Soft-boiled Eggs
Ingredients
Directions
Place the eggs in water just below boiling point (about 165°F).
Keep the water at this temperature for 10 minutes for soft, jelly-like eggs.
For firmer eggs, leave them for 20 minutes.
For a quick method, boil the eggs for 3 minutes and serve.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Eggs
- Egg white and yolk set with heat, so the cooking time decides how firm or jelly-like the texture becomes.
The step that matters
Keeping the water just below boiling. Egg proteins set gradually as the temperature rises. Water held just below boiling heats the eggs gently, giving a soft, jelly-like yolk. A rolling boil cooks the eggs faster and can make the whites rubbery and the yolks chalky.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
You might also like
The free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.
Rice Gruel28 recipes
Peptoned Milk Gruel9 recipes