Poached Eggs
Have ready a shallow pan about 2/3 full of boiling water. Allow 1/2 tablespoon salt to 1 quart of water. Put two or three greased muffin rings in the water. Break each egg separately into a cup, and carefully slip into a muffin ring. The water should cover the egg.
When there is a film over the top, and the white is firm, carefully remove with a greased skimmer. Serve and allow eggs to be seasoned at the table . They may be garnished with parsley.
A clear method that predates the vinegar-and-whirlpool orthodoxy. Two details need updating: the water should not actually boil, and the muffin rings are optional.
- Stop the boilBring the water to a boil, then drop the heat until it merely shivers, around 180-185F, before the eggs go in. Rolling water shreds the white into rags, which is exactly what the rings here are trying to prevent.
- Muffin ringsThese are the plain metal rings once used for English muffins and crumpets, about 3 to 4 inches across and an inch deep. Metal cookie cutters, canning jar bands or egg rings do the same job; without them, swirl the water and slip the egg into the vortex.
- Depth of waterThe recipe gives no pan depth; its own test is that "the water should cover the egg." Enough water that the egg is submerged and not resting hard on the base keeps the underside from setting flat and sticking.
- Salt, not vinegarHalf a tablespoon per quart is a light hand and mostly seasons the white. A teaspoon of vinegar per quart tightens the albumen faster, though it dulls the surface slightly.
- TimingThe original gives a visual cue only: a film over the yolk and a firm white takes about 3 minutes for a large egg, 4 if it came straight from the refrigerator. Lift one out and press it with a finger rather than guessing.
- Egg freshnessFresh eggs have tight, high whites that hold their shape; older ones spread and weep. If the whites are loose, crack each egg into a fine sieve first and let the watery outer layer drain away.
- Draining and servingA greased skimmer works, but blot the poached egg on a folded towel before it reaches the plate or the water will soak whatever is underneath.
- Holding a batchPoached eggs can be held briefly in a bowl of warm water so that several servings are ready at once; the usual practice is to slip them into cold water and rewarm in hot water just before serving, since eggs left sitting in warm water go on cooking.
Poaching is one of the oldest ways of cooking an egg without a shell, and the word comes through French *pocher*, to pocket, traditionally explained as describing the way the white forms a pouch around the yolk. The muffin rings in this recipe belong to a period when American kitchens were full of single-purpose tinware: rings for muffins and crumpets, cutters, patty pans, and moulds of every size, all cheap and all pressed into service for other tasks. There was a particular reason to spell this out, since poached eggs on toast were a staple of the light supper and the invalid tray, dishes a new housekeeper was expected to produce without a cook's help.