One of the simple teas or lunches that I enjoy is poached eggs on toast. Now my trusty poaching pan is great if we all want eggs as it can cook 4 at a time but occasionally as it's just me I wanted something to use that meant I could cook only one or two eggs. I thought these poach pods would be ideal but for me they haven't really been as good as my ancient poached egg pan.

These are available from Lakeland, John Lewis and Sainsbury's to my knowledge and come in packs of two pods for around £5.

What are they?
****************
The pods themselves are made from silicone and are green or yellow in colour. The pods have a curved base and a come up in to a half sphere type of shape with three points as the Dooyoo picture shows. In each of these points is a small hole. These holes are there for you to put a dishwasher rack prong through if you wish to wash them in a dishwasher. As we don't have one I can't comment if the holes survived this treatment very long before breaking.

Preparing the pod and cooking your egg
**********************************
To cook an egg with these pods you first need to oil the pod. I fluctuate how I do this if I am feeling lazy I place a drop in the pod and then squish it around the pod by compressing the sides of the pod together. If I am not bothered by the washing up I use a pastry brush to brush the oil around the pod. I do have to admit though the brush method does work better at reducing the amount of the egg left sticking to the pod.

Once your pod is oiled you just crack the egg into the pod and then place this in about an inch and a half of water that is gently simmering. Now the first few times I did this I failed miserably and ended up with damp soggy eggs as the water was boiling too fast and water ended up inside the pod which then left the egg a soggy messy. Equally I have found that it is best to either use a large spoon or a ladle to lower the egg into the water as sometimes if you hold the silicone pod too hard when lowering it into the water then the egg either leaks out or water leaks in again resulting in disappointing eggs. It is also important to make sure what ever pan you are cooking the eggs in has a lid, as if the lid isn't on the pan then it not only takes longer for the eggs to cook in the pod. Often in my experience if the pan lid is not on then it leads to the yolk becoming tough and not runny. I think the reason for this is that in a lot of ways the eggs are cooked by a mixture of steaming and poaching them.

Getting your eggs out
*********************
There is no easy way to get the pods out of the pan unless you invest in a poach pod lift which is a glorified ladle without a bottom. I have tried burning my fingers as I lift them out and can only really say using the a normal soup ladle or a slotted spoon is the best way to lift them out but often the pods can slip into the water. This is also where you find out if you have greased them enough, you are advised to gently run a spoon around the edge of the egg then to turn it over and uncurl the pod to push the egg out. I have to admit varying success with this and often I am left with a rim of egg white all the top of the pod no matter how much I grease the pod and I don't like to use to much oil as it leaves a nasty film across the egg which seems to spoil the taste a bit.

Cleaning the pod
********************
I have always cleaned this in normal washing up liquid you are advised to not use any abrasive cleaners or pads on it but in my experience I have found that a cloth and or a soft sponge gets the egg residue off without any problems.

Other uses of your pod
*********************
The manufacture claims you can use these pods for baking things in to create little domes, I haven't tried this yet but I have concerns about how well this would work out as I would imagine you would need to tightly fit them into a baking tray or dish as they topple over very easily on a work top let alone when you are moving them into the oven.. They also suggest that you can use them for jelly models I tried this but found that the jelly just stuck to the model and didn't come out in a nice dome shape at all. The also claim you can use it for shaped desserts like mousses but after my jelly disaster I have been reluctant to try this. If you like moulding food such as rice into pretty shapes it can also been used for that but as I have had no cheesy dinner parties to do this for again it is something I don't' plan on using it for.

Overall
*********
I have had mixed results with these pods and wouldn't want to totally claim they are useless as the times they have worked for me the eggs have been beautifully cooked. But overall for me the times I have got it wrong out weight the times I have got it right due to the need to get the greasing right, having to make sure the water does boil into the pods or that they don't topple over as you lift and lower them into the pan. I have to say they are more hassle than they are worth and I have gone back to using my trusty poaching pan as the small amount of butter in these moulds always works to stop them sticking and I never have any trouble with water getting in to them and getting damp soggy eggs. Overall I wouldn't recommend these and would advise saving up to buy an egg poaching pan instead.