The Simple Ingredient That Keeps Your 'Fried' Egg From Getting Crispy Edges

When you're frying eggs at home, you want them to taste and look just like they would in a restaurant. Sunny-side-up eggs should be a golden yellow at the center and as white as a cloud through the edges. (Just remember: Over easy, over medium, and over well are flipped — this preparation does not flip.) This classic presentation, which you might see in cartoons or in a Fisher Price kitchen, looks great. But these eggs may also develop burnt, chewy edges if they're exposed to too much protein-sizzling heat. Fortunately, a dash of water can keep this effect at bay.

The trick essentially splits the difference between poaching and steaming, with a bit of H2O in lieu of oil at the bottom of a lidded, nonstick skillet. The egg gets cracked into the naked pan first, followed by a few tablespoons of water around the perimeter. Then, critically, the lid is secured and the egg sweats to its finish for about a minute. This trick should give you a fried egg with no crispy edges and a perfectly steamed consistency. But don't worry — you can still more or less replicate the results if your kitchenware isn't chemically treated. There is, after all, more than one way to achieve the very best fried eggs.

Despite the efficacy of adding a bit of water to a nonstick pan, skipping fat is often among the biggest mistakes you can make with fried eggs. If your pan is carbon steel, cast iron, or porcelain, you'll probably want to add a bit of butter, oil, or other fat in there with your egg, even though all three types can perform pretty closely to artificially nonstick pans under the right circumstances. Preheating the pan is key, but don't heat it too high. Somewhere around medium is ideal for a tastier and aesthetically pleasing egg. Other than melting a bit of butter around the pan, you can follow the same instructions as above — crack the egg into the pan, add the water, and cover for about a minute — for a seamless finish.

Once you move your egg to a plate, you can further season it as you wish. If you're fully committed to color coordination, you can swap black pepper for white. White pepper typically has less heat than black pepper (which already has almost none) and offers a mild, earthy flavor that some associate with mushrooms or actual soil. This water tip is hardly an unusual way to cook eggs (unlike deep frying or cooking them in a muffin tin), but it may just give you the perfectly fried results you're looking for.