The Cook's Illustrated Cookbook (247 page)
Read The Cook's Illustrated Cookbook Online
Authors: The Editors at America's Test Kitchen
Tags: #Cooking
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
A poached egg should be tender and evenly cooked, with a white like baked custard and a yolk that runs just a little. But a poached egg is very delicate; it can be hard to get it in and out of the water without breaking it, and the boiling water or the bottom of the pan can damage it as well. There’s also the problem of those unappealing wandering strands of egg white. To address these difficulties, we traded in the usual saucepan for a shallow skillet, which gives the cook much easier access to the eggs. The addition of vinegar to the cooking water helped to set the eggs quickly, and salting the water seasoned the eggs nicely. Turning off the heat once the eggs were in the pan limited their exposure to rapidly boiling water, which can cause them to disintegrate. These simple tricks gave us perfectly cooked eggs with no feathering of whites.
SERVES 2
To get 4 eggs into boiling water at the same time, crack each into a small cup with a handle. Holding two cups in each hand, lower the lip of each cup just into the water and then tip the eggs into the pan.
Salt and pepper | |
2 | tablespoons white vinegar |
4 | large eggs, each cracked into small handled cup |
1.
Fill 8- to 10-inch nonstick skillet nearly to rim with water, add 1 teaspoon salt and vinegar, and bring to boil over high heat.
2.
Lower lip of each cup just into water at once; tip eggs into boiling water, cover, and remove from heat. Poach eggs for 4 minutes for medium-firm yolks, 4¹⁄
2
minutes for firmer yolks, or 3 minutes for looser yolks.
3.
With slotted spoon, carefully lift and drain each egg over skillet. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve immediately.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
Hard-cooking an egg can be a crapshoot. There’s no way to watch it cook inside its shell, and you certainly can’t poke it with an instant-read thermometer. Let it sit in boiling water for too long and you’ll get a rubbery white and chalky, green-tinged yolk; not long enough and you’ll have eggs better suited for breakfast than egg salad. We finally got our foolproof recipe by tinkering with a technique recommended by the American Egg Board. We started the eggs in cold water, brought the water to a boil, then removed the pan from the heat and let the eggs steep for 10 minutes. This method consistently turned out perfect hard-cooked eggs with moist and creamy yolks, firm yet tender whites, and no trace of a green ring.
MAKES 4
You can double or triple this recipe as long as you use a pot large enough to hold the eggs in a single layer, covered by an inch of water.
4 | large eggs |
Place eggs in medium saucepan, cover with 1 inch water, and bring to boil over high heat. Remove pan from heat, cover, and let sit 10 minutes. Meanwhile, fill medium bowl with 4 cups water and 1 tray of ice cubes. Transfer eggs to ice water bath with slotted spoon; let sit for 5 minutes. Peel eggs.
A SHELL GAME
We’ve always heard that fresh eggs are for frying and old eggs are for boiling, as the older an egg is, the easier it is to peel. But who keeps different boxes of eggs of different ages in their refrigerator? We wanted to find a way to make peeling even a fresh egg more foolproof. To this end, we hard-cooked 120 eggs and tested every egg-peeling myth, old wives’ tale, and urban legend we could find. Ultimately, while we found that basics like peeling under running water and starting from the fat end (where the air pocket makes it easier to remove this first bit of shell) helped, only one trick nearly guaranteed perfectly peeled eggs: shocking the egg in ice water as soon as it is done cooking. Here’s why: As an egg cooks, the layer of protein in the white that’s closest to the outer shell will slowly bond with it. An egg left at room temperature or even under cold running water will cool relatively slowly, giving the hot proteins plenty of time to form a strong bond with the shell. Shocking the egg in ice water quickly halts this bonding process. In addition, the sudden cooling causes the cooked egg white to shrink and pull away from the shell, making it much easier to remove.
So, for best results, shock your hard-cooked eggs in ice water; roll them on the counter to crack their entire surface; and peel under cool running water, starting from the fat end. And if you like to keep hard-cooked eggs in the fridge, here’s an easy way to distinguish them from raw eggs: Add a little balsamic vinegar to the water before you cook them; it will tint the shells, making them easy to tell apart.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
Scrambled eggs often end up as either tough, dry slabs or pebbly, runny curds. We wanted foolproof scrambled eggs with fluffy, moist curds so creamy and light that they practically dissolved on the tongue. The first step was to add salt to the uncooked eggs; salt dissolves some of the egg proteins so they are unable to bond when cooked, creating more tender curds. Beating the eggs until just combined, using the gentler action of a fork rather than a whisk, ensured our scramble didn’t turn tough. Half-and-half was preferred over milk, producing clean-tasting curds that were both fluffy and stable. To replicate the richer flavor of farm-fresh eggs, we added extra yolks. Finally, when it came to the cooking process, we started the eggs on medium-high heat to create puffy curds, then finished them over low heat to ensure that they wouldn’t overcook.
