How to Cook Eggs

Eggs are one of the most versatile food items we have on our planet. The scores of preparations one can whip up with eggs is simply stupendous! Moreover, for most of us who are not well-versed in the field of cooking, eggs act as saviors, since they are easy to prepare and ensure we don't starve ourselves. There are several ways to cook your eggs, right from simply boiling eggs to preparing scrambled eggs, eggs Benedict, omelets, etc.

Take one teaspoon of oil and coat the pan with it. As soon as the pan is hot, break the eggshell in half, by hitting the equatorial region of the egg with a spoon. Let the egg's inner content fall onto the hot pan gently. For sunny side up, the egg yolk has to remain intact. Sprinkle some salt and pepper for taste.

Place a lid onto the pan and cook the egg till the white portion or albumen of the egg turns opaque (1-3 minutes). Do not wait for the egg white to be firm. You could test if the egg has been cooked by shaking the pan a little.

If the egg jiggles then you know your egg is done. Use a clean spatula to lift the egg and serve on a plate. The yolk will be runny in this form of egg preparation.

While some prefer hard-boiled eggs, others like their eggs to be soft-boiled. For soft-boiled eggs, one has to place eggs in a saucepan containing water. Make sure there is enough water to submerge the eggs. Then allow the water with the eggs to boil on high flame for 9 minutes.

If you stop providing heat at exactly 9 minutes, your eggs will be firm enough to be shelled, and at the same time the yolk will be soft to your liking. A minute less will make peeling extremely difficult and a minute more will harden the yolk, giving you a hard-boiled egg.

Take desired number of eggs and break them open in a bowl. Whisk the contents well, until a smooth consistency is obtained. You can add a tablespoon or two of milk, mayonnaise or yogurt to fluff up the scrambled eggs. Add a pinch of salt and pepper. For a yellowish tinge, add a pinch of turmeric powder.

Next, take a pan and drizzle some vegetable oil into it. When the oil gets hot, pour the beaten egg mixture into the pan and stir well with your wooden spatula, such that the egg doesn't get stuck to the pan. The beaten egg will turn into small egg flakes. Once all the beaten egg has dried up and formed flakes, your scrambled eggs are ready to be served.

For an omelet, break open and beat the required number of eggs, with a hand whisk. There are scores of ingredients you can add into the omelet to make it tasty. You can add ingredients like chopped onions, tomatoes, green chilies, olives, cilantro, ham, sausage slices, cheese, oregano, chilly flakes, etc. depending on your liking.

You choose the permutation and combination. After adding the desired ingredients whisk gently once again. Next, take a non-stick pan and drizzle some oil into it. Once it's hot, pour the beaten egg mixture. Wait till the base sets and then flip.

If the omelet is too heavy, because of cheese and sausage slices, just flip it halfway over and then cook. Your delicious omelet is ready.

This dish basically comprises half a buttered English muffin as the base, with a Canadian style bacon on top of it, followed by poached eggs and drizzled with a spoonful of smooth Hollandaise sauce. This egg preparation is slightly more elaborate and requires two separate steps.

Hollandaise Sauce Preparation
For this sauce, take 4 egg yolks, cayenne pepper, lemon juice and salt into a large saucepan. Whisk the ingredients together with a hand whisk until all the ingredients blend well. Add small pieces of butter to the saucepan. Now turn on the heat to medium and whisk the ingredients again.

Whisk properly until all the butter blends with the egg yolk mixture. You will have a creamy sauce formed at the end. Once the sauce has thickened to desired consistency, remove from heat.

Eggs Benedict Preparation
Using the muffin as a reference, cut the bacon into circles, such that the bacon circle just fits on the base of the muffin. Keep the egg for poaching. While the egg gets poached, place the bacon under the grill and cook until both sides are brown.

Once both the egg and the bacon are ready, rip the muffin into half and place them under the grill. Apply adequate amounts of butter on the slightly toasted muffin pieces and place them on a plate. Place the bacon piece on the muffin piece. Next place the poached egg on top of the bacon and pour a spoonful of Hollandaise sauce over the egg. Serve and enjoy!

Eggs in a basket implies frying the egg in a hole made in the center of bread slice. Take a fresh slice of bread and cut a hole in the center of the bread with a cookie cutter. If you don't have a cookie cutter, simply use a small bowl. Press the brim of the bowl onto the bread slice and exert force onto the bowl.

The brim will cut a hole in the center of the bread slice. Butter both sides of the bread and place it on the frying pan. Now, crack the egg and allow the contents of the egg to fall into the hole prepared in the bread slice. Once the egg has reached desired consistency, use a spatula to transfer the egg in a basket onto the plate.

For safety reasons, it is not recommended to cook eggs in the microwave. Eggs cooked in their shells can explode in the microwave. However, it is possible to cook them in the microwave. Nevertheless, it's best to stick to preparing omelets, scrambled eggs and poached eggs in the microwave.

Since, eggs cooked out of their shells can also explode, it is important to use the tip of the knife to prick the yolk membrane of the unbeaten egg, so as to prevent steam buildup.

Moreover, while cooking eggs in the microwave, ensure that you cover the eggs with a plastic wrap or lid, as this will encourage even cooking. Eggs are truly wonderful, irrespective of the way they are prepared.