Poached Eggs

Ingredients

• four fresh eggs
• one pint of water
• one teaspoonful of salt
• four teaspoonfuls of vinegar
• half a gill of cream
• one ounce of butter
• salt, pepper and pounded sugar to taste

Method

1. 1

   Put the water, vinegar and salt into a frying-pan, and bring to boil.

2. 2

   Slip the eggs gently into it without breaking the yolks.

3. 3

   Simmer for 3-4 minutes, then lift them out onto a hot dish and trim the edges.

4. 4

   Empty the pan, add cream and seasoning, bring to boil, then add butter and pour over the eggs to serve.

As published

This recipe was extracted from The hearthstone; or, Life at home (1883) by Laura C. Holloway, page 300. The excerpt below is the record exactly as published.

Poached Eggs. — Eggs for poaching should be perfectly fresh, but not quite new-laid ; those that are about thirty-six hours old are the best for the purpose. If quite new-laid, the white is so milky it is almost impossible to set it ; and, on the other hand, if the COOKERY RECIPES. 469 egg be at all stale, it is equally difficult to poach it nicely. Strain some boiling water into a deep, clean frying-pan ; break the egg into a cup without damaging the yolk, and when the water boils remove the pan to the side of the fire, and gently slip the egg into it. Place the pan over a gentle fire and keep the water simmering until the white looks nicely set, when the egg is ready. Take it up gently with a slice, cut away the ragged edges of the white, and serve either on toasted bread or on slices of ham or bacon, or on spinach, etc. A poached egg should not be overdone, as its appearance and taste will be quite spoiled if the yolk be allowed to harden. When the egg is slipped into the water, the white should be gathered together to keep it a little in form, or the cup should be turned over it for one- half minute. To poach an egg to perfection is rather a difficult operation ; so, for inexperienced cooks, a tin egg-poacher may be purchased, which greatly facilitates the manner of dressing eggs. It consists of a tin plate with a handle, with a space for three perforated cups. An egg should be broken into each cup, and the machine then placed in a stewpan of boiling water, which has been previously strained. When the whites of the eggs appear set they are done, and should then be carefully slipped on to the toast or spinach, or with whatever they are served. In poaching eggs in a frying-pan never do more than four at a time ; and when a little vinegar is liked mixed with the water in which the eggs are done, use one table- spoonful to every pint of water. To Boil Eggs for Breakfast, Salads, etc. — Eggs for boiling cannot be too fresh, or boiled too soon after they are laid ; but rather a longer time should be allowed for boiling a new-laid egg than for one that is three or four days old. Have ready a saucepan of boil- ing water; put the eggs into it gently with a spoon, letting the spoon touch the bottom of the saucepan before it is withdrawn, that the egg may not fall, and consequently crack. For those who like eggs lightly boiled, three minutes will be found sufficient; three and three- quarters to four minutes will be ample time to set the white nicely; and if liked hard, six to seven minutes will not be found too long. 470 THE hearthstone; or, life at home. Should the eggs be unusually large, as those of black Spanish fowl sometimes are, allow an extra one-half minute for them. Eggs for salad should be boiled from ten minutes to one-quarter hour, and should be placed in a basin of cold water for a few minutes; they should then be rolled on the table with the hand, and the shell will peel off easily. To boil eggs lightly, for invalids or children, keep them on three minutes ; to boil eggs to suit the generality of tastes, three and three-quarters to four minutes; to boil eggs hard, six to seven minutes; for salads, ten to fifteen minutes. Scrambled Eggs. — Have a spider hot and buttered ; break the eggs into a dish, being careful not to break the yolks ; slip them into the spider, add a very little salt, with butter the size of a nutmeg for a half dozen of eggs, or three tablespoonfuls of rich cream. When the eggs begin to whiten, stir carefully from the bottom until cooked to suit. Fried Eggs. — Four eggs, a quarter pound of lard, butter or clari- fied dripping. Place a delicately clean frying-pan over a gentle fire ; put in the fat, and allow it to come to the boiling-point. Break the eggs into cups, slip them into the boiling fat, and let them remain until the whites are delicately set, and, whilst they are frying, ladle a little of the fat over them. Take them up with a slice, drain them a minute from their greasy moisture, trim them neatly, and serve on slices of fried bacon or ham, or the eggs may be placed in the middle of the dish, with the bacon put round as a garnish. Poached Eggs with Cream. — One pint of water, one teaspoonful of salt, four teaspoonfuls of vinegar, four fresh eggs, half a gill of cream, salt, pepper and pounded sugar to taste, one ounce of butter

Cook this with the app: pantry check, scaling, and the assistant.