Poached Eggs

Growing up, each Christmas morning my mom would make a special breakfast: cinnamon buns. Unfortunately, despite my infallable sweet tooth, I hate cinnamon buns. I know, I know, it may seem crazy--but there's something about a sweet warm thing with frosting and a slightly crusty outer layer that makes me shiver. Because of this, my mom now adds Eggs Benedict to the morning menu, and her poached eggs are...way better than mine. (Are we noticing a pattern? It seems I'm not so great at eggs. But I'm willing to learn!)

This morning I woke up starving and saw that all I had were some eggs and left-over homemade pico de gallo (salsa). So, I pulled out my saute pan--feeling sleepy and groggy with blurred vision--filled it with water, and put the heat on nice and low. I remembered my mom saying something about vinegar, so I splashed a little into the water. I also recalled her mentioning something about small bubbles, so I waited until I saw some floating from the bottom of the pan to the water's surface. Now time to add the eggs.

I thought I remembered my mom telling me about stirring the water with a spoon to create a whirlpool effect, which helps the egg stay together (so does the vinegar). Well, this trick didn't work out so well for me. The egg swirled until I was left with only an egg yolk swimming among the ghostly whites. Next egg, I just plopped it in. (When dropping in the eggs, crack them first into a cup and them slowly pour them into the water). Then, I waited, hungrily yet patiently. Since the heat seemed to be very low, I let the eggs cook for about 5-6 minutes, scooped them out, plopped them into a bowl, and topped with the pico de gallo*.

Let me tell you, this picture may not do the eggs any justice, and it may sound like a strange breakfast, but it certainly hit the spot. The yolks were creamy and solid, not at all grainy or crumbly. They may not rival my mom's eggs, but hey--I couldn't wait till Christmas to enjoy a poached egg.




*The pico de gallo was left over from a fish taco dinner a few nights earlier. To make it, combine corn, beans of your choice, diced fresh tomatoes, diced onion, minced jalapeno, cilantro, lime and lemon juice, salt, and black pepper. Typically, I don't add beans to a salsa, but I felt that it would create a heartier taco as the fish was sauteed, not breaded and fried. Recipe to come.