Poached Egg: Definition, Recipe & Cooking Tips

Meaning 1：egg poached in water (Poached Egg)

Poached Egg 🔊

/poʊtʃt ɛɡ/

An egg cooked without its shell in gently simmering water, often resulting in a runny yolk.

Perfect poached egg with runny yolk on toast

egg poached in water 🔊

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/ɛɡ poʊtʃt ɪn ˈwɔːtər/

An egg cooked without its shell in gently simmering water, typically with a soft, runny yolk.

📁 Category：Diet & Health 🔖 Level：Beginner

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

'Poach' from Old French 'pochier' (to put in a pocket) + 'egg' from Old English 'æg'.

💡 Mnemonic

Imagine the egg white as a pouch (poach) cradling the yolk; drop it gently into simmering water.

📖 Example

I’ll have the avocado toast with a poached egg on top, please. 🔊 I'll have the avocado toast with a poached egg on top, please.

🔗 Collocations

poached egg on toast – A breakfast dish consisting of a poached egg served on top of buttered toast.

poached egg salad – A salad topped with a poached egg, often with a runny yolk as dressing.

eggs Benedict – A classic dish featuring poached eggs on English muffins with ham and hollandaise sauce.

🔄 Synonyms

coddled egg (n.) – An egg cooked gently in a small container, similar to poaching but in a dish.

soft-boiled egg (n.) – An egg boiled in its shell with a soft, runny yolk.

🚫 Antonyms

hard-boiled egg (n.) – An egg boiled in its shell until both white and yolk are solid.

🌱 Derivatives

poaching (n.) – The cooking method of poaching eggs.

📖 Cultural Story

The term 'poach' derives from Old French 'pochier' (to put in a pocket), as the egg white encloses the yolk like a pouch. Poached eggs became iconic in French cuisine and later in the classic Eggs Benedict dish.