Everyone has their own personal Holy Grail for which they are on a pilgrimage to find, hold in their own hands and raise above their heads, aloft, shouting with joy, 'This is it! I've found it!' And then some people's Holy Grail might only be Monty Python's. This is OK. I can accept that.
My Holy Grail is the perfect poached egg.
Not only to eat the perect poached egg but to COOK the perfect poached egg.
Oh, there are many methods, all involving hot (not boiling) water and eggs. That's all it is- water and eggs. And vinegar, for some.
I have two favorite breakfasts, one for when I'm at home and one for when I'm dining out (which has been rarely these past few years as children and cafe breakfasts just don't mix... I've found).
- DINING OUT- Eggs Benadict. Even though I've had some BAD ones, if I feel the vibe, I'll order it EVERY TIME. All time best is at Hugo's on Bondi Beach sitting in the restaurant, but at the window, with a glass of Champagne. That's living.
- AT HOME-Toast with butter and orange marmalade or black cherry jam, a cup of tea in a big mug, eaten standing up in the kitchen. I know. Weird. But it's not the same sitting down. And the better the bread, the better the breakfast.
I also like poached eggs at home. This is my comfort food egg and toast meal (Rebecca, George and Gina, you may remember this from Tandy's... oh so long ago), and the sequence is IMPORTANT, a plate, toast, butter, vegemite, a slice if cheese, HOT creamed corn, a poached egg, worchestershire sauce, salt, pepper. Oh yeah. You must try it. Avocado on the side, too.
So, the many and varied ways to poach an egg. Each weekend I'll try a method and write about it on nest. The first I'll write about is the one I mostly use when I poach. Here we go...
METHOD 1; THE WHIRLPOOL METHOD
Get a large saucepan of water with a tablespoon (or so) of white vinegar and bring it to the simmer. Crack an egg into a cup. Then get a longish implement and confidently and surely stir the water as fast as you dare without spilling hot water down the sides of the saucepan, creating a whirlpool.
Then tip the egg into the centre. Have the heat LOW AS IT GOES, or even turn the heat off. At this point you'll think, 'What on earth have I done! This is NEVER going to work! It's just egg and water soup!' But then, before your very eyes it starts to come together, the spinning slows and the tendrils of egg white wrap around each other until a ball, of sorts, is formed.
Have a slotted spoon at the ready, and a plate with a couple of layers of paper towel, or a clean tea towel on it. After a few minutes lift out the egg and GENTLY push the yolk with your finger. Is it soft? Is there any uncooked white? Are you hungry? Did you I leave the iron on? If your answers are YES, NO, YES YOU BET and WHAT IRON? Then it's ready. Let it sit on the towel for a bit to absorb any excess water and lay it EVER SO GENTLY on a piece of toast.
Get your knife and make a slit in the yolk letting it OOZE out. Maldon salt it and enjoy.
Mmmmmm. You can see that I like my eggs. I can't wait until I have farm fresh eggs from Chooktopia. Any day now...
