Ambiano Egg Cooker

Yesterday I bought the Ambiano Egg Cooker that is currently for sale at my local Aldi for $12.99. I tried it out this morning, and so far, it seems to work well … but I’m not sure if it’s worth the price tag. Here are my thoughts.

Ambiano Egg Cooker

Initial Impressions

I don’t know why, but I didn’t realize it would be so … cute! It’s smaller than I expected and looks adorably like an egg. All of the accessories fit inside its plastic dome, so if you want to keep it on your counter, it’s very space-efficient.

The machine comes with several accessories, including: 1) a measuring cup that indicates the various water levels for how many eggs and what cooking method you’re using (see photo), 2) an attachment on the cup for piercing the egg before boiling (so it doesn’t “explode,” according to the strongly worded manual), and 3) two plastic holders for making either a 2-egg omelet or poaching 1-2 eggs.

Ambiano Egg Cooker

Ambiano Egg Cooker

I don’t like cooking in plastic because I worry about the chemicals leaking into my food, so I won’t be using the omelet or poaching attachments. If that doesn’t bother you, then these look to be convenient and easy to clean.

Set-Up

Ambiano Egg Cooker

Setting up the machine is easy. Before using it for the first time, you wash the detachable pieces with soap and water and then re-assemble as needed to make a 2-egg omelet, 1-2 poached eggs, or up to 6 soft-, medium-, or hard-boiled eggs.

Using the Machine

 

I tested the machine by making a soft-boiled egg for my breakfast. A perfect soft-boiled egg has a firm white layer with a half-cooked yolk inside. It’s a favorite of mine, but I’ve struggled with getting the exact right level of “doneness” when cooking eggs on the stove because it’s so easy to overcook them and end up with medium- or hard-boiled eggs.

I followed the instructions to make my egg. First, I filled the included measuring cup with the right amount of water (which is clearly and conveniently labeled on the cup itself) and add that to the machine. Then I pierced the egg on the blunt end with the attachment on the bottom of the measuring cup (It has a cover, so don’t worry about hurting yourself when you use the cup — but warn your kids if they are going to use it). I put the egg in the holder, slid the lid into place, and pushed the “on” button.” Now I just had to wait until it beeped to tell me my egg was ready.

Timing

It’s important to note that this machine does not cook your eggs faster than a traditional stove top recipe (except perhaps you might wait longer for the water to boil if cooking on the stove.) It took my egg about 8 minutes to cook, and that was only for a soft boil. I made toast while the egg cooked, but it was already cold by the time the egg was done. (Next time I’ll wait a few minutes before starting my toast.)

This is certainly more convenient — and fool-proof — than boiling an egg, but it’s not much of a time saver otherwise.

Results

Ambiano Egg Cooker

After much anticipation, my egg was ready. The machine gives out a long, high-pitched beep when it’s done. It’s not particularly loud, though. I almost missed it even though I was only a foot or so away because I happened to be running my disposal at the time. If I’d been in another part of the house, I might not have heard it at all.

I used a towel to pick up the hot egg because, as the machine warns you, the egg is very hot when it’s done. But I didn’t consider that it would also be wet and slippery. The wet egg slipped out of my towel and onto the floor, where it cracked. It didn’t go to waste, though, because it didn’t split open entirely. Next time I’ll use tongs!

My egg was hard to peel, thanks to its tumble to the floor, but it tasted perfect. The white was firm but not rubbery, and the yolk had that perfect half-cooked texture that makes it easy to spread on buttered toast. I appreciated that I had almost no clean-up after I was done, since I didn’t dirty a pan to cook the egg.

The Verdict:

I liked my soft-boiled egg, but I was disappointed that the only way I could use the Ambiano Egg Cooker for omelets or poaching would be to cook my food in plastic and face potential chemicals leaching into my food. I’m not sure if it’s worth $12.99 — and the valuable space in my small kitchen — for me to occasionally eat soft-boiled eggs more conveniently. I might take it back and just resign myself to learning to properly boil eggs on the stove.

About Elizabeth

Elizabeth is a content writer specializing in scientific research and development and nonprofit marketing. You can find her at lunalexcc.com.

