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• The age of the eggs
• The personal taste and preferences of the preparer and eater
• Timing

Soft & Hard Cooked Eggs
Let’s begin with soft and hard cooked eggs. Many people refer to these as boiled, but in actually fact we don’t want to boil the eggs but rather fast simmer them till then cooked to ones’ liking.

There are a few points however to keep in mind. If you’re hard cooking them, that is, to use them for devilled eggs, mash them with curry powder for sandwich fillings or slice or quarter them for a salad, where you want both the white and yolk solid, then you can do them one of 2 ways.

Either bring a saucepan of water to the boil, then, lower the eggs in to the water using a spoon (make sure they’re room temperature as fridge eggs are likely to crack and the white will seep out into the water) and simmer them for 10 minutes, or
Place the cold fridge egg into cold water and bring it to the boil, then simmer and cook for 7-8 minutes once boiling.

Once the time frame is up, empty the hot water out of the pan and replace it with cold water and leave the eggs in the water till they cool before peeling. Now, depending on the age of the egg you’re hard cooking, will determine what you do once you’ve emptied the hot water out and replaced it with cold.

If the eggs are very fresh (and I’d advise against using really fresh eggs to hard or soft cook because the acid content of freshly laid eggs is higher than older eggs and causes the shell to adhere to the shell, making them difficult to peel) then before you replace the hot water with cold water, prick the shell with a skewer or egg piercer. This allows the cold water to seep into he shell and helps the shell come away from the white making it easier to peel. If the eggs are older, say 5-10 days (recommended for hard cooked eggs), then just place them in the cold water till they cool.

Now for poached, my favourite form of eating eggs. While poaching eggs seems easy, it’s amazing how many people shy away from making them. Again there are a few tricks to make the job a little easier.

Start with the freshest eggs, these have the firmest whites which will hold up to the cooking process better. As the egg starts to age, the white thins and spreads more easily in the water, causing spidery fringes to hang off the yolk. Not only does this look unattractive but it’s separation from the yolk makes if heard to lift out after being cooked and you’re more likely to have the yolk break before you plate it up. Fresh eggs actually have two distinct whites, the inside white which is right next to the yolk and is very gelatinous and seems to hold the  yolk in place and slightly raised, and the outer white, which is also gelatinous but not as much and surrounds the inner white. If you’re egg looks like this when it’s broken, you know it’s fresh.

You can also test how fresh your egg is by placing it in a bowl of water. See How to Test the Freshness of Eggs on this site.

Poached Eggs
The perfect poached egg is a matter of taste - some of you will like ever so slightly runny poached eggs for dunking butter-soaked toast into, whilst others prefer a firmer, meatier variety of poached egg.

My ‘perfect’ poached egg method is the former; an egg poached just to the point where the white is no longer runny and the yolk is beginning to harden around the edges, encasing the lush, runny, flowing yolk.

The dressing up of your perfect poached egg is again up to you - plain old runny poached egg on toast with a healthy sprinkling of coarse black pepper and sea salt is perfect for some, whilst others prefer the buttery sensation of eggs Benedict. Serve your poached egg with crispy smoked bacon, a doorstep of country grain bread spread generously with butter, all on a bed of rocket.

Fill your pan with water ensuring there's enough to cover the egg. Bring the water to the boil using full heat.
 
Crack the egg at the thin end to avoid breaking the yolk, and do it on a flat surface like the inside of the bowl or the bench, not the rim of the bowl as this can cause the yolk to break too. Then pour the yolk and white into a cup, or small bowl. If you're cooking two eggs per person, do the same with the second egg and put it into the same cup or bowl.

Now, and this is important, pour off half the white from the 1 or two eggs so that what you now have is full yolks and half the amount of white. I find this prevents the spidery effect you get from the whites because you've just halved the amount, and if your eggs are very fresh, it's the outer white that pours off first, not the inner white and this almost completely prevents white sprawling all throughout the water.

Right, you're all set. The water should now be bubbling away furiously. Add a splash of vinegar (if you prefer) which will help set the egg a little as soon as it hits the water. However, this isn't necessary if your eggs are very fresh. Now, pour the egg(s) from the cup/bowl carefully into the centre of the bubbling water.

Now monitor the egg water which briefly will come off the boil. As it returns to the boil, turn the heat down so the water is barely simmering.

