How do I make PERFECT scrambled eggs?

[LuluTheMagnificent]

light and fluffy? Eggs only, nothing else added please. No cheese, no nothing, but some kind of butter or grease to cook them in. Adding milk or something is ok...

I look forward to your replies.

[davebough]

My latest favorite cookbook is "Eggs" by Michel Roux.
http://www.amazon.com/Eggs-Michel-Rou...
He mixes them in a bowl with a fork, cooks them in a heavy buttered pan stirring constantly over low heat. I get my eggs from a farmer two miles away and get great scrambled eggs this way.
dave

[Antilope]

On a recent Food Network - Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, a cook whipped several eggs in an old fashioned malt mixer. This was said to whip a lot of air into the eggs. I have one of those malt mixers and tried this trick. I added a little milk to several eggs and whipped them in the mixer for about 30-seconds. This produced the lightest, fluffiest scrambled eggs that I have ever had.

[crt]

Most American cooks treat eggs like a red headed stepchild. They over beat/work them...they use too much heat (when cooking them in a pan)...and or they cook them too long. Results...really bad scrambled eggs that are dry, rubbery, flavorless, or so puffy the curds remind you of popcorn. For great scrambled eggs you just need basicaly two ingredients...EGGS & BUTTER! Forget all those tips like adding milk...water...flour etc. etc. Eggs are one of the most delicate of foods and should be treated with tender loving care. I learned all this from Julia Child when I caught an episode from the series of Julia & Jacques [Pepin] Cooking At Home. It was reinforced when I found this article "The Technique: The Perfect Scramble. Most scramble eggs suck. These don't." n a 2003 edition of GQ magazine I was thumbing throught while waiting, where else, in the doctors office. Here goes...'Slow-Cooked Scrambled Eggs: Serves 2. 2 tablespoons butter 6 eggs. Salt and pepper. 1) In a nonstick pan over low heat, melt the butter. Then crack the eggs directly into the pan. Let them sit for about 30 seconds. Season with salt and pepper [I part from this and season when plated] and then with a rubber spatula, split the yolks. Every now and then, slowly message the eggs around the pan. Don't overdo it - you want to keep the whites white and the yolks yellow. If you want to add cheese or herbs, do it while the eggs are still wet. 2) The eggs are done when they are still tender but not overly runny - just this side of underdone. The should take about two minutes. Serve with your favorite/usual 'breakfast' meal sides.

[LuluTheMagnificent]

ok so I beat the crap out of two eggs with my handheld mixer. Added a splash of milk and cooked on low heat over butter. I immediately ran into a problem with folding and tossing so I just stirred (which I don't like, I like the eggs to be together like an omelet). They came out better than what I was making before, for sure and I enjoyed them. They tasted better than some restaurants. I will keep experimenting. They were lighter and fluffier than before. I guess it's practice now.

[Karl S]

Basically, there are two ways to scramble eggs, and everything else is a variation thereon:

1. The broken omelet: this by far is what most Americans mean by scrambled eggs, and is nearly universally what one gets in diners. It's a variant on the omelet technique, but often with the eggs being whisked a lot to add air (the French avoid that with their omelets - hence the directions to use forks rather than whisks), and without the graceful forming and folding. The French might add water to their omelets, but not milk, while Americans might add milk to the broken omelet (milk has a slightly higher cookign point than water - so adding milk can actually toughen things). The eggs are scrambled quickly into large curds, over medium to medium high heat, and the timing of removal from the heat and the pan depends on how moist or dry one wants them.

2. The French method (ouefs brouilles): these are genuine scarmbled eggs. The eggs are mixed gently (no air, please) and cooked slowly over low heat (even in a double boiler) so that the curd formation is very gradual. Stir regularly. As the eggs start to thicken, cold ingredients (slivers of ice-cold butter are classic, but we Americans may use cold cream (milk, btw, would be a bad choice because it can toughen the eggs for the reasons noted above) or cold grated cheese) are added to temper the building heat and draw out the process, as long as 20+ minutes. Spooned over dry toasts, these are supernally wonderful, perhaps the perfect food. The effort involved is why the French tend to consider scrambled eggs as restaurant food and consider omelets to be home cooking - the opposite of Americans. C'est la vie.

