A terrified mum has warned people against cooking eggs in the microwave after she tried out the viral TikTok 'hack' which left skin peeling from her face after suffering burns.
Shafia Bashir, 37, said she's been in "absolute agony" after making a poached egg using a viral recipe she had seen on the internet. It includes pouring boiling water in a mug before adding the egg and then placing it in the microwave for a couple of minutes until it is cooked.
But, when Shafia put a cold spoon on the egg, it erupted "like a fountain" and scolded the right side of her face - leaving her in the "most excruciating" pain of her life.
READ MORE: Glasgow LEZ: Lord Provost limo banned from city centre after falling foul of new rules
After visiting the A&E, her burns were treated but she said they were still stinging 12 hours after the incident.
Her wounds have not healed, however, the mum-of-one has still cautioned others to think twice before trying this method.
She said: "I just don't want anyone else going through that, because it is trending on TikTok It was the most excruciating pain in my life. It was a terrifying time for me. I was in absolute agony.
"As soon as I put the cold spoon in, it exploded like a fountain and it scolded me.
"I put my face under the tap and then had to get my mate to look after my daughter so I could go to A&E.
"My face has healed now, luckily with no scars. I used Vaseline, Sudocrem, whatever I could get my hands on."
Shafia, from Bolton, Greater Manchester, said she had been making the dish for three years when she'd decided to cook it on May 12 while "starving".
She had followed a recipe that her former mother-in-law had taught her but on this occasion she was left stunned when the cooking trick ended in disaster.
She added: "I did it exactly the same as I usually do it. I had already made the toast, I was starving!
"My ex-mother-in-law told me about it. She told me how to make a poached egg in the microwave. I had been doing it for three years.
"I boiled the kettle, half-filled the mug with water, put salt inside, the egg inside, and microwaved it for a minute. It wasn't cooked, so I put it in for another minute."
"After it happened, I put my face under the tap for 20 mins. But the burning lasted for 12 hours. It just didn't stop."
The British Medical Journal previously said that microwave ovens should display clear warnings about exploding eggs.
Cooking shelled eggs in a microwave is dangerous because the casing holds in heat. Once you have removed the egg from the microwave, it will carry on cooking itself and any disruption can cause an explosion.
But similar dangers can apply when cooking sunny side up or poached eggs in the microwave.
These cooking hacks proved popular on social media sites such as TikTok, as people look for ways to save time with everyday tasks. But it's not the first time the trick has gone wrong, with Chantelle Conway, from Farnworth, claiming a similar thing happened to her in 2021.
Shafia said she had been left traumatised after the incident and vowed never to eat an egg again. But she has also seen the funny side of her experiences and made light of them to her 15,000 followers on TikTok.
Shafia said: "For my last videos on TikTok, I did Beauty and the Beast and Tony Montana from Scarface, with the burn.
"My followers thought it was a filter!"
READ NEXT:
Ex-Celtic and Arsenal star Kieran Tierney visits animal rescue centre in role as SSPCA ambassador
Boots shoppers hail 'best' £8 suncare product as temperatures soar
M&S £15 dress 'perfect for day or night' that has shoppers obsessed
Jet2, easyJet and TUI cabin bag allowance rules you need to know this summer
Glasgow's pollen count this week for tree, weeds and grass as temperatures soar
