The Perfect Poached Egg

I love poached egg on toast. They are simple and can be simply difficult at the same time. The perfect poached egg has soft fluffy white and creamy yolk.

How to Poach an Egg

There are about as many methods to poaching eggs as there are eggs on this earth, from plastic wrap (sorry, ew) to poaching cups to cupcake liners. The good news.... It's really not that hard.
First, heat a pot with a few inches of water in it.
Put a splash of vinegar in the water. This helps tighten up the egg.
Now here is the first of the two Very Most Important Things I Will Tell You About Poaching Eggs: You don’t want boiling water. You don’t want simmering water. You want very hot water at the point right before it simmers, like you see here. Once it gets there, turn the temperature down a bit so it doesn’t bubble. If your water has already begun boiling, bring the temperature down to below the boiling point.
Break an egg into a small dish. It is always easier to slide the egg in from a dish. I’ve tried it the other way a million times and it never comes together as well in the pot.
Don't try to drop it from the shell. It just causes a mess and then you'll say... "see, I told you I can't poach eggs!" when really it just this one little step you neglected.
Now, take a spoon and make a whirlpool in the water in the pan. This makes it so the white swirls into itself making a nice compact nest of yummy.
Slide your egg gently into the swirling water.
The reason for the whirlpool is that it really helps the egg stay together, wrapping the white around the yolk. However, you can help it along too with your spatula or spoon by gently pushing it all in as it initially sets. If your egg has stuck to the bottom of the pot, just slide the spatula very very gently underneath after 30 seconds or so of cooking.
Don't PANIC!
A few minutes later, your mostly-perfect egg should be ready. (I look for an egg that wobbles, but just a little, when nudged with the spoon, about 3 to 4 minutes of cooking time.) Scoop it out with a slotted spoon.
While its still in the spoon let it drain on a folded paper towel. Now let’s say you’re having company and you’ve been insane enough to think you want to poach eggs for all of them. The cool thing is, at this point you can save them for a little later. To reheat them, put them back in hot (but not boiling) water for a minute. YES, it's TRUE!
Time to toast your bread and butter it. Gently place your egg on the toast. Pepper and salt to taste. I like to make a little slice in my yolk and let it run over the toast. Don't lose any of it. !
Mmmm, getting hungry for one now, just writing about it.