Does it Work: Tool makes poaching eggs quick, easy

When I was young and caught a cold, my mom would feed me soup. One of her go-tos was miso soup with egg. She would fill a big pot with water, dried shrimp and miso and wait for it to boil before adding four to six eggs to poach in the liquid. Over several meals I would consume all the eggs, but we would always have leftover broth.

Last month, I had the flu and my Uncle Tootsie made me miso soup with egg. Just like Mom’s soup, his recipe left me with extra broth. That reminded me of Daiso’s Microwave Onsen Tamago Hot Spring Egg Maker, which, in less than a minute, produces a poached egg that I could add to the soup.

I originally bought this item to take my instant ramen up a notch. I always have a bowl of instant ramen sitting in my kitchen for those times when I don’t know what to eat and I’m too lazy to go out. I was never a big saimin fan, but with the proliferation of ramen joints over the years, I have come to appreciate a good bowl with veggies and, of course, the Instagram- worthy egg.

The item is pretty easy to use. Crack one egg into the cup (I tried two eggs but it didn’t work — one cooked faster than the other), poke four to six holes in the yolk using a toothpick, add three tablespoons of water to the container and microwave. When done, pour out the water through the colander side of the cover.

Cooking time is the tricky part. The instructions state that the recommended 50 seconds in a 500-watt microwave is just an estimate. Using a microwave conversion chart for my 1,000-watt microwave, I tried cooking my egg for 23 seconds, but the egg whites weren’t cooked. Another 25 seconds produced an edible egg.

When I tested the gadget using my uncle’s 1,200-watt microwave, I tried cooking the egg at 25 and 30 seconds but wasn’t satisfied with the doneness of the yolk. So I reduced the power level to five, then cooked three eggs — at 50, 55 and 60 seconds. A mere five seconds made all the difference .

It may take a few eggs and a lot of patience to get an egg cooked to your preference, so once you figure out the specific time and power percentage, be sure to write it all down and store it with the gadget.

>> Does it work? Yes.

>> Pros: Easy to use. Inexpensive.

>> Cons: While most of the gadget remains cool enough to touch, the area touching the liquid inside gets hot — be careful. Egg whites may get stuck in the holes when washing, but it’s still easy to clean — just use a toothpick or tines of a fork to poke the whites out.

>> Cost and availability: I found mine at Daiso (in Pearl City and on Piikoi Street) for $1.50 plus tax.

>> Worth it? Yes.

Got a gadget that you love? Curious about one you’d like us to test? Email crave@staradvertiser.com or write Crave,Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, Honolulu 96813.