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Make the best scrambled eggs of your life with these chef-approved tips
No yolk! We've got all the tricks and tools you need, from whisks to nonstick pans, to cook your way to perfection.
Omelet you guess one of the hardest foods to get just right. Maybe it's not such a tricky question considering the headline, but it may surprise you to know that cooking eggs is something culinary students spend days, sometimes weeks, on. And as for the best way to make scrambled eggs? Well, it seems every chef has their own take.
Even if you follow a tried-and-true recipe, it can be tricky to get the texture of scrambled eggs just right. Ideally, they should be fluffy and creamy, with a rich, satisfying taste that brightens up your morning. To help you step up your scrambling game, we reached out to a half-dozen professional chefs for pointers and must-have tools. Now let's get crackin'!
Start with a bowl
Before your eggs even touch a hot pan, crack them into a separate cup or bowl, says Shane Schaibly, executive chef and senior vice president of culinary at breakfast and brunch restaurant First Watch, which has locations across the country. This will give you a chance to mix your eggs well and fish out any errant bits of shell before they disappear into your scramble.
What in the Humpty Dumpty is this little contraption? Well, hear me out: It can help you cleanly break shells into a straight line. All you do is crack your egg against the center ridge, then pour the whites and yolk into a bowl. The edges contain any goo, and when you're not using the tool for egg prep, it can double as a spoon rest.
I can't say enough good things about these dishwasher- and microwave-safe nesting bowls, which look and feel like matte plastic but are made entirely from a bamboo-based material called Astrik. I've had them for nearly a year, and they hold up incredibly well to every mixing (or serving) task I've thrown their way.
If you want bowls that are lightweight and unbreakable, but you're also trying to limit the amount of plastic you use, they're well worth the price.
Incorporate as much air as possible
"Make sure to whip enough air into your eggs — really whip them thoroughly," says Brian Mooney, chef at Tre Luna Bar + Kitchen in Hoover, Ala. This will get them to expand, leading to the fluffiest possible results. You can use an old-fashioned whisk, but to speed up the process, try a stick blender or frother, Schaibly suggests.
It doesn't get more foolproof than this bestselling whisk, which has a classic balloon shape and an ergonomic nonslip handle. It's such a fan favorite that it has an almost-perfect 4.8 stars on Amazon — from more than 22,800 reviewers!
"This product still works great after five years," reported one fan, who calls it the best whisk they've ever owned. "Before that, I only had ones that broke very quickly. This one shows no signs of fatigue and does excellent work!"
Chefs love a multipurpose tool, and a few of them suggested that the milk frother you use for your morning coffee pull double duty. "A small frother works well for smaller batches of eggs," says Rob McDaniel, the chef at Helen in Birmingham, Ala.
He likes this simple battery-powered option from Bodum, the coffee-maker company. For a splashier design, consider this colorful version, sold by none other than the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.
KitchenAid makes the OG of stand mixers, so you can trust the company knows what it's doing. This model is one of Amazon's bestselling immersion blenders with more than 11,000 five-star reviews.
Just check out this rave: "This KitchenAid hand blender is a workhorse! It's powerful enough to blend soups and smoothies with ease, but also gentle enough for purees. The variable speed control gives you tons of flexibility, and the ergonomic design makes it comfortable to use even for longer blending sessions. I'm so glad I finally upgraded to this — it's made cooking so much easier and faster."
Don't forget the dairy (and other mix-ins)
Butter and other forms of dairy can help prevent you from overcooking your scrambled eggs. "Add a splash of half-and-half, cheese or sour cream," Schaibly says. "Any little bit of dairy pads the deck and builds cushion, which buys you time on the burner."
If you want to elevate your egg-sperience even more, chef Alex Green of Mileta in Lexington, Ky., says, "You can do several little things to make your basic, diner-style scrambled eggs transcendental: Add a bit of potato starch to help with tenderness, pre-salt the beaten eggs to help them retain moisture, and mix in whole milk to add richness without being overwhelming or diluting the egg flavor."
Brandon Sharp, chef at Próximo in Chapel Hill, N.C., cooks his scrambled eggs over a double boiler, and as the curds start to set, folds in butter, crème fraîche and freshly snipped chives. Yum.
When it comes to butter, Mooney says you can't do better than Kerrygold. The brand is a favorite of many chefs and food pros, for good reason. It's rich and has a quintessential buttery flavor.
Just make sure to be generous with it! All the chefs we interviewed said butter was the most important ingredient to great eggs, other than the eggs themselves. "The biggest mistake people make with eggs is that they cook them too fast, without enough butter," says Sharp.
It might sound weird to add a thickener like potato starch to scrambled eggs, but fans swear that it yields a creamy, custardy result in mere seconds. This popular recipe calls for 3/4 teaspoon of potato starch per egg. Give it a try and see what you think!