[chanterelle]

I'm experiencing a lot of deja vu in this thread.

[revsharkie]

Here's what I do: I put my pan on the burner and turn it up to medium-high, while I beat my eggs with a little milk and salt. After that I turn the fire down to medium and spray in some nonstick spray. Then I pour in the eggs. (If I am cooking lots of eggs I'll sometimes put a lid on to hold heat in.) I let them do their thing for a couple minutes before I stir them. I don't stir them very often, maybe two or three times over the course of the cooking. (You can always break up big curds, but if you stir too often you end up with strings, not flulffy bits.) Lastly, get them off the fire before they're completely set up--if you wait till all the liquid is gone they'll actually separate and get runny. Sounds counterintuitive, but I've found it to be true.

[jinet12]

The secret of light and fluffy scrambled eggs has more to do with the heat level than just about anything else...Low and slow...Other tips....Some like to add a Tablespoon of sour cream...Be sure that your eggs are whipped well before you scramble them...Don't stir them a lot, gently "fold"...Always use real butter...And last but not least, the lightest fluffiest ones I ever made, were cooked in a double boiler over simmering water...Perfect!

[LuluTheMagnificent]

Thanks for all the wonderful replies, I am going to try all of them eventually, starting today with Aloo's post.

Thanks again!

[reubensandperrier]

Tell us which worked best when you're done!

[Adrienne]

One other idea... more for the requested "fluffy" than for the popular "creamy."

Beat the whites and yolks separately -- the yolks only need to be beaten for 10 seconds with a fork, the whites should be whisked until they look a little frothy, then combine and beat together quickly but briefly.

As another poster said, not too much mixing while in the pan -- and definitely relatively low heat.

This method has worked really well for me.

Good luck!

[Diane in Bexley]

Try beating in 1-2 tablespoons club soda or seltzer water for 4 eggs, use 8 in pan, butter. The fizz in the soda/seltzer gives nice lift. I like to add fresh chives from my garden. Definitely salt & pepper first.

[reubensandperrier]

I actually add a splash of chicken broth or stock to my eggs while I beat them to loosen them up, and get them really frothy. It adds a really nice depth of flavor and helps the texture become super fluffy and light. Give it a try!

[renov8r]

Really nice thorough article:
http://www.mrbreakfast.com/article.asp?articleid=17

The basic science is that the addition of homogenized milk with 1% or 2% fat will interfere with the formation of a uniform egg sheet (like you'd want for an omelet) -- the liquid serves to steam the scrambling eggs and adds to the fluffiness. Tartaric acid "over stabilizes" the white and leads to a pretty acceptable scrambled egg, but a wee bit too dry for my tastes. Milk is perfect.

There are real food scientists who study this sort of thing for the food service industry:
http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/...
I really don't thing it makes sense to cook with stabilizers unless you're going for some fancy molecular gastronomy creation -- not the way I start my day!

[ipsedixit]

Cream of tartar.

Use 1/8th teaspoon of cream of tartar for every 2 eggs - no other ingredients - and beat for at least 2 minutes.

[Amy_C]

I add about a tablespoon of milk per egg, then I beat with a fork until it looks evenly mixed. I use a small skillet (8in) for 2 - 3 eggs and heat it over medium - medium high with a scant tablespoon of butter. Salt and pepper the beaten eggs, then add it to the pan after the butter stops foaming. I push the eggs around, folding and lifting the cooked curds to the center and tilt the pan so that the uncooked egg runs to the sides and cooks. Then when the eggs are still wobbly I take them off the heat. (I like a bit of white truffle oil on mine but this is optional). Cooking time is maybe 1 minute?

[chanterelle]

Amy, that is what I was describing (or trying to!) - the smaller pan is key and it didn't occur to me before you brought it up. It builds the curds higher instead of letting the egg mixture spread too thinly while the liquid turns to solid. We go back and forth about salting the raw eggs before cooking. I think they're tasteless and bland without pre-salting, but my partner prefers to salt afterwards. He is the designated breakfast guy, for the most part.

