Un oeuf à la coque is a soft-boiled egg. But why do French people call a soft-boiled egg un oeuf à la coque? Well, it’s simply because it’s the only way you can eat an egg in its shell (coque or coquille). Otherwise, eggs are never eaten in their shells, whether for an omelet, a hard-boiled egg or sunny side up egg!
French with Valerie 