my old pot, anyway. Now I'm in a new place, with someone else's pots... so I tried making them against yesterday. "Bring to a boil" was a bit problematic, as the lid has a vent hole in it. And I let the eggs sit for four minutes because I got distracted. Result: eggs much closer to hard than soft, with no runny yolk. :(
I tried again today! I didn't even let the water come to a full boil, and waited exactly 3 minutes. Plus, instead of taking out each egg one at a time, I moved all three to a cold water bath before dissecting them. Result: some runniness, but yolks still partially hardened.
So I'm thinking the greater mass and size of the pot I'm using is a factor. Maybe there was something to the "slip eggs into boiling water" idea, though that has risks of splashing with boiling water, thus why I stopped.
Friends have suggested egg timers, though ones based on temperature sound more useful than simple timers. I can use a stopwatch just fine.
no subject
Date: 2018-01-26 20:32 (UTC)From:We've had artificial facsimile eggs before, somewhat see-through for judging resulting yolk hardness but I have not used them enough to form an opinion of their fidelity.
Poaching may be a more reliable alternative. There are those simple silicone floating boat things that the egg sits on. Maybe that wouldn't help, actually.
I'm afraid that I usually just fry them instead, a final few seconds flipped over onto the previously top side reliably gives me cooked whites and runny yolk. Especially lovely with duck eggs.
no subject
Date: 2018-01-26 20:33 (UTC)From:Slipping eggs gently into boiling water (at a certain ratio or exceeding a certain egg-to-water ratio) seems like it would give the most consistent results. To avoid splashing, maybe put one into a ladle at a time and lower into the water?
My wife often uses the rice cooker, but I think the variables there are hard to control: how much water to add, how long to leave the eggs in after the button pops up, and whether to rinse under cold water.
(Poaching eggs hasn't worked out great for me, either.)