on small, soft-poached victories

There are things I can do in the kitchen. Butterflying and tying a pork loin? Baking gluten-free bread from scratch? Cleaning shrimp? Done, done, and done. But there are some basic things that - in some odd (okay, even) years on this planet - I haven't managed to do.

Like poaching an egg.

I attempted to poach eggs several years ago to disastrous effect. One tiny little egg ballooned into a giant spider's web of egg white and completely took over my skillet. It happened again and again. There was no corralling that mess. I felt like a total kitchen failure, and resigned myself to ordering two eggs, soft-poached in a cup at diners across the country for the rest of my life.

Until this morning. I poached this egg. My first one out of the box. I credit this fine youtube tutorial, and the addition of vinegar to the water. Now you can do it, too.