A pox on the runny egg yolk

[ruthcooks]

Not a week goes by--and sometimes not a day--without someone posting about the glories of runny egg yolks. They ooze and they drip down hamburgers and salads. They're a great way to get salmonella. And they make me sick even thinking about them, much less seeing photographs of the slimy things slipping and dripping. They are raw, people, and I don't "do" raw protein.

We all know how the lovers feel, now it's time for the rest of us to voice an opinion.

[Chris Amirault]

Well, I like both. I am happy to have a cooked yolk in my egg sandwich -- don't want runny while I'm driving -- but can't imagine a cooked yolk in, say, bibimbap.

[slkinsey]

I don't "do" raw protein.

How do you like your steaks?

[annecros]

Then there is mayonnaise, Caesar salad dressing (the real kind), Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough.

Personally, I take them both ways, depending upon the application.

[baroness]

Not a week goes by--and sometimes not a day--without someone posting about the glories of runny egg yolks.  They ooze and they drip down hamburgers and salads. They're a great way to get salmonella.  And they make me sick even thinking about them, much less seeing photographs of the slimy things slipping and dripping.  They are raw, people, and I don't "do" raw protein.

We all know how the lovers feel, now it's time for the rest of us to voice an opinion.

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Amen!!!

I can stomach -- psychologically and physically -- most anything but runny eggs. Ewwwwwww.

[daisy17]

My issue with runny eggs has nothing to do with salmonella or raw protein and I'm happy to have raw eggs mixed into things (i.e., cocktails) as long as I can't see them. I've been trying to get over this aversion for years, to no avail. They very simply gross me out. I can't even really look at them on someone else's plate without gagging. UGH.

[Lilija]

I find looking at them quite pleasing, the pictures here are really attractive. That's as far as it goes...

A pox on eggs in general, though. I can barely stomach the smell of them cooking. Not too long ago, I had a dreadful experience with 6 failed attempts at soft-boiled eggs. Dreadful.

[stealw]

Good handful of salad dressings are made with raw yolks. I.e. mayo based dressings.

Often times what you don't know you aren't too concerned with. As one of my old Sous's use to put it during a food inspection, "out of sight, out of mind".

Jim

[KateinChicago]

My issue with runny eggs has nothing to do with salmonella or raw protein and I'm happy to have raw eggs mixed into things (i.e., cocktails) as long as I can't see them.  I've been trying to get over this aversion for years, to no avail.  They very simply gross me out.  I can't even really look at them on someone else's plate without gagging.  UGH.

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You sum up my feelings fairly precisely. I can cook with them and make a mean Hollandaise or Bernaise sauce. You can put them in my steak tartare or egg nog and I won't mind a bit but every time I see someone eat one just makes me ill. The scene in the Adam Sandler movie where he plays a chef who makes himself a runny egg sandwich puts my gag reflex into overdrive!

Kate ::shuddering::

[jmolinari]

If your aversion is salmonella, use pasteurized shell eggs. That's what i use for cookie dough and mayo.

[Reignking]

Egg yolk? I actually don't mind that, in the right context -- on a burger, for example, where it is another component (mainly texture, because it loses out to other strong flavors).

I find runny egg dishes disgusting. I like them cooked -- "dry" as we called them. Not wet. My scrambled eggs or my omelets should not be wet. Or an egg sunny-side up? No thank you.

I tried a poached egg the other week -- it was actually the rubbery egg white I found revolting. The egg yolk, again, blended in with the rest of the food (salmon Benedict).

I really don't get the foodie fascination with them.

[Pam R]

For years I thought I hated runny egg yolks. They (I thought) disgusted me and I wanted nothing to do with them. Them I realized it's the whites that are the problem. If the egg whites aren't cooked, blech. But a perfectly poached egg with cooked whites and runny yolks, yes please.

On the other hand, I don't like hard cooked egg yolks. And scrambled should be dry. I'm very picky when it comes to eggs.

[cmling]

It's a question of personal preference, that's all. I certainly would never try to convert anyone to my opinion on this subject.

By the way, Sauce Béarnaise comes from Béarn, not Bern(e).

[ruthcooks]

Checking back in--I like my steak medium, but can stand anything just to the point where blood runs across the plate into my mashed potatoes. Hamburgers have to be well done, because as a child I was served one so rare the bun was bloody.

I do use pasteurized eggs in applications like mayo and Caesar dressing, and try not to think about it.

Chocolate chip cookie dough--or any kind of floury dough--I have never eaten and never will. I find the uncooked flour taste to be obnoxious, and can't understand why anyone would want to eat it.

Hollandaise and Bearnaise I cook right up to the point of curdling, and the bonus is a nice thick sauce. If it's thick, it's cooked, I reckon.

I definitely have a problem with ALL rare to raw proteins, and that includes seafood. You can have yours any way you like, it won't bother me to see it except for that runny egg yolk.

[nickrey]

I hate the texture of hard-cooked egg yolks. As a consequence, I have worked long and hard to get to the stage where I can reliably cook poached eggs such that the white is cooked through and the yolk is runny. For me this is egg nirvana.

As with all issues of individual taste, there is no right or wrong answer. As such, we may need to agree to disagree.

[daisy17]

Chocolate chip cookie dough--or any kind of floury dough--I have never eaten and never will.  I find the uncooked flour taste to be obnoxious, and can't understand why anyone would want to eat it. 

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me too!! so much better baked, the way it's supposed to be.

[heidih]

I have to admit liking the look of the runny "money shots" lets say in the breakfast topic, but have never really had one!!! I have been playing with soft boiled eggs and toast soldiers and I like that. I had a bit of a set back with a big blood spot in a soft egg.... put me off for a while. We had backyard chickens when I was growing up so I am not queasy about the odd bits, but yes the white needs to be set. As to the phenomenom in the dining world- I am not a big diner outer so I can't comment, but I find it interesting and am willing to experiment.