Even if you're using a non-stick frying pan, never make scrambled eggs over high heat. Preheat the pan over medium heat and then reduce heat to medium-low once the eggs have been added in.
Make sure your pan is heated and you have the oil/fat going BEFORE putting the eggs in. Eggs cook quickly, so you might be tempted to do a low heat setting, but when your pan isn't particularly non-stick you REALLY have to rely on fats and heat and being quick with the spatula.
Whether using a surface thermometer or not, you still need to heat your pan thoroughly before you add anything to it. Do not add oil, butter, meat or anything until that pan is properly heated. That should take a good 5 to 8 minutes. Yes, I said 5 to 8 minutes.
For Flawless Fried Eggs, Start With a Cold Pan. This counterintuitive technique means no more overcooked yolks or rubbery whites.
Here's a hard-boiled egg tip that we know to be true: Starting your eggs in hot, already-boiling water makes them easier to peel. In a column for Serious Eats, cookbook author and food columnist J. Kenji López-Alt found that "starting cold resulted in eggs that had just over a 50% success rate for clean peeling.
The Secret To Fluffy Scrambled Eggs
The secret ingredient for perfectly fluffy scrambled eggs is whisking the eggs thoroughly and vigorously before cooking them. Whisking incorporates air, which produces fluffier scrambled eggs, and fluffy eggs are the end goal.
The approach is simply to crack the eggs into a non-stick sauce pan, add in a few pats of cold butter, turn on the heat and begin to stir constantly and vigorously, on and off the heat. The result of this technique is creamy, soft, silky scrambled eggs. You won't believe the difference.
For certain foods, beginning with an ultra-hot skillet can be the worst move you can make, causing your ingredients to scorch, burn, or overcook quickly. Contrary to what logic might tell you, starting with a cold skillet can produce a more even, tastier result.
Whether you use a surface thermometer or not, you need to heat your pan thoroughly before adding anything to it. Do not add oil, butter, meat or anything else until this pan is properly heated. This should take 5 to 8 minutes.
If You Learn Just One Thing Today: How to Heat a Pan
We can't stress this enough: Get your pan hot enough before putting in ingredients. The goal when sautéing is to get food crispy and crunchy on the outside, and keep it, tender on the inside.
Starting with cold water lets you heat the egg more slowly, which keeps the whites from getting rubbery.
The key to a perfect fried egg every time, as far as I'm concerned, is starting with a cold pan. I think you literally can't get any easier than that. I like starting with a cold pan, because the slow warming of the pan starts to cook the egg whites before it gets to the yolk.
Sorry to those who love ooey gooey yolks, but cooking your eggs thoroughly is your best bet to stay safe from salmonella or the possibility of bird flu. You'll want to make sure your eggs reach at least 160° degrees Fahrenheit.
You might have heard that you should drop your eggs into room temperature or cold water and then bring the water to a boil. This is a myth. In our tests, bringing the water to a boil first and then lowering the eggs into the bath made for easy peeling and more accurate timing.
Cottage cheese gives the eggs a silkier, creamy, and fluffy texture (and a subtle cheesy flavor) to your everyday scramble.
But if you do start to wonder, you might be surprised to know there's a definitive reason why IHOP's egg dish is fluffier, airier, and more filling than most. As it turns out, that massive mountain of eggs isn't just eggs after all. The omelettes are actually made with some pancake batter in the mix.
In case you've been living your life off of social media (which, really, good for you), then you might not have heard about that thing with the omelets at IHOP. It's where they add pancake batter to their infamous fluffy omelets.