source: Reddit
So here you are, standing at a generic garage sale, rummaging through the usual crap: half-melted candles, an assortment of mystery cords, perhaps a fish-shaped mug—and then you see it. This crazy little metal object. It’s a loop, a handle, and kind of has a scissor vibe to it. You pick it up, flip it over, and immediately think, “Cigar cutter?” But no. It is too big. And also, who in their right mind would sell a novelty-sized cigar cutter?
What you have stumbled upon—this little alien tool—is, in fact, something far more domestic: an egg topper cutter. Yes, a tool entirely devoted to just opening the top of a soft-boiled egg. That is it. That is the entire function. And oddly enough? It is pretty fantastic.
What is an Egg Topper Cutter?
Essentially, it is like laser surgery for eggs. Rather than wrestling with cracking off the top of a soft-boiled egg with some kind of spoon and then making a mess of shell bits and gooey yolk dripping down your hand, this little device gets you a perfect opening with a clear edge. No bits of shell. No jagged edges. Just a nice little cap that pops off as if by magic.
If you are a fan of soft-boiled eggs (and if you are not yet, you probably will be after this), it is the gooeyness that is the attraction. But how do you access that goo without ruining the whole experience? That’s where this little tool comes into play.
So How Do You Use The Tool?
It’s not hard. Honestly, it is somewhat fun to use, in a weirdly satisfying way. Here’s the general process:
Boil the Egg – You need a soft-boiled egg. Not hard. Not raw. Just soft-boiled, wherein the egg white is firmer, and the yolk is still a bit lava-like.
Keep It From Wobbling – Place your egg in an egg cup, or small shot glass or whatever holds the egg and keeps it from wobbling around too much. You need a stable little egg holder.
Grab the Tool – Hold the topper by the handle, which will most likely be a fast action, like a fancy little bell or maybe a plunger, depending on the type.
Line the Circle Cutting Edge Up – Place the circular cutting edge gently, directly over the top of the egg, right on the dome, and no guessing.
The Fun Part Snap? – Now comes the fun part of pulling up and snapping the handle back down. This makes a little vibration that causes the blade to score the eggshell all the way around. You may feel silly doing it the first time, but trust me, it works.
Lift the Cap – Now just lift the tool off. If you did everything right, you are now holding the “cap” of your egg. A perfect little cap with no mess and no shell shrapnel.
Eat Your Egg – Salt it. Pepper it. Spoon it out! Dunk your toast into it! Whatever you want!
Why even bother?
Honestly? Because it makes something simple a bit better. A bit cleaner. A bit less annoying.
For one reason: no pieces of shell in your yolk. Have you ever tried to fish those puppies out? A nightmare.
It’s fast. You can pop the top off in like 2 seconds.
It is somewhat satisfying. Weirdly elegant. It kind of makes you feel like you are suddenly in a European café instead of your messy kitchen at 7 a.m.
It makes you look like you know how to do something. Even if you swore you didn’t know how to do it 100%.
And, if you are serving eggs to other people—which admittedly most people don’t, but if you do—a joining, clean egg looks infinitely better than one you hacked with a spoon like a crime scene investigation.
Is It Essential? No. But… Yes?
Look, I’m not saying this is some kitchen life-or-death device. It isn’t a can opener. It isn’t a peeler. You don’t need it. But if you eat soft-boiled eggs even occasionally, it’s honestly worth it to have. It is one of those certain kitchen gadgets that you don’t know you want until you have one, and then suddenly you think about how you lived your old life without it.
So, next time you see one of these kitchen tools—either online, or at a garage sale, or from that weird drawer you always see your grandma digging through of “1,000 kitchen things”—maybe it is worth a shot. Try a soft-boiled egg. Grab the tool.
And after you do, enjoy that rarest of kitchen experiences: something super oddly specific that actually works exactly how it is supposed to.