SERVES 4
It’s important to follow visual cues, as pan thickness will have an effect on cooking times. If you don’t have half-and-half, you can substitute 8 teaspoons whole milk and 4 teaspoons heavy cream. To dress up the eggs, add 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley, chives, basil, or cilantro or 1 tablespoon minced fresh dill or tarragon after reducing the heat to low.
8 | large eggs plus 2 large yolks |
¹⁄ | cup half-and-half |
Salt | |
¹⁄ | teaspoon pepper |
1 | tablespoon unsalted butter, chilled |
1.
Beat eggs, egg yolks, half-and-half, ¹⁄
4
teaspoon salt, and ¹⁄
4
teaspoon pepper with fork until thoroughly combined and mixture is pure yellow; do not overbeat.
2.
Melt butter in 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until foaming just subsides (butter should not brown), swirling to coat pan. Add egg mixture and, using heatproof rubber spatula, constantly and firmly scrape along bottom and sides of skillet until eggs begin to clump and spatula leaves trail on bottom of pan, 1¹⁄
2
to 2¹⁄
2
minutes. Reduce heat to low and gently but constantly fold eggs until clumped and just slightly wet, 30 to 60 seconds. Immediately transfer eggs to warmed plates and season with salt to taste. Serve immediately.
Reduce eggs to 4, egg yolks to 1, half-and-half to 2 tablespoons, salt and pepper to ¹⁄
8
teaspoon each, and butter to ¹⁄
2
tablespoon. Cook eggs in 8-inch skillet for 45 to 75 seconds over medium-high heat and then 30 to 60 seconds over low heat.
Reduce eggs to 2, egg yolks to 1, half-and-half to 1 tablespoon, salt and pepper to pinch each, and butter to ¹⁄
4
tablespoon. Cook eggs in 8-inch skillet for 30 to 60 seconds over medium-high heat and then 30 to 60 seconds over low heat.
BUYING AND STORING EGGS
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the average American eats upward of 250 eggs every year. Theoretically, these eggs come in three grades (AA, A, and B), six sizes (from peewee to jumbo), and a rainbow of colors. But the only grade we could find in the market was grade A, the only colors were brown and white, and the only sizes were jumbo, extra-large, large, and medium. So how do we choose? After extensive tasting, we could not discern any consistent flavor differences. The size (and volume) of the egg, however, is important, particularly when baking. In all of our recipes, we use large eggs (see
TEST KITCHEN TIP NO. 110 EGG SUBSTITUTIONS
for conversions).
Although perishable, properly stored eggs will last up to three months, but both the yolks and the whites will become looser and their flavor will begin to fade. To be sure that you have fresh eggs, check the sell-by date on the side of the carton. By law, the sell-by date must be no more than 30 days after the packing date. To ensure freshness, store eggs in the back of the refrigerator (the coldest area), not in the door, and keep them in the carton. (It holds in moisture and keeps eggs from drying out.)
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS
Simply adding fillings to standard scrambled eggs results in a waterlogged mass of rubbery eggs instead of light, fluffy curds. To keep our scrambled eggs light while adding hearty ingredients like sausage and vegetables, we had to eliminate some of the added moisture. We sautéed the vegetables first, then wiped the skillet dry before adding the eggs. And we found that some ingredients worked better for this recipe than others. Drier leafy greens, crunchy vegetables, and breakfast meats all worked well, while tomatoes and mushrooms did not. Choosing the right ingredients gave us soft and fluffy scrambled eggs packed with hearty flavor for a satisfying meal morning, noon, or night.
SERVES 4 TO 6
Either regular or thick-cut bacon can be used.
12 | large eggs |
6 | tablespoons half-and-half |
³⁄ | teaspoon salt |
¹⁄ | teaspoon pepper |
4 | slices bacon, cut into ¹⁄ |
1 | onion, chopped medium |
1 | tablespoon unsalted butter |
1¹⁄ | ounces pepper Jack or Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (¹⁄ |
1 | teaspoon minced fresh parsley (optional) |
1.
Beat eggs, half-and-half, salt, and pepper with fork in medium bowl until thoroughly combined.
2.
Cook bacon in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until crisp, 5 to 7 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towel–lined plate; discard all but 2 teaspoons bacon fat. Add onion to skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, 2 to 4 minutes; transfer onion to second plate.
3.
Wipe out skillet with paper towels. Add butter to now-empty skillet and melt over medium heat, swirling to coat pan. Pour in egg mixture. With heatproof rubber spatula, stir eggs constantly, slowly pushing them from side to side, scraping along bottom and sides of skillet, and lifting and folding eggs as they form curds (do not overscramble or curds formed will be too small). Cook until large curds form but eggs are still very moist, 2 to 3 minutes. Off heat, gently fold in onion, pepper Jack, and half of bacon until evenly distributed; if eggs are still underdone, return skillet to medium heat for no longer than 30 seconds. Divide eggs among individual plates, sprinkle with remaining bacon and parsley, if using, and serve immediately.