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José Andrés' Extra Creamy Egg Technique Makes Poaching A Thing Of The Past

Poached eggs are the center of many a brunch dish — from luxurious eggs Benedict to simple egg-topped avocado toast. The warm, silky texture of a just-right egg yolk is what makes a poached egg so delectable, but achieving that perfection can be stressful. You'll find lots of advice on egg poaching, from stipulating the correct (not boiling) water temperature to how fresh the egg must be. But culinary hero José Andrés brings us a simple, no-stress sous vide method to achieve a stellar result.

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If sous vide makes you think of plastic bags and complicated cheffiness, good news: Eggs are already enclosed in a waterproof shell, all ready for the water bath with no extra packaging. You simply need to heat a container of water deep enough to hold the number of eggs you'd like to cook to 147 degrees Fahrenheit with your immersion circulator, then add the whole, uncracked eggs and set the timer for 40 minutes. Andrés uses this temperature because it's the point at which the egg protein firms up without becoming hard. When the timer goes off, all you have to do is crack open the shell, and you'll have an egg with the look and texture of a poached egg without the stovetop fuss.

Sous vide eggs are a great trick to have up your chef's coat sleeve

One reason the traditional egg poaching method can be so tricky is the water temperature can vary widely as you cook several eggs, and most people can only manage to keep track of two or three eggs poaching in a pan at once. Juggling the heat and getting your eggs in and out of the water without breaking them is no longer an issue when you use the sous vide method. In fact, you can even cook these eggs ahead of time and then simply warm them up when it's time to serve your masterpiece. Keep them in your fridge up to 5 days, and then use your circulator to bring them back to serving temperature, about 130 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes.

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If you don't have a sous vide immersion circulator, they're available from little over $50 on Amazon. For example this app-controlled sous vide gadget simply stands in any of your usual pans and controls the temperature for perfect eggs (as well as having plenty of other applications). Far from being a one-trick gadget, a sous vide circulator can produce other styles of eggs, too. From soft boiled to firm, but not overcooked hard-cooked eggs, you'll find guides for a range of temperatures to master exactly the egg you love.

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