There's a reason we often have poached eggs for brunch. Not only are they delicious, but somebody else makes them for us. Getting a poached egg right can be tricky. Some people suggest stirring the water into a vortex, but this often leads to eggs which more resemble a shredded ghost than one homogenous entity. Others say to add vinegar to the water, but this can often change the flavor-profile of the egg. Although making poached eggs in the microwave can lead to the perfect poached egg, there is always the risk it will explode if we get it wrong.
At oneHOWTO, we show you how to poach an egg on the microwave without it exploding. We provide this easy and quick poached egg recipe to help your poached eggs stay intact with perfect runny yolks.
- Glass or microwave-safe dish
- Glass or microwave-safe plate
- A spoon
If you don't want your poached egg to explode in the microwave, follow our steps carefully. The first thing you will need to do is take a glass of water which is large enough to hold the egg and the water without it spilling. Place in the microwave for 1 to 2 minutes until the water is hot, but not yet boiling.
Take the glass of water out of the microwave, ensuring you protect your hands from the hot glass. Carefully break the egg into the water. Rather than directly breaking it into the glass, it is best you break the egg into a separate little jug, remove any shell if you need to and slide this into the hot water.
Add a pinch of salt and pepper to the water to help season it while cooking. To help prevent explosion, we will place a microwavable plate over the top of the glass. This will create steam to poach the egg, but it will avoid it exploding.
Place the glass back in the microwave and cook for about 1 minute. If the water is not warm enough, increase the cooking time by 30 second increments. This will depend partly on how powerful is your microwave. If you have a powerful microwave, keep a close eye. Remember it is always better to undercook it than overcook it as you can always put it in for longer.
To check if the yolk is runny, prod it with a wooden or plastic spoon and ensure it still gives a little. This type of incremental cooking along with the plate over the glass technique are what till prevent the egg from exploding.
Be careful when you open the microwave door as the steam can flare up and out. Carefully take off the plate and then remove the glass. Again, make sure you protect your hands. If you see the albumen (egg white) is still gelatinous and uncooked, place it back in and cook for as long as it needs.
Once the glass is removed from the microwave you will need to act fast as the hot water will continue cooking the egg and prevent it from being runny. The best way to do this is to tip the water over a fine mesh sieve over the sink. Be very careful when pouring the hot water as you don't want any of it to get on your hands.
As you will see, you now have a perfectly poached unexploded egg made in the microwave. This type of egg is perfect for classic breakfast and brunch dishes such as egg's benedict, but it can be used for a lot more. Avocado toast, hash browns, sweet potato fritters, spicy curries and many other dishes can be improved immeasurably with the addition of a perfectly placed poached egg. Learn some more with our list of avocado and egg dishes.
Learn some more egg preparation techniques with our guides on the best ways to fry an egg without oil or butter, how to make tuna deviled eggs and how to make a cheese omelet.
If you want to read similar articles to How to Poach an Egg in the Microwave Without It Exploding, we recommend you visit our Recipes category.
- If the glass in which you poach egg is very wide and the egg has room to expand, you can add a dash of mild vinegar. This will help the egg to hold its shape when being cooked, but it may alter the flavor a little. Fortunately, it is a tasty and delicious flavor for most of us.
- Poached eggs are tricky when it comes to achieving a perfect oval shape. If you feel you have problems in achieving this, make a small pouch with plastic wrap to hold the egg together. We need to be careful as the pressure inside can make this explode, so you will need to be extra careful with timing.
- Poaching eggs can be part of a well-balanced diet. Unlike fried or scrambled eggs, this recipe does not contain any oil, it is just the natural egg with a pinch of salt. If you use it as in a salad or with vegetables, it can be an excellent and healthy source of protein to enjoy during the week.
- The trick for a poached egg to turn out well is to be able to respect its cooking times. In this case, a maximum of two minutes in the microwave. The trick is to ensure you cook the white before the yolk has time to cook inside. We can help ensure this by ensuring we keep the yolk and white in a small confined space with the yolk in the middle. The more exposed the yolk is, the faster it will cook.