Perfect Scrambled Eggs Says Cooks Illustrated

If you love to cook then I highly recommend my favorite food magazine, Cooks Illustrated.

The website is cooksillustrated.com. Unfortunately it's not a free site. However buying the magazine subscription gets you free web access. It's not for super fancy cooking. It's basic cooking tips on everything from cooking the best meatloaf to baking the perfect apple pie. They test their recipes numerous times so that they're fail safe. Their food and product reviews are also fantastic. They test everything from bottled ketchup to the best cooking knives.

SERVES 2

It's important to follow visual cues, as pan thickness will affect cooking times. If using an electric stove, heat one burner on low heat and a second on medium-high heat; move the skillet between burners for temperature adjustment. If you don't have half-and-half, substitute 8 teaspoons of whole milk and 4 teaspoons of heavy cream. To dress up the dish, add 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley, chives, basil, or cilantro or 1 tablespoon of dill or tarragon to the eggs after reducing the heat to low.

INGREDIENTS

• 4large eggs plus 1 large yolk
• 2tablespoons half-and-half
• 1/8teaspoon salt
• 1/8teaspoon pepper
• 1/2tablespoon unsalted butter , chilled

INSTRUCTIONS

1. 1. Beat eggs, yolks, half-and-half, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper with fork until eggs are thoroughly combined and color is pure yellow; do not overbeat.
2. 2. Heat butter in 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until foaming just subsides (but should not brown), swirling to coat pan. Add egg mixture and, using rubber spatula, constantly and firmly scrape along bottom and sides of skillet until eggs begin to clump and spatula just leaves trail on bottom of pan, 45 to 75 seconds. Reduce heat to low and gently but constantly fold eggs until clumped and just slightly wet, 30 to 60 seconds. Immediately transfer eggs to warmed plates and season with salt to taste. Serve immediately.

STEP-BY-STEP

UNSCRAMBLING PERFECT SCRAMBLED EGGS

To get big, fluffy, tender, and rich-tasting curds, we experimented with every element of the process until
we nailed the right formula.

• 8 EGGS PLUS 2 YOLKS
  adding yolks not only enriches the egg flavor, but the extra fat and emulsifiers raise the coagulation temperature to stave off overcooking.
• HALF-AND-HALF
  offers more rich-flavored fat than milk but also contains enough water to generate the steam necessary to make the eggs puff up.
• 10-INCH SKILLET
  Trading the usual 12-inch pan for a smaller 10-inch one keeps the eggs in a thicker layer, thereby trapping more steam and producing heartier curds.
• DUAL-HEAT METHOD
  starting the egg mixture over medium-high heat creates puffy curds; turning the heat to low once the eggs coagulate ensures that they won’t overcook.