The eggs were poached using two methods widely published in recipe
books, including those sold with microwave ovens. The first entails breaking
the egg into a greased ramekin dish, piercing the yolk, daubing with butter
and cooking for the recommended length of time at either high (1 OO%), or
medium (50%) power. The egg is then left to stand for approximately
1 min before being ready to eat. The second method differs only in that
the egg is broken into boiling water heated using the microwave oven,
rather than into a greased ramekin dish, and then cooked as above. The
timings and power settings recommended vary, but essentially involve
cooking the white until it is hard but leaving the yolk soft or runny. In this
study eggs were cooked individually, and the times required ranged from
45-55 s (average 50) at high power, and 80-100 s (average 90) at medium
power.