Instant Pot Poached Eggs made in the pressure cooker are much easier than stove top and come out perfect every time. They are healthy and Low Carb/Keto.
Instant Pot Poached Eggs
Never before have poached eggs been so easy to make.
Both soft boiled eggs and poached eggs were hugely popular when I was a kid. Soft boiled eggs served in cute little decorative egg cups would adorn the breakfast table.
Poached eggs are delicious, but cooking them on the stove can be a chore, as you have to stand over the pot and make sure you pay close attention. Using an Instant Pot, Ninja Foodi or Pressure Cooker turns a delicate recipe, into an easy, breezy breakfast treat.
Cast of Ingredients for Instant Pot Poached Eggs
Instant Pot Poached Eggs are easily using a silicone egg bites mold, so that multiple eggs can be made using one vessel, at the same time.
Poached eggs can also be made using silicone flower cups, which are not only cute, they are perfect for use in the Instant Pot, Ninja Foodi or Pressure Cooker and dozen can fit into the cooking pot at the same time. They can be used to make mini quiches too!
You can see a photo of the silicone flower cups in my Instant Pot Low Carb Mini Mushroom Quiche recipe.
Silicone Egg Bites Mold is Perfect for Poached Eggs
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What is the Difference Between Poached Eggs and Soft Boiled Eggs?
- Both soft boiled eggs and poached eggs are cooked in water that is gently boiling or simmering.
- For making soft boiled eggs, the whole egg in the shells are placed into simmering water and cooked for about five minutes. The white part of the egg is firmer than slightly, but not as firm as hard boiled. Soft boiled eggs are placed into an egg cup and a topper is used to cut off the top part of the shell, revealing the creamy egg yolk. A thin spoon is used to eat the egg from the inside of the shell.
- Poached Eggs can be cooked in egg poacher cups over a pot of simmering water, or the eggs can be slid directly in the pot of simmering water, which is a bit more hands on. When cooking directly in a pot of simmering water, a touch of vinegar is often added to the water to help keep the white part of the egg around the yolk. A spoon is used to push the whites of the egg, so they cling around the yolk. Poached eggs are very delicate and are usually served on buttered toast.
- So, while poached eggs and soft boiled eggs are both cooked in simmering water, the way the eggs are eaten is different, as well as the delicacy of the egg whites, with soft boiled egg whites being much firmer than poached eggs.
As it would be impossible to make poached eggs directly in the water using a pressure cooker, egg poachers or an egg bite tray is used for cooking the eggs over the water.
Instant Pot Poached Eggs can easily be turned into pseudo soft boiled eggs in a similar method as my Instant Pot Egg Loaf, where the shell is removed, but cooked until the hard boiled stage. The egg loaf makes life easier, as no peeling is required.
Cracked Eggs with Salt and Pepper
This Gravity Electric Salt and Pepper Grinder makes it so easy to grind pepper. Pepper can be added to all or some of the eggs.
Do I Cover Instant Pot Poached Eggs?
- Instant Pot Poached Eggs do not have to be covered.
- The egg cups or egg bite tray, sits above the water and steams the eggs.
Since poached eggs are eaten on top of buttered toast or an English muffin, I chose to use an egg bite tray, so that butter could be melted at the same time.
Whether you are following a low carb or keto diet or not, this convenience of melted butter will be helpful.
Butter Melts as Eggs Poach
Instant Pot Poached Eggs are great on top of my Low Carb Belgian Waffles Keto w/Coconut Flour and Low Carb Pumpkin Cheesecake Pancakes.
Adding butter to the center well, is an easy, no hassle way to melt the butter. The Instant Pot Poached Eggs will need to be covered, if using the butter option.
Pro Tip: If using the egg cups, there is no need to cover the cups.
Instant Pot Eggs Cook in Molds
Tips and Tricks for Instant Pot Poached Eggs.
- Lightly grease the egg bite mold. Silicone does not always need to be greased, but eggs do have a tendency to stick.
- Salt and pepper can be sprinkled in the wells prior to cracking the eggs, to get color on the top.
- Instant Pot Poached Eggs do not need to be covered, but if wanting to melt butter at the same time, then cover the tray, so the butter does not get wet.
- Covered, the Instant Pot Poached Eggs will take longer to cook, then if they are uncovered. If cooking uncovered, the amount of water used in the pot is reduced (see recipe card for directions).
Instant Pot Poached Eggs
Lots of fresh pepper is wonderful on top of the eggs.
Tell me, are you going to flip your egg over, or plate it top side down?
More Instant Pot Egg Recipes to Love.
- Pressure Cooker Easy Hard Boiled Eggs
- Pressure Cooker Spanish Tortilla {Potato & Egg Frittata}
- Pressure Cooker Low Carb Mini Mushroom Quiche Egg Bites
- Instant Pot Egg Bites (Feta Cheese & Red Pepper)
I hope you will make these Instant Pot Poached Eggs a part of your low carb and keto diet.
This Silicone BBQ Basting Brush is handy for brushing the butter onto your toast or bread.
