[ctviggen]

Alton Brown had a show called "Another Man Food Show".  The premise was to teach a grown man (living at home) to cook for himself.  On the show, he cooks two eggs by breaking them into small bowls first.  Then he butters a non-stick pan set on medium-low heat.  He puts the eggs in the pan and covers them with a lid.  He cooks them for a while and slides them out.

My wife and I saw the show and decided to try this technique.  This makes the best eggs I've ever had.  We use a glass lid and put the eggs in around three minutes on our electric stove.  I think you could use from about 2:30 to about 4:00, depending on how you like your eggs.  The whites cook very well, yet you can leave the yellows runny or not.

Personally, my success at cooking "over easy" eggs was very poor.  With this technique, you get the same results as for cooking the eggs, only it's a heck of a lot easier and you don't break the eggs.

[kellyedwards]

Hey... that's a nice way of cooking eggs. I better try that myself!

I never cooked perfect eggs before, hope this time I won't screw up

Kelly
http://hometheaterlcdprojector.net/

[Niteshade]

I would advise against it: It's one more dirty dish.

It's best to use a non-stick pan that is very well buttered. If you're not scrambling the eggs, cook them with a very low heat setting so they don't stick to anything. As the whites turn whiter, separate the eggs with the spatula. Tilt the pan towards your spatula to get them on there easier for flipping. I love cooking eggs!

[youngho]

Alton Brown is probably starting with the assumption of zero cooking knowledge and experience.

Cracking the eggs into the bowl makes it easier to remove bits of shell.

Putting the lid on steams the thicker part of the egg white, which can be a little tricky to cook enough before the thinner part starts to become leathery. The problem for novices is that the eggs can sometimes become too thin in a larger pan and difficult to manipulate, never mind flipping. Having the heat a little higher than low helps keep the eggs from spreading too much.

There are two basic approaches to scrambling. The European approach actually does use very low heat.

[MaxCast]

I've always cooked my "over easy" eggs this way.  Two eggs, small pan (glass lid is nice) covered, butter, med-low heat, no flipping.  Add two pieces of toast and maybe some meat.  Hot sauce is you wish.  I usually use a ceramic coffee cup to break the eggs into.

Scrambled eggs always stick for me...too much heat, huh??




Now the real question...can you de-shell an egg with one hand 

[chadh]

Now the real question...can you de-shell an egg with one hand 

You mean crack a raw egg open with one hand?  That's pretty easy even for me!

But if you mean to de-shell a boiled egg...well...I've heard that if you boil the egg with a little baking soda it can help.  But once it's done, put a pin hole in either end of the egg and then blow the boiled egg out.  I have no idea whether this really works, but it makes a pretty cool story.

Chad

[drphoto]

Alton puts his eggs into a bowl, as allows for a more controlled pour into the fry pan. If you crack the eggs and dump it in directly from the shell, it tends to spread too much, getting those very thin areas of the 'white' that overcook.

Crack your egg on the counter, not against the lip of a bowl, to avoid getting bits of shell.

Key to tasty eggs? Good quality ones to start w/. From a local farm if possible, or at least organic free range. Not a hippie-dippie thing. They just taste better. And LOW heat. High heat (and/or too much time)  turn eggs into rubber, as well as the sticking problem.