The basic method of Egg Cooking

Whether fried, boiled, poached or baked, whole eggs-those that are notbeaten before cooking-share a need for gentle heat. Low temperatureskeep the whites creamy and the yolks moist, whereas high temperaturesturn the whites rubbery and risk firming up the yolks. Otherwise, thecooking methods have little in common; each one makes different demands on the judgement of the cook.

When eggs are shallow fried in a thin layer of butter or oil, the object isto set the tops and undersides simultaneously, This canbe aceomplishedby finishing the eggs under a lid, which reflects heat down ontotheuppersurfaces. Alternativeiy, the eggs can be turned, either with aspatula or else by tossing them, as in the illustration opposite. A variationof shallow frying is to set the undersides in meltedbutter onthestovetop,and then to transfer the eggs to the oven to finish cooking-a methodknown as "shirring".

In deeper oil or fat, the problern of uneven cooking is solved by immer-sing the egg entirely. The skill of deep frying lies in folding the whiteneatlyround the yolk to protect the yolk from overcooking (page 22).Boiling differs from other techniques in that the eggs remain in theirshells and the cooking process is concealed. Because of this, accuratetiming is essential for satisfactory results; the cooking time may varyfrom 3 minutes-for an egg to be eaten from the shell -to the 10to 12 minutes required for a hard-boiled egg .

Eggs that are poached---cooked in hot liquid without the protection oftheir shells-should be kept below a simmer; the agitation of boilingwater would distort their shape. The best way to control the temperatureis to bring the water to the boil then turn off the heat before adding theeggs. Covered with a lid, the pan and its contents retain enough heat topoach the eggs in a few minutes.Poachonly the freshest eggs;the whites will cling of their own accord to well-centred yolks.

Shaping is less of a problem when eggs are baked because the eggs arecooked in containers---often small, individual-sized dishes known asramekins or cocottes. One advantage of this method is that other ingredi-ents, such as vegetable pur6es, can be cooked in the same dish as the eggs.Although baked eggs are often cooked in the oven, eggs in ramekins canequallywell be prepared on the stove top in a bain-marie.