A graphic shows the way you cook scrambled eggs can completely change how they look and taste
- I tried 10 different ways to make scrambled eggs to see how each egg would turn out.
- Some cooking tips like adding milk left me with a wet mess of eggs, while others like adding heavy cream made them fluffier.
- The side-by-side images show how different cooking methods changed the appearance of each egg.
- Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.
Much like hard-boiled and poached eggs, scrambled eggs are a classic breakfast item.
In my quest to make the perfect scrambled egg, I searched for tips and tricks from both individual home cooks and celebrity chefs. I compiled the 10 most common methods I saw and took to my kitchen to try them myself.
To keep things consistent, I used a simple Food Network recipe as my starting-off point for each batch. From there, I implemented the slightly different egg-scrambling hacks that came with each unique recipe.
Methods included:
-
- Cooking eggs on medium heat;
- Cooking eggs on low heat;
- Waiting until the eggs were in the pan to whisk them;
- Letting the butter brown before pouring eggs into the pan;
- Mixing heavy cream into the eggs before putting them in the pan;
- Mixing whole milk into the eggs before putting them in the pan;
- Mixing 2% milk into the eggs before putting them in the pan;
- Putting the butter and eggs in the pan at the same time;
- Cooking the eggs in oil instead of butter;
- Removing and re-adding heat to the pan while constantly stirring the eggs and finishing with crème fraîche.
Here's how each of the eggs turned out (you can click on the image below to make it larger):
I used one egg and one tablespoon of butter per method, which means I used one stick of butter and less than a dozen eggs for this entire experiment. I made all eight eggs over the course of two days, tasting each right after they were photographed.
With every Recipe For Success experiment I conduct, I try my best to create little to no food waste. So no cooked egg went into the garbage during the making of this story — yes, that means I ate them all.
For years, I've denounced eating scrambled eggs. I was nauseated by the smell and simply enjoyed the delights of a runny yolk too much to trade them in for a scramble.
But after trying the eggs I made over low heat and the batch I made with heavy cream mixed in, I'm way more inclined to add silky scrambled eggs to my weekend breakfast rotation. Both of those methods resulted in decadent eggs that I thoroughly enjoyed.
I was also surprised by how much I liked the scramble I made using Chef Gordon Ramsay's method of adding and removing heat continuously. They were moist, drippy, and filled with flavor, and worked really well on top of toast.
After trying the 10 different cooking methods, I would recommend staying away from adding milk to your eggs or cooking them over a medium flame. The milk just made things wet and flavorless and the medium flame completely dried out my eggs in seconds. But neither mistake caused a problem that a fresh bread roll or some hot sauce couldn't cover up.
Read the full story to find out how every scrambled egg tasted here >
Insider has more cooking experiments like this in the works. Send suggestions for cooked foods or baked goods you would like to see us try to raskinasi@insider.com.
- Read more:
- This graphic shows that the way you make hard-boiled eggs — and how long you cook them — makes all the difference
- I tried Jamie Oliver's hack for making a poached egg in plastic wrap and it's the perfect way to cook multiple at a time
- I used an 'As Seen on TV' microwavable egg-cooker and got perfect hard-boiled eggs in minutes
- This graphic shows how tweaking the same banana-bread recipe can result in 12 different cakes
FOLLOW US: Insider is on Facebook