21 Comments

  1. This egg cooker worked well for me as I hard boiled 6 eggs right away to make egg salad for my Mom, who was craving it. Worked well; I fumbled around a little bit the first time I ran it. I’ve been trying to hard boil eggs w/o a gray or dark ring around the yolks for years. I gave up and bought this. So what if I can’t perfectly boil a hard cooked egg? Now I have a cute little machine that does and I can do other stuff instead of fussing over eggs. I’ve moved on.

  2. We have had and used an egg cooker for years. When the egg(s) is/are cooked you simply take the tray with egg(s) and place under running cold water for 5 seconds – no burned fingers or slips!

  3. The first time I seen one of these, I thought, really??, some people have too much money.
    Then I got this one a couple years ago and thought, why did I wait so long to get one!
    Like others I do not poach or cook omeletes as I also do not like the plastic age, and prefer to err on the side of caution.
    I love this for the hard boiled egg simplicity. I make a half dozen and put them in the fridge for a quick breakfast or to add to a salad.
    It is easy to clean, uses little space and takes the guessing out of cooking your eggs!
    Oh, and did I mention uses less hydro, so it is also more economical?

  4. It doesn’t automatically shut off does it?

    • Mine did not shut-off on the poached eggs, they were hard poached. The white part was runny & did not cook properly. I would not put water in the poaching trays, just spray with oil & crack the eggs in the trays. Concept is good, execution is bad.

  5. I have been soft boiling eggs for a while for breakfast using lots of water. Saw this and looked at prices for similar product on amazon and decided to get. Used this am and worked perfectly. Hubby likes his more medium so when done just left his sitting while I peeled mine. Easy to clean, saves on water. Mine beeped till I unplugged it- not sure if alarm would go off if left unit plugged in but instructions clearly stayed to unplug when done. Hope will enjoy for many avocado toast, nut, sautéed mushroom and tomato egg breakfasts. Like others I would never use the plastic pieces to poach or omelet eggs.

  6. I actually love this little machine. The only thing I am not pleased with is the boiler base is getting a buildup and won’t come off. Anyone else have the same issue?

    • I wipe it down with a paper towel soaked in vinegar. Seems to do the trick.

    • I know this is a little late, but I put a little white vinegar on the base while it’s still hot and wipe it off with the scrubby sponge. The buildup is I think calcium from the hard water. Doesn’t take much elbow grease and looks as good as new.
      My electric canner gets the same thing if I forget to add vinegar to the boiling water while using.

  7. Sounds like it works perfectly and as described. I will never understand why someone would return something that they have used and it did it’s job. This ends up as a loss for the store and is one of the reasons why prices are higher for all of us.

  8. need the manual please help

  9. Jan K Baumgartner

    Can I order a replacement measuring cup for Ambiano egg cooker

  10. Where can I purchase a replacement measuring cup with piercing pin for mt Ambiano egg cooker 62169

  11. I plugged in my egg cooker and pressed the yellow power button. The light came on, but, when I released the button, the light went off. The plate heats as long as I depress the power button. Not acceptable. I called the phone number on the base of the egg cooker and learned that Aldi’s no longer sells the egg cooker and has no units in stock. They stated that the only option I have is to ask for a refund. What really irritates me is that Aldi’s has a three year warranty which is useless if they can’t replace it. Does anyone have a solution to this problem? The unit apparently is not designed to be serviced.

    • For better or worse, we’ve found Aldi warranty providers are often more likely to provide refunds than to have replacement parts or repair services. The egg cooker sometimes comes back to Aldi stores in the spring, but we don’t know for sure if or when it might return.

  12. What end of the egg do you pierce? Pointed or flat?

  13. I have this egg steamer and it works great for hard boiled eggs. They cook thru and peel easily.
    When I try to cook soft boiled eggs the whites don’t cook all the way and they don’t peel very well. I usually end up tearing the whites and the yolk runs out.

  14. Purchased from Aldi in Hervey Bay. Well, the first time we used it…using exactly as instructions say…our 6 large eggs came out
    perfect on medium . This item is well worth the cost and strongly
    reccomend it. No looking at timer..Great.. love it.

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