My social media feed is filled with people poaching eggs directly in a wire mesh strainer. It’s a method that’s been around for a while, and I’m here to confirm that, yes, it works.
I've tested egg poachers for the Good Housekeeping Institute, poached eggs in culinary school and made them for brunch at home. Honestly, lots of different methods work.
Poaching an egg seems to have taken on a fear factor that I think is unwarranted. Most techniques just take a little practice. But I love helping people find methods that make them feel confident cooking the foods they want to eat. If using a strainer will get you to the Benedict of your dreams, then it’s worth it. (But I do have to mention that your egg will have a distinct dome shape from the strainer rather than the little pouch look of a standard poached egg.)
How to poach an egg in a wire mesh strainer
- Choose a small wire mesh strainer with a long handle. To make serving the egg truly fail-safe, you can spritz the strainer with oil before straining the whites. (This method also works with multiple eggs in a large mesh strainer! Be gentle adding them to the strainer, and they’ll cook up separately. Just know that the eggs will have wonky shapes where they touch. It certainly helps to spritz with oil in this case.)
- Fill a pot that is wide enough to accommodate your strainer with 2 to 3 inches of water.
- Turn the heat to medium-low and heat the water until you see largish bubbles forming at the bottom and rising to the surface. You don’t want the water to be boiling. Generally, poaching temperatures range from 70˚C to 80˚C.
- Crack a cold egg into the strainer and let the watery part of the white drain into a small bowl. You can swirl the strainer to help this process along, but be careful not to break the yolk. This is a common step in professional kitchens, even when the chef plans to transfer the egg directly to the water; it cuts down on wispy whites that can cloud the pan.
- Once the watery whites have drained, place the whole strainer into the pan and submerge the egg.
- Set a timer for 3 minutes, and just let the egg cook. If your pan is large enough, you can poach more than one egg at once, but you might have to extend the cooking time because you will be lowering the water temperature slightly.
- After 3 minutes, check that the white is nicely set and the yolk is still jiggly. If the egg isn't ready, check it every 30 seconds until it’s to your liking.
- Lift the strainer out of the water and drain. You can transfer the egg directly to your plate or to a couple of layers of paper towels to drain more. Note that you will likely have to nudge or lift the egg out of the strainer with a knife or small spatula.
Sarah (she/her) is a deputy editor in the Good Housekeeping Institute, where she tests products and covers the best picks across kitchen, health, and food. She has been cooking professionally since 2017 and has tested kitchen appliances and gear for Family Circle as well as developed recipes and food content for Simply Recipes, Martha Stewart Omnimedia, Oxo, and Food52. She holds a certificate in professional culinary arts from the International Culinary Center (now the Institute of Culinary Education).
