If you've ever made poached eggs and ended up with a foamy mess of egg whites, there are a couple of reasons why this may be happening. The first is that your eggs are not fresh enough. Unlike boiled eggs, where you want older eggs, for poached eggs, you want the eggs to be as fresh as possible. This is because the albumen, or egg white, is almost like a gel when the egg is freshly laid, but it becomes looser and more watery as the egg ages.  The second possibility is that it is taking your eggs too long to set, giving the egg whites a chance to feather out and mix with the water, this is usually caused by the water not being hot enough.  The final problem is that the water is turbulent, which causes the albumen to bloom before it has a chance to set. This is usually caused by the water being at a boil when you add the eggs, or it could be caused by how you are lowering the eggs into the water.  I know the last two reasons sound like a contradiction, so keep reading to learn how to solve it.