Now time the egg for 3-4 minutes, keeping your eye on the yolk colour. As it starts to cook, the outer edges will change from dark yellow to pale yellow. If you want your yolk completely runny, remove the egg as soon as you see a colour change. If you prefer your yolk a little firmer, leave it till the colour change moves into the centre of the yolk. In my experience, 3-4 minutes is the perfect time frame.

Now, remove the egg from the water using a flat, non-stick slotted spatula and you'll find it's perfectly cooked! Hold it over the pan for a few seconds to allow all the water to drain off (otherwise it will drain on your plate or toast and make it soggy).

Gently coax it off the bottom of the pan and slide it onto your plate or pieces of toast or whatever you're serving it on.

Scrambled Eggs
The truth is that scrambled eggs are easy to make. Unfortunately, they are also the easy to make WRONG. At a root level, scrambled eggs are simply beaten eggs which are fried and - for lack of a better word - scrambled. But like most things that are simple (take love and martinis as examples), people have found ways to make them needlessly complex.

In my opinion, here’s what NOT to add to scrambled eggs…
Cottage Cheese
Some people add a tablespoon of small curd cottage cheese in with each egg. Visually, the result is creamy and mildly fluffy scrambled eggs, but in terms of taste, the cottage cheese doesn’t contribute or detract from the eggs, but it does make the dish seem somehow impure. You know there’s something in there besides the egg. The problem with cottage cheese is that no matter how vigorously you whisk the dish it has texture irregularities. Every other bite has the unwelcome surprise of a noticeable cottage cheese curd.

Sour Cream
Scrambled eggs with sour cream can not be considered scrambled eggs in a purist sense. The sour cream adds a distinct flavour. Therefore, I consider scrambled eggs with sour cream a variation rather than pure scrambled eggs.

Baking Powder
Scrambled eggs with a pinch of baking powder per egg have a great appearance. They’re fluffy, yet firm and without a baking powder taste. Unfortunately, the texture of the scramble in the mouth is a bit uneven with specks of firmer pieces in a single bite.

Salt
Salt weakens the protein of eggs and as such, if added to them before scrambling or making omelettes or quiches, it tends to prevent setting and so you end up with a runny final product. Add the salt afterwards, not before.

Sugar
Eggs, flour and sugar are the primary ingredients of a great many deserts. Remove the flour and you end up with neither desert nor scrambled eggs - at least not from a purist scramble perspective. What you do end up with is a kind of specialty egg dish, but it's not fair to call them scrambled eggs, but their sweetness makes them an interesting complement to pancakes and waffles.

What TO add…
A tablespoon or two (depending on your taste and how many eggs you’re cooking) of cream whisked into the eggs makes for a fluffy and creamy scrambled eggs.

Cracked black pepper is always welcome and enhances the flavour of the eggs, especially when flaked salt is added once they’re cooked. Anything else becomes a variation of the basic recipe.

One of the most important ingredients in scrambled eggs is air. As you whisk eggs, air bubbles become trapped in the eggs unraveling protein. As the eggs cook, the protein molecules firm-up around the air bubbles resulting in a spongy texture and full and fluffy scrambled eggs.

Over-beating however will completely unravel the protein molecules and destabilize their ability to form a casing around the air.

In terms of whisking motion, a wheel motion works far better than a stirring motion. A fork works as well as a whisk but requires a slight bit more time and energy.

If you want to use an electric mixers set it to a moderate speed that approximates hand-whisking, and the same rules of over-mixing apply. Eggs mixed in a blender should be "blended" for 20 to 25 seconds and then the mixture should be aside for a couple minutes before cooking to let the foam settle. Personally, I find a wire whisk does the job adequately.

Scrambling the Eggs
Once you’ve prepared the mixture, heat a large non-stick frying pan to a setting just above medium.

Melt some butter in the pan or spray it with olive oil or cooking spray. If using butter, as the very last of it is liquefying, add the egg mixture.

Do not stir immediately. Wait until the first hint of setting begins around the edges of the pan, this will take between 10 and 30 seconds depending on how hot your pan is.

Now, using a spatula or a flat wooden spoon, gently push the mixture toward cent while tilting the pan to distribute runny parts.

Continue this motion as the eggs continue to set. Break apart large pieces as they form with your spoon or spatula. You will come to a point where the push-to-centre technique is no longer cooking runny parts of the egg.

