8 Tips from Chefs for Cooking Perfect Eggs

Always available, relatively cheap, and full of healthy protein and amino acids, eggs are always the first choice for cooking. Cooking eggs may seem to be easy and straightforward, but these tips from chef will turn your eggs from just fine to perfect. Here are 8 tips from chefs to cook your perfect eggs.

1. Check the date on the carton

Whatever kind of egg dishes you cook, fresh eggs beat old eggs with a better taste and easier to cook. Don’t know how to check the date? For example, if the eggs are packed in US, you can check the Julian date, a three digit number showing on every carton of eggs packed in US. Buy eggs with the date as close to the current days as possible.

2. Crack your eggs in a separate bowl

Some people crack their eggs directly into the pan. There’s a high risk of getting egg shell fragments in your eggs. And there are more reasons why you would do so. You can cook your eggs more evenly, and you can have a precise control of where you want your eggs to land in your pan.

3. Cook scrambled eggs on medium-low heat

It’s suggested to cook scrambled eggs on medium-low heat. While cooking, move your pan back and forth on and off the stove. Alternate your eggs between heat and no heat, for three or four times, and what you will get are creamy and rich scrambled eggs.

4. Scramble your eggs in butter instead of oil

Want to make your eggs have a light, airy texture? Forget oil and cook them in butter, and you’ll get fluffy and tender eggs. The secret lies in the moisture released from the butter by the heat, and the steam makes eggs more airy.

5. Heat your metal spatula in advance

If you use a metal spatula to flip your eggs, before you add any eggs, you can heat oil in the pan and then heat your spatula in the oil. The reason for doing this is to prevent the egg sticking to the spatula, which may break the yolk and mess up your eggs.

6. Keep stirring

When you’re making scrambled eggs, don’t take a moment to rest. Similar to cooking risotto, you should stir your scrambled eggs continuously, as soon as the eggs get into the pan. By stirring eggs continuously, egg curds are broken down, your eggs turning out to be soft and creamy. Be careful not to stir too vigorously or else the eggs may foam.

7. Boil for 10 seconds before poaching

Do you also find poached eggs are so difficult to pull off? Here’s a tip for you to become a master of poached eggs. After the water is boiled, use a pin to poke a small hole in the egg and release the air inside the egg. Now you can drop the egg in hot water for about 10 second. This is of great help to keep eggs shape and prevent egg white from forming when you poach it.

8. Give soft boiled eggs a water bath to quickly cool off

It’s suggested to use a bowl of ice water to give your eggs a water bath for soft-boiled eggs. Boil your eggs for 3 and a half minutes, then put them into ice water so they quickly cool down. Keep eggs in water bath for around 30 minutes and the yolks will come out perfectly.