In a professional kitchen, chefs and cooks are under pressure to produce professional poached eggs at pace and volume! Resourceful cooks have developed some tricks of the trade to smooth the process. If you’re looking for the perfect poached egg, keep reading!
We’ve spoken to the experts to find out some some easy tricks to delver professional poached eggs at home. These are perfect for home cooks to copy and step up their presentation for a special occasion brunch. Jump to the recipe below to put your skills into action – asparagus with poached egg is a classic and crowd favorite.
Servings
4
Prep time
10 Minutes
Cooking time
10 Minutes
Total time
20 Minutes
Ingredients
20 asparagus spears prepared(snap of the ends and peel if you prefer), blanch them for 2 minutes and drain well.
1 tablespoon of olive oil
Flaky sea salt and ground black pepper to taste
8 slices of crispy cooked bacon
4 cafe style poached eggs
Parmesan or Romano cheese to grate or shave
Fresh basil or Italian parsley leaves to garnish.
Directions
The Perfectly shaped conical egg
- Line a small bowl or ramekin with kitchen film so it hangs over the edge of the container. Lightly oil to butter the insides of the film.
- Season with a little salt and pepper and a few chilli flakes if you fancy.
- Crack a very fresh egg into each prepared container.
- Gather up the overhang film over the egg and tie in a knot over the egg.
- Place the eggs into your normal poaching water and poach in simmering water for 3 minutes.
- When ready to serve, remove the eggs from the water onto a paper towel to remove excess water
- Cut the film below the knot and transfer gently place to a serving position.
Cooking ahead of time
- You can poach your eggs up to 3 days ahead of time. When cooking for a crowd this is a valuable stress free option. My suggestion is to poach your eggs as usual but slightly shorten the cooking time by 20 seconds or so.
- Have a bowl of iced water on hand. Once your eggs are cooked to your liking remove them from the hot water directly into the iced water to stop the cooking.
- Line a tray or flat dish with kitchen paper and transfer your cooled eggs with a slotted spoon, draining off the water as you go, onto the tray.
- Cover with kitchen film and store in the refrigerator.
- To reheat simply heat a pot of water to a gently simmering point and place in the eggs for 30 seconds to reheat. Remove with a slotted spoon , drain and serve.
Asparagus
- Take your blanched asparagus and toss them into a fry pan with the oil and seasonings, over a medium heat for 2 minutes.
- Divide them evenly among four serving plates, top with the crispy bacon, poached eggs, cheese over the top and finish fresh herbs.