The Worst Mistake To Make When You're Trying To Perfect Sunny Side Up Eggs

Eggs are a beloved, versatile breakfast food. You can scramble them, fry them, poach them, or bake them depending on your preferences, but nothing is quite as beautiful as a sunny side up egg. This preparation involves frying your eggs until the whites are just set, but unlike their over-easy cousins, there's no flipping them over. The lack of turning means the golden yolk remains intact and, true to its name, resembles a round, orange sun. A good sunny side up egg has a yolk that is set enough that it is slightly jiggly, and then is beautifully runny once you cut into it.

Seems simple enough, right? Well, kind of. Achieving egg perfection is actually quite a delicate process that can go wrong in the blink of an eye. There are plenty of tips for cooking the perfect fried egg to keep in mind while you're making breakfast, but one of the most important things to remember is to not cook your eggs over too high of heat. It's the biggest mistake you could make when preparing sunny side up eggs, and the main obstacle standing between you and a restaurant-quality breakfast.

Making a perfect sunny side up egg takes patience. Low heat is absolutely necessary, because you want the whites to set while the yolk remains runny. Cooking the egg over heat that is too high runs the risk of overcooking (or even burning) the whites, but not cooking the yolk enough. Then you're stuck with whites that are rubbery and an underdone yolk. When you begin cooking, first add your choice of fat to the skillet (it's up to you whether you use butter or oil). You'll know it's time to add your egg when the oil is glistening, or the butter is foamy. You do not want to hear any hissing or sizzling sounds as this means the skillet is too hot.

If patience isn't your strongest virtue, a good method to slightly speed the process up without the risk of ruining your egg is to cover the skillet with a glass lid. The steam that builds up inside will help cook those whites a bit faster, plus you can still keep an eye on everything through the glass. You'll know your egg is ready when the whites are totally opaque. Of course, if this process seems way too involved for your liking, you can also try an easy hack to make sunny side up eggs in the microwave. But if you're an egg purist who doesn't mind waiting a couple of extra minutes for breakfast to be ready, cooking your sunny side up eggs low and slow will yield amazing results.