I hope I don’t insult anyone with this post. I mean, come on. How hard is it really to boil an egg in water?
While it is an easy concept, a few little pointers will do away with the two negatives most people have with hard boiled eggs:
#1 – Yolks that are so dry they crumble to pieces.
#2 – The nasty green ring around the yolk after they cook.
Problem number one is done away with by the gentle rise in temperature this method uses and by not overcooking them. Problem number two (which is a chemical reaction of the sulfur in the white and the iron in the yolk) is obliterated by an immediate soak in ice water when they are finished cooking.
The result is a perfectly cooked egg that has a soft, firm yolk and no hint of that green ring.
Print
Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs
Ingredients
- Eggs
- Water
Instructions
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Place your eggs in a saucepan. You want to keep the eggs snug in the pan so they are less likely to crack when cooking, so don’t use too big of a pan. Cover with cold tap water.
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Place over high heat, uncovered. As soon as the water has come to a full boil, put on the lid, remove from the heat and let the eggs sit for 10 minutes.
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Drain away the hot water and fill the pan with ice water. Allow the eggs to come to room temperature before removing them from the ice water.
Notes
- Crack the wider, bottom of the egg first, being sure to break through the clear membrane between the shell and the white of the egg. Next crack the top of the egg, again being sure to break through the membrane. Then roll the rest of the egg to loosen the rest of the shell. Begin peeling at the bottom, being sure you are under that membrane.
- If it is sticking a bit, run the egg under some warm water to help release that membrane from the egg white.
- Fresh eggs will always be easier to peel than older eggs.
Anonymous says
I hate to differ but I raise chickens and have to age my eggs for at least 2 weeks in order for them to peel so…older eggs are actually easier to peel 🙂
Demiurgess says
The previous poster is correct. I too, have learned that aged eggs peel easier when hard boiled.
I just found your blog and am linking all sorts of recipes to Pinterest. I hope you get lots of visitors!
Anonymous says
Also, if you put about a tsp of vinegar in the pot with the eggs, the shell peels right off.