Perfect Soft Boiled Eggs

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We talked about making the perfect scrambled eggs the other day, and now we want to guide you into making the perfect soft-boiled eggs.  This style of cooking an egg feels like the ultimate comfort food—warm, yolky, and flavorful. I had a doctor growing up who said if you ate soft-boiled eggs and chicken soup every day when suffering from a cold, you would be healed. There are antibodies in the eggs that help mend you when sick.  She swears by it to this day, and when under the weather, she will enjoy these delicious little soft-boiled eggs.

I love soft-boiled eggs, cooked just right with a sprinkle of sea salt and fresh cracked pepper, served alongside a chunk of warm, crusty baguette.  It is a simple breakfast that is so satisfying.  I overdosed as a kid on soft-boiled eggs when I got sick once, and the doctor instructed me to eat them along with chicken soup every day, and it would cure me.  It did work, but I never looked at a soft-boiled egg until my first trip to Germany.   Every inn I stayed at offered perfect soft-boiled eggs, bread, cheese, yogurt, and ultra-creamy coffee—very fond memories.

The key to the perfectly soft-boiled egg, you ask?  Is the amount of time it is bubbling away in a saucepan.  As well, a tablespoon of vinegar added to the water seems to help the egg hold up better.  

Tips and Tricks for Perfect Soft-Boiled Eggs:

• We tried this recipe with and without vinegar.  As well, we tried it at 2, 3, 4, and 5 minutes.  Without vinegar, the egg white and yolk would break when removed from the shell.  At all times, with vinegar, the egg held up nicely.
• Two minutes produced a watery egg; the white was the consistency of, well, how do you say this, snot?
• Three minutes was perfect for a soft-boiled egg.  The white was still soft, but not snotty.  The yolk was warmed throughout and still runny.  The perfect soft-boiled egg.
• After four minutes, the white of the egg was a bit firmer, but the yolk was getting a bit too dense for our liking.  
• After five minutes, the white was pretty firm, and the yolk was getting very firm.   

More Perfectly Cooked Egg Recipes

Perfect Scrambled Eggs

Perfect Fried Eggs

Perfect Poached Eggs

Yield: 1 serving

Perfect Soft Boiled Eggs

Print

There is nothing like enjoying a gently soft boiled egg with toasted bread early in the morning.

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 5 minutes

Total Time 10 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon white or cider vinegar
• water

Instructions

Take the egg out of the refrigerator 30 minutes (up to an hour) before cooking.

Bring water to boil in a saucepan.

Lower heat to a simmer, slowly and carefully add the egg;  I use a ladle.

Let the egg gently simmer for 3 - 5 minutes, depending on how soft you like your soft cooked egg.

I like it on the runny side for dipping the bread, so I cook it for 3 minutes.

Remove from the boiling water, and run it under cold water, just long enough so you can hold it.

Crack the egg in half.

Serve in a shallow bowl.

Sprinkle with salt and cracked pepper.

Serve.

Eat.

Notes

Bring the egg to room temperature to as this will help the egg to cook more evenly.

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