The Perfect Egg

 They say that every crease in a chef's toque represents a different technique you can do with an egg.  While I don't know if that is true, I do know that an egg is adored by cooks around the world for how versatile it can be.  An egg consists of two basic parts, the yolk and the white.  They can be used together as in scrambled eggs or they can be separated as in a souffle.  Why are they so different?  In the end they aren't.   It all boils down to protein and fat.  The white contains more of the eggs protein, about 57%, but has zero of the fat.  (Hold on...before all you diet crazed people swear off yolks for ever, keep in mind that most of the egg's nutrition is in the yolk, including the rare and illusive vitamin D).  It is the lack of fat in the whites that enables them to be whipped into meringue.  Well, the lack of fat and the fact that it carries both hydrophilic and hydrophobic amino acids (proteins), but we need not go down that road today. 

I was prepping some of our six-minute eggs today and realized how simply beautiful they were.  Beautiful and delicious.   A poached egg used to be at the top my list as the the most perfect food, but I think I have come into the soft-cooked age of my life.  The I was  describing the difference between the two parts of an eggbecause I think a perfectly cooked egg should show each of the parts prepared in the way that highlights their best characteristics.  In a six-minute egg you have a light, tender white and a luxurious, runny yolk.  One egg can produce so much texture when prepared in this manner.  How many foods do you know that can sauce themselves?  All you need is some coarse salt sprinkled over the liquid yolk and the white, and of course a fork, and you have a fine little snack.  Add it to a salad and the salad becomes a meal.  Add to some spaghetti with some crisp pancetta and you have a quick and easy mock carbonara.  I could go on and on but I think I will just give you the simple recipe and you can start your own list.

The Six-Minute Egg

-Bring a large enough pot of salted water up to a boil so that it won't lose a boil when the eggs are added
-Once the pot is at full boil, reduce heat to medium-high
-Using a slotted spoon, lower the eggs gently into the pot and cook for exactly 6 minutes if using farm fresh eggs, if store bought cook for 5 1/2 minutes
-Remove to an ice bath immediately to cool
-Once cooled enough to handle, gently peel.  If you wait to long to peel them they will be very difficult to peel without breaking the white.  If you want to serve them warm, drop back in the warm pot of water for a few minutes then serve.  If you want to store them, store them in a container covered in water (this will help them keep their shape and keep them from breaking open) for 2 days.  Any longer and they will be "watery" tasting.