After just 20 seconds of whisking and 20 seconds of cooking, you’ll have a perfectly light and fluffy mass of hot, scrambled eggs. The secret? Poaching. A steady stream of freshly beaten eggs is poured into a steaming pot of swirling, salted water. The eggs cook almost instantly. After a brief draining process, you can season your eggs however you like. Below, I’m suggesting extra-virgin olive oil (for richness), chile oil (for heat), chopped parsley (for freshness), fleur de sel (just because) and freshly ground black pepper (for MOAR heat). You could also try shredded cheese, salsa, chopped cilantro and sour cream. Or simply serve with hot buttered toast and a few strips of crispy bacon. I’m even tempted to pile up these eggs between two pieces of bread with a sizzling breakfast sausage and a thin swipe of herbed aioli. The possibilities are endless! Continue reading for the recipe plus tips to master this method.
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Can you make scrambled eggs in water?
Yes, you can absolutely make scrambled eggs in water! Whisk up some eggs like you normally would to make scrambled eggs. You want to beat the eggs vigorously, so they are uniform (no streaks of yolk). Then, stream the eggs into boiling water that’s been seasoned with a few large pinches of salt. After just 20 seconds of cooking, you’ll have scrambled eggs!
At this point you’ll want to season with salt, and then you can add any toppings you’d like.
Can you poach a scrambled egg?
Since you’re cooking the eggs in water here, you’re technically poaching the eggs to scramble them. The finished eggs will have a scrambled texture even though you poached them!
Technique tips:
- Use just-bought eggs for this recipe. If you must use eggs that are older, you’ll need to drain off any thin egg whites. To do this, crack an egg into a medium-mesh strainer. The thin whites will drop out while the thick whites and yolk stay in the strainer. Transfer to a bowl and repeat with remaining eggs.
- Crack your eggs into a bowl with a pour spout. This will make it easier to stream the eggs into the swirling water.
- Be sure to season your water well before adding the eggs. The water should taste like the sea (similar to cooking pasta). You may think this is too much salt, but I assure you, it’s just right. I made my first batch with a small pinch of salt and the eggs were very bland.
- After much experimentation, I’ve outlined the perfect draining process below. Be sure to handle the eggs gently during this process to keep them nice n’ fluffy. Since the eggs come out of the water piping hot, you’ll have a decent amount of time to drain them without worry of cold eggs.
- Taste your eggs first then proceed with additional seasoning and flavoring.
Perfect Scrambled Eggs in Just 40 Seconds
Ingredients
- 4 eggs
- Kosher salt
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Chile oil*
- Chopped freshly parsley
- Fleur de sel or flaky sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Fill a medium saucepan two-thirds of the way with water and bring to a boil over medium heat. While waiting for the water to boil, prepare all necessary equipment: place a colander in the sink, line a rimmed baking sheet (or large plate) with two paper towels and have a large, slotted spoon at the ready. Crack four eggs into a bowl and whisk for about 20 seconds.
- Once the water is boiling, season with 2 generous pinches of kosher salt. The water should taste like the sea (similar to salting water for pasta). Stir the water in a clockwise direction to create a whirlpool. Pour the eggs in, cover and wait 20 seconds.
- Uncover and drain the eggs. I’ve found the best way to do this is to hold the eggs in the pot with the slotted spoon while pouring the water through the colander. Once most of the water is drained from the pot, gently slide the eggs into the colander. Shake the the eggs from side to side to remove most of the visible water. Slide the eggs onto the paper towel-lined baking sheet. Bring up the corners of the paper-towels to form a pouch around the eggs. Gently press out any remaining water. Transfer to a plate.
- To serve, drizzle eggs with extra-virgin olive oil plus a few splashes of chile oil. Top with chopped parsley, fleur de sel and freshly ground black pepper.
Notes
I’m Brandon: food explorer, recipe curator, cocktail shaker, dessert lover. Kitchen Konfidence is how I document my time spent in my favorite space, the kitchen. Did you make a recipe? Tag @brandiego on Instagram so I can see the how it went!
Rachel says
Bonus: no gunked up egg skillet to clean!
Brandon Matzek says
Yes! Clean up is so easy 🙂
Averie @ Averie Cooks says
How did you know I love a 40 second meal? 🙂
Basically poached eggs without having to work to make them all neat and perfect…love it.
Brandon Matzek says
Eggxactly Averie! Neatness and perfection are actually discouraged.
Agha Ata says
I told them. 🙂
Ann P says
Very cool and innovative 🙂 Also, I love your plates; where did you get them? I would love a set!
Brandon Matzek says
Thanks Ann! This plate is from Anthropologie. Unfortunately, I got the last one at the UTC location 🙁 Maybe try Fashion Valley? I get almost all of my props from either West Elm or Anthropologie.
ls says
Looks like you may have copied this w/o a mention:
http://food52.com/blog/3379_daniel_pattersons_poached_scrambled_eggs
but I see you “changed” 3 ingredients. Maybe great minds just think alike?
Brandon Matzek says
There is a Food52 credit two lines below the title of the recipe. I would recommend being a bit more perceptive before leaving comments like this.
Robin Bowes says
I don’t see a Food52 credit anywhere in your recipe either.
Brandon Matzek says
Hi Robin, the “Adapted from here.” link goes to Food52.
Mark says
Hi Brandon, thanks for providing the perfect recipe for my scrambled eggs! I just flew from LA to meet with some friends in DC and they were all Ooo and Ahhh over the breakfast I made. Little do they know the secret 🙂 From a fellow egg-fanatic! I enjoy these step by step pictures too! Well done.
Brandon Matzek says
You’re welcome!! Glad you made a big splash with breakfast 😉
LP @dishclips says
Very genius way to cook eggs.
Maria @ Box of Stolen Socks says
Simply genius!
A completely unrelated to food question: I love the photo with the eggs! Could I use it for a painting please?
Thank you
Maria
Brandon Matzek says
Thanks Maria! Yes, you can use the photo for a painting. If you could just credit me as the photographer.
Megan Q. says
I recently stumbled upon your blog and I love it! The pictures are fantastic and I just want to try every.single.recipe here. I made these eggs today and they came out great! Thanks for the idea! I look forward to reading more
Brandon Matzek says
Awesome!! Thanks Megan 🙂 Welcome to the Kitchen Konfidence family!!
Eric Ablett says
Stupidly easy and made me feel like a sucker for preparing eggs in any other fashion. This was exactly how my go-to brunch spot on the east coast (Schiller’s) made their eggs.
Thanks, Brandon!
Brandon Matzek says
Hey Eric, good to hear from you 🙂 Glad you liked the eggs!
Erin Motz says
I absolutely love scrambled eggs. I could eat them every day, seriously! Gorgeous pictures, btw 🙂
Alyssa says
This turned out AMAZING!! I’ve never made such fluffy eggs in my life 🙂
John Carraway says
How about substituting palm oil for olive, and add it to the cooking water as well?
Brandon Matzek says
Hi John, I have not worked with palm oil. Did you give this a try? How did it turn out?