FELIX

I know you’ve had it with eggscruciating yolks

Young science students from Sherborne Girls in Dorset have discovered what makes the perfect boiled egg and soldiers. In an “Eggsperiment” commissioned by the Royal Society of Chemistry, a team of 12 girls tested one of Britain’s favourite breakfasts and confirmed the optimum time for boiling an egg, as well as the key variables that make up the perfect dipping soldier.

Stella Botes, a 13-year-old student, told me that “The inspiration for the ‘eggsperiment’ was to perfect something that everyone does at home, using science. My particular group were working on the runniness of yolk and flexibility of bread. The conclusions of the data were that margarine makes a stronger soldier than butter, white bread makes more effective dunking soldiers, the optimum toasting time is 2.5 minutes, the perfect soldier dimension is 1.5cm in width, and the perfect boiled egg takes six minutes.”

Iram Hasan, who is a 17 year old student, confesses, “I believe that gastronomy is inevitably defined by taste and a person’s own preferences. The perfect boiled egg and soldiers might not be the perfect boiled egg and soldiers for another person. However, scientific food experiments can help give a more objective overview of food; reducing biased and subjective results which can lead to inaccuracy. Heston Blumenthal highlights that scientific food experiments can add to gastronomy, and as scientists, we are always looking for the reason behind observations, even in food! Science can make food even more exciting, as Heston does so well.”

Science is everywhere. And as a scientist you must be able to cook a proper breakfast!

The young food scientists are happy to answer any more questions you might have about the experiment at office@sherborne.com.