Breakfast may be the most important meal of the day, but it can also be the most frustrating. If you’re rushing to get out the door or to your desk in time for work and set yourself up with healthy eats, it can get dicey fast. Instead of settling for empty carbs (sorry, bagels, it’s true) or $8 egg sandwiches, you can make poached eggs in the microwave in under a minute and without dirtying a single pan.
Stick a fluffy poached egg or two on a piece of toast with some spinach, top it all with flaky salt or hot sauce and you have a cafe-quality breakfast in less time than it takes to brew a pot of coffee.
The best kitchen hacks happen in the space between hungry and unmotivated to do extra work. Cooking bacon in the oven is the cleanest method and results in even crispier strips with no greasy stovetop to clean after. A fast boil of water with these two pantry ingredients lifts stubborn stains from your best cookware without all the manic scrubbing.
For poached eggs cooked perfectly in under a minute with no mess to clean, we turn to the microwave, a small bowl and a few ounces of water.
Read more: Oven vs. Microwave: Which Kitchen Appliance Uses Less Energy?
How to make a poached egg in the microwave
Step 1: Fill a ramekin with about half a cup of salted, room-temperature water. It must be enough to completely submerge the egg.
You’ll want enough water to submerge the egg but not spill over the top of the ramekin.
Step 2: Crack one egg and drop it into the water carefully, trying not to disturb its structural integrity.
Step 3: Place the ramekin in the microwave and cook on high for about 45 seconds, or longer if you prefer a firmer yolk.
Cook the submerged egg for 40 seconds for a runny yolk and closer to a minute for a firm one.
Step 4: Remove the egg gently from the water with a slotted spoon or wire skimmer.
LIft your egg carefully out of the water with a slotted spoon or mesh strainer.
Step 5: Serve over toast or a bed of greens with avocado, hot sauce, chili crisp and other accompaniments.
In one or two tries, you’ll be able to fine-tune your poached egg to your perfect doneness, and then nail it every time.
Note: The base temperature for any microwaves will vary and, thus, cook times may also. Try 40 to 45 seconds for your first effort, then add five-second increments for subsequent tries until you achieve the desired doneness.
