The food lab better home cooking through science ( PDFDrive ) 119

Nope.Butthere’sagoodreasontosaltyourwater:
itmakesyoureggstastier.Justlikepastaorpotatoes,
eggs absorb salt from the water as they cook,
leadingtoamoreevenlyseasonedfinishedproduct.
Q:Whyarepoachedeggssofreakingdelicious?
This is a question that modern science has yet to
answer and may well never get around to. Some
scientists remark that the lack of progress on this
particularfrontisduetothefactthatotherscientists
don’t spend the time to make and enjoy a good
breakfast.
Q:ShouldIagitatemyeggsastheycook,orswirl
thewaterasIaddthem,assomebookssuggest?
The strainer-to-pan technique completely eliminates
theneedtoswirlthewaterbeforeyouaddtheeggs,
a trick designed to help the eggs keep a nice, even
torpedo shape. What youdo want to do is to make
sure the eggs move around after they’ve started to
set up. If you cook your eggs with no motion at all,
theywillendupresemblingfriedeggsinshape,with
flat bottoms and a pronounced dome around the
yolks. You also run the risk of overcooking the
bottoms and toughening them, as they are in direct
contact with the hot bottom of the pan. By moving
them around in the water and gently flipping them,
yougetmoreevencookingandamoreevenshape.I
use a wooden spoon to flip them with the water
currents,ratherthantryingtopickthemupwiththe


spoon.

Q:Dinershave,what,fiftyseatsinthem?Howthe
heckcanIservemorethanafeweggsatatime?
Dinersarestaffedbysuperhumancookingmachines
known as short-order cooks, who have spent years
practicinghowtopoacheggsperfectly.Youwantto
getthatgood?Onesolution:practice.
OK, there’s another way to get there, but don’t
tell anyone, promise?Just cook the darn things in
advance. Poached eggs can be taken out of the pan
rightaftercookingandtransferredtocoldwaterto
chill. They’ll stay there in a state of suspended
animation for as long as you’d like. (Or as long as
they don’t begin to rot.) You can store them for a
few hours or even a few nights in the fridge.Then,
15 minutes before you’re ready to serve, just plop
themintoabowlofhotwatertowarmup.Poached
eggsbytheirverynatureareneververyhot—their
yolks would solidify if they were. So 140°F, the
temperature of hot water straight out of my tap, is
just about the perfect temperature for reheating
poachedeggs.