How to Separate an Egg

Separating an egg is a simple, yet fairly important culinary skill.  While those who bake and cook a lot of desserts probably know the method cold, some of my fellow savory chefs, overlook the need to separate egg yolk from egg white.  Aside from making egg white omelets, there are a number of applications, you may need to separate an egg for.  There are several different ways I’ve seen people do it; but in this video, I show you my personal preference.  While you need to “get your hands dirty”, I think it’s the simplest technique out there, and there is little chance of breaking the yolk.  Take a look and let me know what you think.

How to Separate an Egg

• First you are going to need two bowls, one for the whites, and one for the yolks
• Crack the egg at its center and then hold it vertically, without opening up that crack
• Hold the egg over the bowl intended for the whites, and pry the shell open; much of the white will spill out into the bowl
• Discard, the now empty top part of the shell; the bottom of the shell should still have the yolk and some egg white in it
• Dump the yolk/white out into your hand with your fingers just loosely apart
• The white should run through your fingers into the bowl with the rest of the whites, leaving the yolk in your hand
• Gently place the yolk in the other bowl and you are good to go

I’ve seen other cooks do the transfer back and forth between the two shells, but I sometimes break the yolk that way, and find my way simpler…just keep a towel handy to clean your hand off with.