French for "fresh cream," this crème fraîche tastes like a cross between sour cream and cream cheese. It's thick and slightly tangy, and this particular brand gets raves to the tune of 2,200+ five-star reviews.
Use a nonstick pan
"The best thing someone can have for great eggs is a good nonstick pan," says Jake Potashnick, the chef at Feld in Chicago. All our experts agreed, and while they differed on which brand of nonstick pans is best, they all emphasized that whatever you use should be sparkling clean.
"A good, clean, non-scruffed-up, nonstick pan is key," Green says. "Never use a metal utensil on it or scrub the pan with anything abrasive. If you only use wood or silicone utensils and clean them gently, your pan will last a long time. Once you start getting scratches in the pan, it’s better to get a new one."
Green says T-fal's nonstick pan is "perfect," and it's no wonder. For just $23 you get a skillet that's oven-safe up to 400°F and requires zero guesswork: The red circle in its center lets you know when the pan has been properly pre-heated.
"I bought this pan specifically to make omelets and it works perfectly. The non-stick is spot on and it cleans up so well!" wrote one of 3,000-plus shoppers who gave it a five-star rating.
Mooney is a fan of All-Clad's newer nonstick pans, and the name of this one says it all. The flat surface and flared sides make it easy to flip an omelet or move your eggs with a spatula.
Yahoo editors love this heritage brand too: Our kitchenware tester crowned All-Clad pots and pans as one of the best cookware sets, noting that they are "durable [and] high-quality. They heat evenly and retain heat well. If you handwash and dry them, you should be able to use them for decades, making the set a worthwhile investment."
Another chef-loved brand, Made In sells high-quality cookware that's endorsed by famous names like Tom Colicchio, Nancy Silverton and Grant Achatz. "Technique trumps ingredients, but a Made In nonstick pan sure doesn't hurt," says Sharp.
This pan is made from five-ply stainless steel and has a double-layered, nontoxic, nonstick coating.
And don't overheat it!
"As young cooks, one of the first things that we had to master was cooking eggs because using the correct temperature was crucial to the correct outcome," says McDaniel. "Take scrambled eggs, for instance — too hot and the eggs will dry out and possibly brown from over-cooking. Not enough heat, and you stand a good chance of your eggs sticking.”
After preheating your pan, keep the heat on low or medium-low to gently scramble your eggs — don't rush it! This will ensure they don't dry out. "When eggs are dried out and overcooked, they lose the rich, creamy texture," says Mooney. Adds Schaibly, "Many people fear wet eggs, but they are the best. The perfect scrambled egg? Little bit of moisture left in it, a little shiny, and no brown."
Use a rubber spatula to move around the scramble and help transfer it to your plate when it's done.
GIR stands for Get It Right — and they do! This spatula is sleek, sturdy and has a tapered edge to help you lift eggs off your pan.
The silicone tool is designed for making all kinds of egg dishes — and keeping your countertop clean while you're at it. The built-in ridge by the handle acts as a tool rest so you're not smearing eggs all over the place. Genius!
More egg-cellent kitchen gear
We found nifty tools for assisting with every egg dish under the sun, whether you're looking to make the best scrambled eggs, poached eggs or fried eggs — or simply want the secret to perfect hard-boiled eggs.
First things first: Give your eggs a happy home! This highly rated container offers a clear view of your inventory, plus it has a sturdy lid so you can stack other items on top, saving precious fridge space.
Amazon's No. 1 bestselling egg cooker takes the guessing game out of knowing when your eggs are ready. You just place them on the tray, add water, then set your doneness preference and the timer.
Prefer to boil your eggs in a pot? Drop this timer in the water and it'll change color depending on how done your eggs are. No muss, no fuss — and none of that loud ringing that you hear with a typical timer.
Say farewell to lopsided fried eggs with these stainless steel molds, which help you create perfect circles in a snap. They're just the right size for sandwiching between English muffins or rolls — DIY breakfast sammies, anyone?
If you've always been a bit, erm, chicken about poaching eggs, these tools can help. You just stand them up in a pan of boiling water and fill them with a cracked egg. They're also microwave-safe and incredibly easy to use, according to the 6,500-plus five-star fans.
"I wasn't sure what to expect for microwave-poached eggs. These truly produce perfect poached eggs without having to boil water or dirty a pan," wrote one happy shopper.
Just Spices makes versatile seasoning blends in fun packaging — I've been using the brand's Avocado Topping nearly every weekend. If your eggs needs a little extra oomph, this savory, slightly spicy seasoning (made with sea salt, sesame seeds, leeks, dried tomato flakes and ancho chiles) could be just the ticket.
The reviews quoted above reflect the most recent versions at the time of publication.