Flip over all the eggs. Allow the eggs to cook 15 to 25 seconds longer, then transfer them to your plates. Add salt and pepper to taste.

There’s more to the humble egg than meets the eye, not only in what you can do with it, but how it’s produced and what the chicken who laid it was fed.

Cage Production
Cage egg production is the main system of commercial egg production used in Australia. About 87% of commercially produced eggs are produced using this system.

Hens are housed in cages inside sheds and are provided with a continuous supply of fresh water and food. Cages in Australia are made of welded wire and are big enough for hens to stand and move about. Usually 4-5 hens are kept in each cage.

Cage egg production provides the hens with protection from the weather, predators, manure-borne diseases and parasites. This keeps the hens healthy and comfortable, which means they lay regularly.

Barn Laid Eggs
The Barn Laid system allows our hens to have a litter in which to DUST, bathe, space to flap their wings, stretch and socialize, nests in which to lay their eggs in and adequate perch space. Barn laid eggs account for about 5% of Australia’s commercial egg production.

Barn Laid Eggs are inspected and accredited by the RSPCA on a regular basis, and are based on the RSPCA's philosophy of Five Freedoms:

    * Freedom from fear and distress
    * Freedom from pain & injury
    * Freedom from hunger and thirst
    * Freedom from discomfort
    * Freedom to express normal behaviour

Free-Range - Natural Living
Natural Living Free Range eggs are produced from hens that are free to roam outside during daylight hours, enjoying the sunshine, while protected from predators at night. The hens are fed a nutritionally balanced diet and are given the best care possible by the farmers, keeping them content to lay quality eggs, rich in nutrition. Free range eggs account for about 8% of Australia’s commercial egg production.

Eco Eggs - Organic Free Range
Eco Eggs are 100% Organic Free Range and all farms producing Eco Eggs have been accredited by the Organic Food Chain. No pesticides, herbicides or synthetic fertilizers are used at any time on the paddocks where the hens roam or to produce the feed that they consume.

There has been much publicity and controversy regarding cage eggs recently. Here are a few articles you might like to explore and form your own opinions.

• Hen Welfare Advisory Group
• Animals Australia
  
• RSPCA  
• The Christian Science Monitor 
• Department of Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry  

Slow cooking is a moist heat cooking method and wonderful for recipes such as soups, stews and pasta sauces etc. Simply assemble your meal in the morning, or the night before, and forget about it until dinner time. The fabulous aroma of home cooking will fill your house and all you have to put together is a side dish, salad, or maybe some warm bread.

Choosing a Slow Cooker
Be sure to choose one that is large enough to suit your needs. If you live alone or there are only two or three people to feed, a small to medium size will work fine. If it's family meals you'll be preparing, go for a larger one. 

Select a model with a removable ceramic crock. Not only are they easier to clean, but you can assemble your meals the night before and then simply pop the crock into the cooker and turn it on.  Breville's Avance Programmable Meal Maker's ceramic crock is also dishwasher safe, making cleaning up a breeze. 

Nutrition & Convenience
Because slow cookers cook foods slowly at a low temperature, the vitamins and minerals are retained, plus, because of the long cooking time, less expensive cuts of meat are tenderised and meats shrink less. So as well as being healthy, slow cooked meals are also less expensive, and best of all, the slow cooker can do all this while you're away from home. 

Slow Cooker Safety
The direct, intense heat, combined with the bacteria-killing steam created inside the tightly covered container, make the slow cooker a safe alternative to the risky process of cooking foods for extended periods at a very low temperature in a conventional oven.

Begin with a clean cooker, clean utensils and a clean work area. Wash hands before and during food preparation.

Keep perishable foods refrigerated until preparation time. If you cut up meat and vegetables in advance, store them separately in the refrigerator. The slow cooker may take several hours to reach a safe, bacteria-killing temperature. Constant refrigeration assures that bacteria, which multiply rapidly at room temperature, will not get a "head start" during the first few hours of cooking.

Power Out
If you are NOT at home during the entire slow-cooking process and the power goes out, throw away the food even if it looks done. If you are at home, finish cooking the ingredients immediately by some other means. When you are at home, and if the food was completely cooked before the power went out, the food should remain safe up to two hours in the cooker with the power off.

