Poaching (cooking)
Poaching is the process of gently simmering food in liquid, generally water, stock or wine.
Poaching is particularly suitable for fragile food, such as eggs, poultry, fish and fruit, which might easily fall apart or dry out. For this reason, it is important to keep the heat low and to keep the poaching time to a bare minimum, which will also preserve the flavour of the food.
Poached eggs are generally cooked in water, fish in white wine, poultry in stock and fruit in red wine.
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Poaching an egg without its shell can also be done in a small receptacle placed over boiling water. (From Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fourth Edition)