[SLO]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1SM73...

Try this ....

[digkv]

Basically all you need to do is use low, low heat and take it off the heat early. I usually add just a little water and beat the eggs with a fork, add salt. I put it in a pan that melted some butter over very low heat. Just pour the eggs in and let them set up. Fold your eggs very gently and remove the eggs when they come together the center of some of the larger curds look wet. Leaving the eggs in larger chunks (not messing with it too much) will give you the texture you want. Just remember, take it off the heat before it looks fully done.

[scubadoo97]

I agree. Low heat is the key to creamy scrambled eggs. When I want to indulge, I will add a little cream but cook them on low which results in a buttery creaminess

[Aloo0628]

while a lot of these suggestions sound tasty and/or interesting, i feel that for the OP's sake i should point out that she asked for "light and fluffy" eggs, and all of these suggestions seem to center around creamy versions...

[ysb]

I know this is exactly not what the OP asked for either because he/she didn't want any additions, but I really like the texture that adding in cottage cheese gives. I think it could be considered light and fluffy.

[hotoynoodle]

i mix a spoonful of plain yogurt into the eggs. non-stick pan, pat of butter, very low heat and gentle stirring. turn off the heat while the eggs are still wet. grind black pepper. very soft and creamy.

eggs left out at room temp a bit will be creamier too. if thrown cold into the pan, the proteins seize and toughen up.

[cocktailhour]

Method from Jean-Georges and Mark Bittman's book. I love it. Put a pat of butter in a cold non-stick and then break in eggs. For 4-5 eggs, I use a 10 inch pan. Add salt. Turn the heat to medium low and begin whisking. Whisk nearly constantly. In 3-6 minutes, the eggs will begin to thicken. Keep whisking. You will get small, delicate curds and very creamy tasting eggs. You can eat them when still a little or a lot wet. I take off the heat when there is a little moisture. Eat with toast or anything else.

[pslopian]

This is how I make my scrambled eggs too - and they come out perfect every time!

[swsidejim]

A hot pan, unsalted butter, I add heavy cream to my egg mixture, and while cooking I use a rubber spatula to gently stir the eggs ove relatively high heat.

[JasmineG]

Use a really good pan, gently stir (don't beat) the eggs together first, along with some salt and pepper, put the pan on a low heat with a little butter, and pour the eggs in when the butter is melted. Stir every few minutes, and let cook for about 5-10 minutes. This takes longer, but your eggs are really great and very creamy, without needing to add anything else to them.

[Dave O]

I used to think I new how to make eggs. I tried this method this morning, and these were the best eggs I ever made. Thanks,

[Aloo0628]

As far as I know, the only real way to get the "light and fluffy" texture of scrambled eggs is to beat in milk. You can try beating your eggs until they're nice and frothy before scrambling. Also, pure egg-white scrambles will always be fluffier than those weighed down by yolks, so you could try experimenting with your yolk-to-white ratio and see what happens. Good Luck!

[chanterelle]

I know short order cooks who swear by the addition of water over milk for "light and fluffy". I use half and half because I like the artery clogging butterfatness of it all.

You have your two basic schools of quick and slow here. The quick method that I use is well beaten and frothy egg mixture poured into a buttered non-stick pan (butter for flavor more than easy extraction) that has been heaten over medium high flame. Stirred here and there to let raw egg mixture hit the open pan area producing large curds before upending onto waiting plate, slightly before eggs lose their wet sheen.

The slow method requires near constant stirring over double boiler and is said to produce superior creamy scrambled eggs, but I am in the fast camp and don't like the wait or the effort.

[aurora50]

I have heard about water over milk as well, and have used that method - it works pretty well, with light, fluffy scrambled eggs.

[Morganna]

I find that I get even fluffier with cream instead of half an half, and beating really well. :) Holds the air better, I guess. :)

I don't really care for fluffy eggs myself, I like them firm. :)