Settings
Most cookers have two or more settings. Foods take different times to cook depending upon the setting used. Certainly, foods will cook faster on high than on low. However, for all-day cooking or for less-tender cuts, you may want to use the low setting. Most recipes will call for cooking times of 8-10 hours on the low setting. If you simply do not have that much time, you can adjust your cooking time down by 2-3 hours and increase the temperature to high. 

If possible, turn the cooker on the highest setting for the first hour of cooking time and then to low or the setting called for in your recipe. However, it is safe to cook foods on low the entire time, if you are leaving for work, for example, and preparation time is limited. While food is cooking and once it is done, food will stay safe as long as the cooker is operating.

General Guidelines when using Slow Cookers

• Always defrost meat or poultry before putting it into a slow cooker.
• Choose to recipes with high moisture content such as soups, stews or  pasta sauces.
• Cut food into chunks or small pieces to ensure thorough cooking.
• Do not use the slow cooker for large pieces like a roast or whole chicken because the food will cook so slowly it could remain in the bacterial danger zone too long.
• Always put vegetables in first. Vegetables take longer to cook in a slow cooker than meat does, so for layering purposes, start with vegetables, then meat, and finally seasonings and small amounts of liquid.
• Pastas or rice should only be added during the last 30 minutes of cooking time, or as your recipe directs.
• Avoid "peeking". While the urge to sneak a peek at the meal is tempting , you will add 20-30 minutes to your cooking time. Lifting the lid during cooking causes valuable heat to escape.
• Store leftovers in shallow covered containers and refrigerate within two hours after cooking is finished. Reheating leftovers in a slow cooker is not recommended. However, cooked food can be brought to steaming on the stove or in a microwave and then put into a preheated slow cooker to keep hot for serving.

 
Oven to Slow Cooker Conversion

• It's difficult to give exact information converting traditional oven recipes for a slow cooker, but generally, keep the following in mind...
• Slow cookers may vary but generally, the LOW setting is about 95°-100°C, and the HIGH setting is about 150°C. One hour on HIGH is approximately equal to 2 to 2-½ hours on LOW.
• Most slow cooker recipes recommend cooking 8-10 hours on LOW. Some recipes recommend the HIGH setting based on the nature and texture of the food. You will have to judge your recipe accordingly. For example, beef cuts will be better cooked on LOW for 8-10 hours to get a more tender texture, where chicken can be cooked on HIGH 2-½ to 3 hours.

 
Points to Consider when Converting Oven Recipes for a Slow Cooker

• Reduce the amount of liquid used in most oven recipes when using the LOW setting, since the slow cooker retains all moisture that usually evaporates when cooking in the oven. Add liquids for sauces about an hour before done. You will normally end up with more liquid at the end of cooking times, not less. A general rule is to reduce liquids by half, unless rice or pasta is in the dish.
• Spices may need to be reduced or increased. Whole herbs and spices increase their flavouring power in slow cooker cooking while ground spices may have lost some flavour. Add ground spices during the last hour of cooking. Whole leaf and herbs will probably need to be reduced by half.
• Rice, noodles, macaroni, seafood, Chinese vegetables and milk do not hold up well when cooked 8-10 hours. Add these to sauces or liquid about 2 hours before serving when using LOW setting (or 1 hour on HIGH). If you want to use milk in an 8-10 hour recipe, use evaporated milk.
• Browning meats before cooking is a personal choice. It's not necessary but it will reduce the fat content of some meat if you brown it before cooking.
• Sautéing vegetables (like onions, etc) is not necessary, (except for eggplant which should be parboiled or sautéed prior due to its strong flavour). Just add them to the pot with everything else. You may wish to reduce quantities of stronger vegetables since they will permeate the other foods in the slow cooker with their full flavour.
• Dry beans can be cooked overnight on LOW as an alternative to soaking. Cover with water and add 1 teaspoon of bicarb soda. Drain and combine with other ingredients. Be sure beans are softened before adding to any sugar or tomato mixture.
• For best results, use long-grain parboiled/converted raw rice in recipes, and use standard liquid amounts instead of reducing the liquid. For mixed recipes requiring pasta, it's best to cook the pasta separately to al dente texture and add just before serving.
• For soups, add water only to cover ingredients. If thinner soup is desired, more liquid can be added at the end of the cooking time.