I have a problem with soft boiled eggs.

[BAPyessir6]

I love em. I love the presentation, and dipping soldiers into a runny yolk with a just set white (that's how I like it) makes me feel like a little kid somehow. My problem is when I'm done. I am left with a bunch of egg white stuck to egg shell, and to me it feels kind of wasteful to just only use the "yolk" and trash the white. Am I supposed to cook soft boiled eggs less so the white is runnier so I can dip my toast in it? Or is sacrificing the egg white for soft boiled toast soldiers just par for the course? Is this just what your supposed to do?

 

[blissful]

When I was growing up in Wisconsin, we boiled them until the whites were soft set and the yolk runny. A lot of times they were over or under done, but we still ate them the same way. Dipping toast in the yolks, then when that was gone then eating the white with a spoon, scraping it out of the shell.

edit: about 10 or so years ago, we started making coddled eggs. They are similar in that the yolk is runny, the white is soft set. Dipping toast soldiers can be dipped in it the same way. Here's a long post on coddling eggs in a coddler or a ramekin, good pictures. https://www.christinascucina.com/coddled-eggs-how-to-coddle-eggs-easy-directions/

 

[BAPyessir6]

Ooooh cool! I think I make coddled eggs when I eat sardines. I put garlic, parsley, and hot sauce with sardines in a rammekin, heat it in the oven, then throw eggs on top and cook in the oven until the whites are set with runny yolks. We eat it with toast and more hot sauce/siracha. It's freaking delicious.

 

[blissful]

Yes you can make them however you like. I remember using some cream, shredded cheese, s & p. They are delicious. I'd use cold eggs, then assemble and boil the water, put them in and time them for 8 minutes. Open them to check to see if they were cooked the way we wanted, put them back in if they weren't done enough. Serve them in the coddler. Such a treat!

The coddlers on the left are big enough for 2 eggs (king size), the one on the far right is big enough for 1 egg.
I didn't dust them and haven't used them for too long. I may pass them on to one of my sons.

 

[BAPyessir6]

They're so cute!!!

 

[taxlady]

When I was a kid we didn't dip toast in the eggs. We just ate the boiled eggs with a spoon.

 

[dragnlaw]

Ours were like this but in glass. I could not find an image of our glass ones. Eventually Mom was gifted special scissors to snipped off the top and eat the egg out of the shell. Or if you had 2 eggs you turned it over and open the egg completely and dump into the larger section. Especially if the egg was accidently over cooked a bit, larger side was used and lots of butter added to mash it up with.

Yes, runny yolk was eaten first then the more solid white was scooped out of the shell.

Here's a picture of the scissors.. fancy gold and silver metals.

 

[Badjak]

When I was a kid we didn't dip toast in the eggs. We just ate the boiled eggs with a spoon.

Same here and I still don't dip bread in my soft boiled egg

 

[Aunt Bea]

I always seem to have trouble with bits of shell in my soft boiled eggs and don’t really have a spoon small enough to get inside the shell so I normally make coddled eggs.

I have a couple of Royal Worcester egg coddlers similar to those pictured above and they work well.

If you are patient, they turn up at estate sales, thrift shops, etc…

Until then a teacup or custard cup is fine as a poacher/coddler.