My husband often pined for the perfectly cooked and peeled soft boiled egg his mother made for him when he was a boy. If he was a bit under the weather, this was the simplest form of comfort food a mother could offer. It's kin to the chicken soup notion. A proper soft cooked egg, adorned with a dab of butter, salt and pepper, actually takes a bit of attention to achieve perfection and there is no alternative. It's either right or it's wrong, nothing in between.
Some demented but dedicated soul perfected this method testing about 1000 eggs to come up with this fool proof technique. The shell removes easily, leaving unblemished, tender, just firm white and the yoke is runny like honey. The only variable is the pot. I always use a heavy (enameled cast iron) 2 quart sauce pan giving enough surface to the small amount of water required thus ensuring it doesn't entirely evaporate in the short cooking period.. It will also accommodate 4 eggs. The eggs are cooked by steam rather than boiling water. A single egg cooks as well as 4.
1/2 inch of water in a heavy 2 quart sauce pan
Bring the water to a boil and carefully add 1 to 4 large eggs. Cover and cook exactly 6 minutes. and 30 seconds (will admit to a few seconds variance, depending on taste, I like mine at 25 seconds). Then remove from heat and immediately, run the eggs under cold water, tilting the pan in a sink so the cold water flows over the rim and circulates through the eggs, for exactly 30 seconds. Peel by tapping the larger end of the egg on a clean surface to break the shell and carefully peel. Alternatively, you can use an egg topper if you have one. Serve immediately with a dab of butter, salt & pepper and toast points.
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