Yes, I Know How to Poach an Egg—But This $9 Tool Makes It Fool-Proof Every Time

There’s only one fool-proof way to cook an egg: Scrambling it. No matter what you do, you can’t mess it up to the point where it’s inedible. But pretty much every other preparation requires some level of skill. Omelets are probably the most refined, but even boiling eggs needs some practice to make sure it’s not all plastic-like at the end. If I had to pick one way to cook an egg that is deceptively simple, but that I ruin nearly every time, it would be poaching. 

I know how to do it: You swirl the boiling water to create a vortex, so the egg stays mostly together. It doesn’t always work though. For me, it’s always a crapshoot whether my eggs Benedict is going to come out photo-worthy (and more importantly, tasty) or not. So I decided to get a tool, a fool-proof tool I’d seen on TikTok that promised perfectly poached eggs every time. At just $9 for a pack of four of them, I’m glad I took the plunge..

To buy: Krgmnhr Egg Poacher, 4-Pack, $9 (originally $14) at amazon.com

The Krgmnhr Egg Poacher is little more than a piece of plastic. But it’s a well-designed piece of plastic. Because it’s made from silicone, it has a rubbery bend, but remains study enough to still hold up the weight of an egg. All in all, it’s shaped like a little cup, measuring 3.93-inches by 2.75-inches, making it the perfect vessel for one freshly cracked egg. 

Here’s how you use it: You add a little grease to the inside to ensure the eggs don’t get stuck (the pack even comes with an included oil brush to make life easier), crack an egg inside, and plop them in a pot of boiling water. You need to cover the pot with a lid, since the egg won’t be entirely submerged. After five minutes, take them out using a slotted spoon. The end result is an always easy-to-recover, always perfectly shaped, and always perfectly cooked poached egg. 

One of my favorite features is that it has a little ringed base on the bottom, so that when you take the egg out of the water, the whole thing doesn’t just topple over. It makes it easy to let them rest a moment, and I could even see myself using this to serve something like pudding out of. 

According to the manufacturer, you can also use them in the microwave, but I don’t have a microwave so I haven’t tried this out. The brand also says the cups are great for more than just eggs, mentioning that they’re helpful for melting butter or chocolate, too. I’m sure there are more uses for them, and I can’t wait to find them. 

But here’s the bottom line: This was the best $9 I ever spent. Add them to your cart today, and your breakfasts will be perfect every day. 

At the time of publishing, the price was $9.