Kitchen Equipment and Essentials
- Instant Pot, Ninja Foodi or Pressure Cooker
- Anchor Hocking Glass (Liquid) Measuring Cups
- Porcelain & Bamboo Salt Box with Spoon
- Gravity Electric Salt and Pepper Grinder
- Olive Oil Sprayer / Mister for Cooking
- Stainless Steel Tall/Short Trivet & Egg Cooker Set
- Stainless Steel Cake Push Pan + Mini Pans Set OR 2.5 ounce Silicone “Baby Food” Containers (great for Egg and Cheesecake Bites”)
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Here is the handy printable recipe:
Ingredients
- Pure Virgin Coconut Oil for greasing tray
- 6 large Eggs
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 2 teaspoons Salted Butter
Tools
Recommended Products
Instructions
- Very lightly grease the six wells of the egg bites tray (leaving the center well empty) or six egg poacher cups.
- Crack an egg in each of the greased wells (or egg poacher cups). Sprinkle on salt and pepper. If using the egg bites tray and butter, place butter in center well. Cover the tray if using butter, otherwise, do not cover the tray or the egg poacher cups.
- Add 2 cups of water to pressure cooker cooking pot and place in a trivet. Place covered egg bite tray on top of trivet. [If using egg poacher cups, just use 1 cup water and do not cover.]
- Lock on lid and close pressure valve. Cook at high pressure for 1 minute. When beep sounds, wait 1 minute (for very runny eggs) or 2 minutes (for tighter whites) and then release the rest of the pressure.
- Remove egg bites tray or egg cups. Use a basting brush, brush butter on toast or English muffin. Use a spoon to remove poached egg from wells and place on top of buttered toast. If using egg poacher cups, turn each cup over on top of buttered toast.
Notes
How to Serve Instant Pot Poached Eggs.
- Air Fryer Colombian Pan de Yuca {Cheesy Bread} is delicious dunked into the yolks.
- On top of a slice of buttered and toasted Country Sourdough Bread Old World Style.
- On top of my Keto Low Carb Pancakes with Sneaky Squash.
Nutrition
Pin this Instant Pot Poached Eggs
My Ninja Foodi must cook hotter than the IP.
First attempt of 1 minute pressure & release after 2 min gave me soft boiled eggs which were yummy. For my 2nd attempt I did 1 min pressure & then immediately released them & they were perfect poached eggs.
Hi Samantha. I am glad the recipe worked out for you. I like soft boiled eggs. Sometimes size of pressure cooker, altitude, etc., can play a roll in various recipes. Jill
Perfect! I used a different egg bite mold and it didn’t hold a whole egg. Was funny to watch it all run over the side when I cracked it in, like slime. Soo ordered the one you linked to. Thank you! Easy fast breakfast for my hubby and I.
Thank you, Dove. I love those egg bite trays as they hold quite a bit. Jill
New to pressure cooking and this was the first recipe I tried. Thank you – worked perfectly – I let sit for 2 minutes before releasing the pressure. I only cooked 2 eggs for myself but have a 7 egg silicone tray that will be perfect for making eggs for the entire family! So easy.
Hi Suzanne. Thank you. So glad you enjoyed your poached eggs. Jill
These are delicious and so easy! I used silicone muffin tin liners, and cooked for one minute with a two minute rest. Perfect!
Thank you, Meg. So glad you enjoyed. Jill
I use glass custard cups and they work fine
Super easy and did the one minute with 2 resting and came out great!
So wonderful to hear, Tracy. Thank you. Jill
Thank you so much for this, it’s just the info I needed. I’m making eggs benedict for a crowd soon and it just dawned on me, how will I poach so many eggs at once? (I am an expert at poaching directly in water, but for more than 1 person it’s a pain!) Will check out the rest of your blog. Thanks!
Jill for the win again!! Did the 1 min with 2 min release. Perfect!! Love your spaghetti sauce recipe, too. So good.
Thank you so much, Jeanette! Jill
I can always depend on you! Made your poached eggs this morning & put them on rosemary sourdough bread with swiss cheese and prosciutto. Fabulous!
That sounds wonderful. Thank you. Jill
Would it be possible to use custard cups for this recipe. I already have those and out of storage space for any more new kitchen stuff. Thank you!
Another comment states that these were used successfully.
Odd, 1 min + 1 min didn’t work for my IP duo. Whites were quite runny. Put them back in for 1 min, still not cooked enough, whites were clear or runny. Next time I will try 2 minutes and 1 NPR.
I can’t figure out how I not only forgot about my egg bite cup but kept on forgetting through an entire Whole 30 challenge. I unearthed that nifty little gadget and enjoyed two perfect poached eggs this morning. In my six quart Instant Pot Duo, two minutes under pressure and one minute before quick release was just right. For the low carbers out there, poached eggs over pan fried cauliflower rice is pretty tasty; I don’t care WHAT my husband thinks.
The same thing happened to me. I’m going to try making them again next weekend but longer.
1 minute hp, and 1 minute npr —> whites were still runny. Maybe my eggs were too large. Will try again
Waiting one minute to release overcooked the 4 x large eggs. Should I have done QR immediately??
I think some pressure cookers, cook hotter than others, so for yours, yes, try releasing right away. Jill
Just curious where you got that awesome little “silicone lifter” to put under your egg bite silicone thing? That would make it so much easier for me to get mine out.
Lynn it came with the egg bite tray. I link to it in the recipe post. Jill
How would you do just one egg without the silicone egg bite tray?
I’m the only one who eats poached eggs, and all I have are custard cups.
The instructions are in the recipe card. Jill
Can I use the mould to cook just 1 or 2 eggs or do I always have to cook 6 eggs at a time?
Sure, that is totally fine. Jill