If you’ve ever had a bowl of ramen with an egg on top, you already know how delicious Japanese style soft boiled eggs can be. Also known as lava or molten eggs, these soft boiled (hanjuku) eggs have velvety soft yolks but firm whites, very different from traditional hard boiled eggs. While it is a popular ramen topping, soft boiled eggs are a great addition to many meals, especially curry rice! 
A few notes before we begin:
– Temperature and timing are everything, so variations in pots and egg sizes can affect results. It may take a few adjustments to timing to get the eggs cooked to your liking.
– Older eggs will peel easier than newer eggs. This is not to say that you can’t use newer eggs, it just might prove more difficult to keep the whites from peeling away too! If I’m using newer eggs, I like to add a teaspoon of vinegar to the water to help make it easier to peel.
– The number of eggs you cook at one time will affect cooking time, so try to cook the same number of eggs every time so you know exactly how long you need to cook them.
– Depending on how soft you want your yolk to be, you might need to cook the eggs a little longer. I like runny yolks, so I cook them for exactly 6 minutes. If you prefer your yolks to be completely set but still soft, try boiling them for 8 minutes instead.
Recipe – Soft Boiled Eggs:
– Prepare each egg by flipping it over to the wider end and carefully piercing the egg with a needle. Doing this will help reduce those awkward air pockets in the shell and create a more rounded egg. I’ve also found that it helps make them slightly easier to peel.
– Fill a large pot with water, turn burner on to high, and bring to a boil. Once the water is boiling, reduce heat to a medium high and carefully lower each egg into the water.
– The temperature of the water will drop just below boiling by adding the cold eggs, and this is exactly where we want to keep it. If it starts to boil again, turn the temperature down. Cook the eggs for exactly 6 minutes if you want completely runny yolks, or 8 minutes if you prefer more solidified yolks. If you want to make sure the yolk stays exactly in the center, try stirring the eggs around gently while cooking.
– Drain the eggs and immediately cool them off by placing them in a bowl of ice water so they don’t continue to cook.
– Once cooled, peel the eggs! I find it easiest to peel them under running water to help. These eggs are soft by nature, so be gentle while peeling! Don’t try to take off the whole shell at once, but break off little pieces at a time.
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