How To Make Eggs in The Microwave…
So you’re travelling, you’re hungry and your accommodation only has a microwave. You don’t want to eat out all the time but you can’t face eating yet another sandwich either.
The answer is simple….
Yep, Eggs!
Here I am going to share with you how to make eggs in the microwave perfectly, and create a protein-packed feast in just 5-8 minutes.
You only need 2 or 3 utensils, depending on what kind of eggs you want!
Yep, that’s right – minimal washing up and not a pan in sight!
And best of all…
They’ll probably cost you just a few cents each.
You don’t need a fancy microwave either – I’m currently in Thailand using a cheap 700W one.
I have mastered the art of both Scrambled Eggs in the microwave (my favourite!) and Boiled Eggs in the microwave (require less babysitting). Here’s Very Simply How to Microwave Eggs.
We’ll Microwave Boiled Eggs First.
You will need :
-A medium sized bowl.
-Something sharp to pierce the egg with. A needle or pin from a travel sewing kit will do; failing that, try a pen nib.
-A fork or spoon to eat them with.
How to Boil Eggs in the Microwave
Fill the bowl with sufficient water so that the eggs will be easily covered, around 2/3 full in this bowl. I use tap water wherever I am as I won’t be drinking it, so it’s effectively just to “boil” the eggs in. Don’t put the eggs in yet though – just remove them if you did.
Heat The Water…
Put the bowl of water minus the eggs in the microwave and heat on full power or 100% for 3 minutes. Obviously microwaves vary, but for me this was sufficient as the water was too hot to touch and it was steaming.
While the water is cooking, pierce the eggs. This is to prevent them exploding in the microwave and upsetting your hosts. Now, there’s a knack to this and from my experience of failed, laughable attempts at piercing eggs, I’m happy to tell you the most efficient way I’ve found. Hold the pin vertically with the sharp end facing up and the bottom of it against a surface (top of table will do). Pick up the egg with the other hand and push it down onto the pin top until you feel it penetrate. Bingo. Repeat for all eggs.
Place your eggs into the bowl of hot water in the microwave.
Turn your Microwave Down to Medium Heat.
Most microwaves have different options or power settings. Mine has a dial you can adjust, whereas other might have percentages; I’d recommend 50% if so.
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This is Very Important – high heat could lead to them exploding! Probably best if you try not to blow up your accommodation. 🙂
Cook for 4-5 minutes. The result in my microwave is that the centre is semi solid, not runny. If you want to be sure they are hard boiled, go for 5, though if you prefer runnier eggs, try less time.
Your eggs are now ready! To check, break the shell and made sure the egg white is well cooked/firm on the outside. It probably won’t do you any harm to eat them runny though – “half-boiled eggs” are a big thing in Malaysia for example! But if you want them cooked more thoroughly, put them back in for another minute or so, suited to your taste. That’s it – you’ve boiled eggs in the microwave!
Tip on How To Make Eggs In The Microwave:
Don’t want to wait for them to cool down? Empty out the hot water and replace with cold to cool the eggs down. You might need to do this twice as the bowl will be very hot. Use a tea-towel or towel if available, or a spare item of clothing to carry the bowl.
Note: I used a not very powerful 700W microwave for perfecting these. If your microwave is more powerful, reduce the cooking times slightly.
Sit back and enjoy with bread, fruit or whatever takes you fancy.
Be warned, you’ll be the envy of the other guests who will be in awe of your microwave creation…
Next Up, How to Microwave Scrambled Eggs.
You will need:
-A medium sized bowl
-A fork
That’s it! No rummaging around through hostel kitchen drawers and cupboards looking for weird and wonderful utensils – that’s your lot!
No butter, oil or other fat required.
*Optional extras for scrambled eggs: salt, pepper, milk.*
You might even find some of these lurking around your accommodation.
Break the eggs into a bowl. If you’re adding a dash of milk or pinch of salt, do so now, though it’s by no means necessary. I prefer the flavour of adding pepper at the end, but you can add it here instead if you prefer.
Using your fork, whisk the eggs for 30-60 seconds until you see some bubbles (or get bored – I am Global Gym Bunny, not Masterchef, after all).
Make sure your microwave is on full power / 100%.
Scramble Your Eggs in the Microwave for 40 seconds Initially.
Remove them, you’ll see they are starting to cook around the outside of the bowl, but most of the middle will still be liquidy. Break up the cooked parts with the fork and give them a good stir. Return to the microwave.
Cook for a further 30 seconds and your eggs will look something like this.
Repeat the previous step, ensuring you break up the cooked parts into bite sized pieces and stir thoroughly.
Repeat the previous steps, cooking for 30 seconds again.
The eggs should now be nearly cooked. I usually find 4 blasts in the microwave is sufficient, but you may need more or less time for the final go (or add a 5th cooking period). In my microwave, 20 seconds is usually sufficient for the final go.
Once cooked to satisfaction, add more seasoning if you wish, and, enjoy!
Summary Of How To Make Eggs In The Microwave
To summarise, my cooking times were 45, 30, 30 and 20 seconds respectively. You can get away with a longer cooking period initially as it takes more time at the beginning for the eggs to change much.
I’ll often eat these with bread; if you don’t have access to a toaster you can microwave some bread for 5-10 seconds on full power to make it warm and moist. This is especially good if it’s a couple of days old.
So here we have it, delicious scrambled eggs, with no added fat, high in protein, low cost and minimal washing up!
How to scramble eggs in the microwave perfectly- bingo!
How did it go for you? Please post a comment!
Thanks to Good Housekeeping for these great ideas, which I’ve experimented with and cook to my personal preferences.
Click here for further egg variations and cooking methodologies from Good Housekeeping.
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