Hard-boiled or poached? Here's how

No runny yolks and slimy egg whites. That's the mantra of cooks everywhere for preparing eggs safely after the recall of more than a half-billion eggs linked to as many as 1,300 cases of salmonella poisoning.

Versatility means eggs are still popular. Properly poached or boiled, eggs make a great breakfast as is, or they can be used as safe sandwich ingredients — with sausage and cheese on an English muffin, for instance, or in egg salad.

Eunice Kokrda, a family consumer science teacher at Millard North High School, spent part of this week showing her students how to safely cook eggs. She shared with us the basics for getting perfect hard-boiled eggs (no green ring around the yolk) and poached eggs.

How to cook a hard-boiled egg

Place eggs in a saucepan large enough to hold them in a single layer.

Add cold water to cover the eggs including an extra inch of water.

Heat the eggs over high heat just to boiling. Immediately remove from the burner.

Cover the pan with a lid and let the eggs stand in the hot water for about 20 minutes for large eggs (18 minutes for medium eggs; 22-23 minutes for extra large).

Drain the hot water immediately and serve warm, or cool completely under cold running water or in bowl of ice water. Drain the eggs, place in a covered container and refrigerate.

How to cook a poached egg

Poached eggs are cooked out of the shell in hot water. You also could use milk, broth, tomato juice, wine or any other liquid.

In a saucepan or deep omelet pan, bring 2 to 3 inches of water or other liquid to a boil. Reduce the heat to keep the water gently simmering.

Break cold eggs, one at a time, into a custard cup or saucer. Holding the dish close to the water's surface, slip the eggs, one by one, into the simmering water.

Cook the eggs until the whites are completely set and the yolks begin to thicken but are not hard, about 5 minutes, or for a fully cooked yolk, cook for a total of 10 to 12 minutes. With a slotted spoon, lift out the eggs. Drain the eggs in the slotted spoon or on paper towels. Trim any ruffle-type edges, if you like.

If you'd like to dress up your eggs once they're hard-boiled, Kokrda shared this recipe for deviled eggs.

Bacon-Avocado Deviled Eggs

12 eggs

5 slices thick-sliced bacon, chopped

½ cup mayonnaise

1 tablespoon grainy Dijon-style mustard

2 teaspoons caper juice

Few dashes of bottled hot pepper sauce

¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1 ripe but firm avocado, halved, seeded and peeled

2 teaspoons lemon juice

Snipped fresh chives, optional

Place eggs in a single layer in a large saucepan. Add cold water to cover the eggs. Bring to a rapid boil over high heat. Remove from heat, cover and let the eggs stand for 15 minutes and then drain. Run cold water over the eggs or place them in ice water until cool enough to handle and drain. Peel the eggs and slice in half lengthwise. Remove yolks and place in a medium bowl. Place the whites aside.

Fry the bacon in a small skillet over medium heat until crisp. Drain on paper towels and set aside.

Mash egg yolks with a fork. Add the mayonnaise, mustard, caper juice, hot pepper sauce (optional) and black pepper, stirring to mix well.

Chop avocado into ½-inch pieces and toss with lemon juice. Place pieces of avocado in the hollow of each egg white. Spoon or pipe egg yolk mixture into egg white halves. Sprinkle with bacon pieces, any remaining avocado pieces and snipped chives to garnish. Cover and chill up to 4 hours in advance of serving.

Makes 24 servings.

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