The Bubbly Addition You've Been Missing For Fluffy Scrambled Eggs

Eggs can be a delicious start to your morning or a scrumptious snack to end your night (especially eggs fried in bacon grease). They're quick to cook, easy to make, and only dirty up one pan. Most people can whip up decent eggs, but you may not know there's a secret ingredient that ensures your scrambled eggs are the lightest and fluffiest they've ever been.

That ingredient is seltzer water, and if you thought this bubbly beverage was just for mixed drinks or tempura batter, you would be wrong. Adding a little bit of seltzer water to your scrambled eggs makes them airy and fluffy in a way that milk or plain water just can't do.

If you're worried about the eggs tasting weird, don't; as long as you stick to plain seltzer there will be no additional flavor (so that means your fruity or floral seltzers should remain for drinking only). Also, it should go without saying, but don't use alcoholic seltzers (blech).

It does seem a bit wild to add seltzer to your scrambled eggs, but the science is sound (more on that later). And it's a really simple process, too. Just add about a tablespoon of the bubbly liquid per every two eggs (that would be just a teaspoon and a half if you're only cooking one egg). You can do this right before you beat your eggs, then pour the mixture in the pan and cook as normal.

The eggs shouldn't be runny or cook any differently (though some people have had the whites and the yolks separate slightly), but this fizzy addition is definitely for those who prefer their eggs on the tender, melty side. Also, this "recipe" isn't set in stone. If you like the direction the eggs were going in but they were a bit too moist for your liking, experiment next time by using two teaspoons instead of a whole tablespoon. And make sure you're cooking scrambled eggs correctly in the first place.

It might sound a little weird to be adding seltzer to your scrambled eggs, but the fizzy stuff has been a secret weapon in the culinary world for years. Because of its bubbles, it adds moist fluffiness to pancakes, tempura batter, and cakes.

The way it works in scrambled eggs is simple: the bubbles, when worked into the egg mixture and heated up, rapidly expand, creating air pockets in the eggs while cooking. The result is light and airy eggs without any residual hint of the carbonated water that caused them to fluff up. It's true: You won't taste the seltzer, and you won't feel it either — the fizz is eradicated by the cooking. All you'll be left with are the tender egg pieces.

Seltzer is the ideal choice for cooking eggs because it's devoid of additional flavors and minerals. However, its bubbly cousins, club soda and sparkling water, could also stand in, in a pinch, if that's all you have on hand. Both are carbonated, though there are minerals that occur naturally in sparkling water, which can alter the taste somewhat. There are also minerals added to club soda, including sodium, which gives it a slightly salty taste.