A famous, German comedian (Loriot) once wrote a skit about the four-and-a-half minute egg. In it, the housewife cooks four-and-a-half minute, soft-boiled eggs for her husband's breakfast. The problem is that she cooks them, not with a timer, but from instinct (Gefuehl). This leads to various outcomes, sometimes too hard, sometimes too runny, to which the husband objects. For some reason, this classic skit has become cult and Germans (for the most part) find it hilarious. "Das Ei" (in German) by Loriot - You Tube 2 1/2 minutes
If you are trying out soft boiled eggs for the first time, you will probably want to cook large eggs about 5 minutes. If they are cold, add a minute to the time. Undercooked eggs have runny egg whites. Soft boiled eggs have hard egg whites and runny yolks. Waxy eggs have yolks that are not runny, but the yolks haven't turned light yellow yet. Hard boiled eggs have light yellow yolks.
Electronic timers are a good investment, because of the alarm at the end when the time runs out. Hourglasses must be watched carefully. Have your ten-year-old run the hourglass so that you can put the rest of the breakfast on the table.
