The Whisking Mistake That Causes Disappointing Eggs

Scrambled eggs are surprisingly hard to master. While almost anyone can learn to whip this dish up in a matter of minutes, few home cooks are able to consistently make a delectably fluffy and creamy scramble. Thankfully, there are many expert tips for making a restaurant-quality scramble that tackle preparation, seasoning, and even pan temperature. One of the most overlooked pieces of advice is to never whisk your eggs too early.

Whisking not only blends the whites and yolks together, but also incorporates air into your eggs. Vigorously beating for just half a minute will create lighter, pillowy curds during cooking. However, air will start escaping your eggs as soon as you stop whisking them. Therefore, you'll want to perform this step as your skillet begins to heat up, at the very earliest. By the time your pan gets hot enough to cook, you should finish whisking and be ready to pour in your eggs right away. Wait too long, and the aeration will disappear, leading to a flat and dense scramble.

What you use to mix your eggs also matters, as some kitchen tools are better at incorporating air. You can get away with using a fork or chopsticks, but you should really use a wire whisk or even a blender for a delightfully fluffy scramble. A blender can not only beat a large quantity of eggs in seconds, but aerates them better than a handheld tool of any kind.

There's another step in the scrambled egg process that should be done at exactly the right moment: adding salt. Since sodium can act as a barrier between your egg's proteins and the heat of the pan, generously salting beaten eggs before cooking will result in softer, creamier curds. The best time to salt a scramble will be right before you whisk, as this gives the seasoning time to meld with the eggs. Feel free to sprinkle in salt at the end of cooking if you prefer fluffier, drier curds.

Also, you might take the eggs out of the pan once they're perfectly done, but this is actually another crucial mistake. Residual heat will cling to the eggs even after they're off the heat, continuing to cook them a bit further. Therefore, you should take your eggs out of the skillet just a hair before they're done, and do so quickly. Leaving them in the warm pan will only dry them out further.

For a truly irresistible scramble, you'll want to add in a few mix-ins and toppings that will further boost their texture. For example, adding a starch slurry as you whisk your eggs creates intensely rich, tender curds. On the other hand, crunchy toppings such as bacon bits can add some much-needed textural contrast and umami to this dish. Just keep timing in mind and any scramble you dream up will be better.