Poached egg

Apoached eggis aneggthat has been cooked outside the shell bypoaching(or sometimessteaming). This method of preparation can yield more delicately cooked eggs than higher temperature methods such asboiling. Poached eggs can be found in several dishes.
The egg is cracked into a cup or bowl of any size, and then gently slid into a pan of water at approximately 62 °C (144 °F) and cooked until theegg whitehas mostly solidified, but theyolkremains soft. The ideal poached egg has a runny yolk, with a hardening crust and no raw white remaining. In countries that mandate universalsalmonellavaccinationfor hens, eating eggs with a runny yolk is considered safe.
Broken into the water at the poaching temperature, the white will cling to the yolk, resulting in cooked egg white and runny yolk.
A chicken egg contains some egg white that may disperse into the poaching liquid and cook into an undesirable foam. To prevent this, the egg can be strained before cooking to remove the thinner component of the egg white.A small amount of vinegar may also be added to the water, as its acidic qualities accelerate poaching.Stirring the water vigorously to create avortexmay also reduce dispersion.
The age of the eggs affects the cooking process. The white of a freshly laid egg is less likely to disperse. With an egg that is less fresh, the white is more likely to disperse, so acidulating the water will assist in preventing excessive egg white dispersal.
The term "poaching" is often used for this cooking method but it is actually incorrect, as this method is closer to "coddling".
The egg is placed in a cup and suspended oversimmeringwater, using a special pan called an "egg-poacher". This is usually a wide-bottomed pan with an inner lid, with holes containing several circular cups that each hold one egg, and an additional lid over the top. To cook the eggs, the pan is filled with water and brought to a simmer or a gentle boil.  The outer lid holds in the steam, ensuring that the heat surrounds the egg completely. The cups are often buttered so that the cooked eggs may be removed easily.
The resulting steamed eggs are similar tocoddled eggs, although steamed eggs are often cooked longer, and hence tend to be firmer in texture. Eggs prepared this way are often served on buttered toast.
Steamed eggs are often made in a home environment in place of poached eggs, as it is easier to obtain consistent results with this alternative method. However, poached eggs remain the preference of professional kitchens as it is easier to cook in larger quantities, and no additional equipment or appliance is needed to do so.
Poached eggs are used in the traditionalAmericanbreakfast dishEggs Benedict, and similar dishes such as Eggs Florentine and Eggs Mornay.
Poached eggs are the basis for many dishes inLouisiana Creole cuisine, such asEggs Sardou, Eggs Portuguese, Eggs Hussarde and Eggs St. Charles. Creole poached egg dishes are typically served forbrunches.
Several cuisines include eggs poached in soup or broth and served in the soup. In parts of centralColombia, for instance, a popular breakfast item is eggs poached in a scallion/coriander broth with milk, known aschanguaor simplycaldo de huevo("egg soup").
The North African dishshakshoukaconsists of eggs poached in a spicy tomato sauce.
InItaly, poached eggs are typically seasoned with gratedparmigiano reggianoand butter or olive oil.
InPortugal, poached eggs are known asovos escalfadosand are typically done with boiledpeasandchouriço.
InKorean cuisine, poached eggs are known assuran(수란) and are topped with a variety ofgarnishessuch aschili threads,rock tripethreads, andscallionthreads.
TheTurkishdishçılbırconsists of poached eggs, yogurt sauce with garlic, and butter with red peppers.
InBulgaria, poached eggs are served on a bed of yogurt and oftensirene, topped with butter and paprika. The dish is calledPanagyurishte-style eggs(sometimes "eggs Panagyurian" depending on the translation), and is similar to the Turkishçılbır.
InIndia, fried eggs are most commonly called "poached". They are sometimes also known as bullseyes, a reference to"bullseye" targets, or "half-boil" in Southern India, indicating that they are partly cooked. These eggs are "poached" in name only and so do not share the same preparation method as poached eggs in other countries.
InIndonesia, poached eggs are a common addition to instant noodle dishes. Eggs are boiled together with the instant noodles, and after cooking, they are mixed with the seasoning from the instant noodle package.