There is nothing I love more than discovering an inside secret or trick of the trade. When I learned last week that raw eggs are the best remedy for minor kitchen burns, I polled every chef I know to ask if they knew about this alimentary aid, shocked and upset that I had been in the dark all these years. Less than half had ever heard of it. But all, like me, were curious about the cure-- even a bit peeved to think that they had spent a lifetime enduring burns and blisters when something as simple as a cracked egg could have saved them from pain and scars.
Some people say that you can use the whole beaten egg, while others insist that all you need are the whites. The method, though, seems to be the same:
1. Beat cold eggs or egg whites in a bowl (there is no information that indicates the yolk inhibits healing).
2. Place a clean cloth in the bowl to saturate the egg.
3. Apply the egg-soaked cloth to the burn for a few minutes up to one hour.
The protein-packed cold egg treatment relieves the discomfort AND prevents blistering. Most serious cooks can handle the pain (as they say, if you can't handle the heat....), but no one wants that ugly pinkish brown blister.
The next time you touch an uflagged hot skillet handle, crack an egg and grab two clean towels--one to soak the egg for your aching hand and the other to flag that hot pan. You know better now.
