Welcome to Clubhouse Eats, where we celebrate the game’s most delectable food and drink. Hope you brought your appetites.
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Making a perfect soft-boiled egg is like smoking a driver with a handsy swing: timing is crucial.
But that’s easier in the kitchen than it is on the course.
What are the fundamentals behind this deliciously simple staple? Let’s get cracking, with help from Garret Martindale, executive chef of Sequoyah Country Club, in Oakland, Calif.
As Fresh as You Can Get
Do you raise chickens (birds, we mean, not wimpy children)? If so, grab the raw ingredients from your henhouse. Otherwise, buy the freshest you can find. Bonus points, Martindale says, if they’re organic and cage-free.
Cooking Times and Temps
Some like it hot. Very hot. They bring water to a boil and then add the eggs. Martindale suggests the other way around. First, let your eggs sit at room temperature for a short spell, just long enough that they’re not refrigerator cold. Then put them in a pot of cold, salted water and bring to a boil. When the water roils, set your timer for 5 minutes. When that time expires, take the pot off the heat and let the eggs rest for another two minutes. Drain under cold water.
The Peeling Process
Place the eggs in a bowl and run it under cold water, agitating the bowl as you go to help loosen the shell and create tiny cracks that will make the peeling easier. The fresher the eggs, the harder they are to peel. But this is by no means hard labor. Work patiently, and you’ll get the job done without mangling the egg.
How to Serve
Over salads. Spread on toast. Straight up out of the shell. There’s no bad way to eat a soft-boiled egg. Properly prepared, they need little adornment. A sprinkling of salt and pepper should do it, though a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil wouldn’t hurt either.
