Boiling Eggs

C.~

I just place them directly from the boiling state to lukewarm running water and peel. Good luck! Seems to work for me.

Boil for 20 minutes (I start from cold too, but start the clock when they start to boil). When done, immediately put in cold water and wash out the warm a few times to cool them down. This works for me.

good luck!

Add some vinegar (white) to the cold water boil for five minutes. Remove from heat and let them sit for 15 minutes then run cold water on them. Hope this help you out - works for me.

The key to perfect eggs is making sure that the eggs are a few days old. Check out this website. Basically if the eggs are too new, they can be difficult to peel. If you already made them, you can put them in the fridge for a few days, and they will become a bit easier to peel. For your next batch, make sure the eggs are a few days old before cooking them! Good luck! Here is a link that I reference often!

http://www.elise.com/recipes/archives/005251how_to_make_p...

Ooh, ooh, a question I know the answer to! :-D I grew up on a chicken farm of egg laying chickens.

The bright side is that the harder they are to peel, the fresher the eggs are. Yummy!

What I do is just dump the eggs in and boil them for 15 mins. (timed from when the water starts to boil). Then I pour out the hot water and run cold water over them (to cool them off enough to handle). Then I crack the egg shell over the entire surface of the egg. Finally, I peel the eggshell off under cold running water (or in a pot of cold water -- to save water).

Did you know that "floating" eggs can tell you if they've gone bad? Put eggs in enough water to cover them. If they float, they are not good to eat. (Bacteria in the egg cause gases that make it float.)If they sink, they're good to eat.

I completely agree with Jeannie A, she's on the mark. the fresher the eggs, the harder to peel. A.

Dear C.,
It sounds like you have a wonderful family.

...It's true. Fresh eggs are harder to peel. I have a friend who owned her own restaurant and throws huge dinner parties and bbq's at home. She is the one who told me the trick to making sure the eggs are in the refrigerator for a few days before boiling. She gets her eggs in two phases....the ones for her famous deviled eggs and the ones that she uses in potato or pasta salads.

Dunk 'em in ice water after you've drained them. Really fresh eggs are harder to peel for some reason.

I bring water to a boil, carefully "place" eggs using a round deep spoon, set timer for eight
Minutes, drain, shake them around the pan to get some cracks, fill pan with cold water and soak for a few minutes to allow cold water to sepearate shell from eggs. I squeeze them gently to get lots of cracks and generally the whole shell comes right off.

This works with jumbo eggs and it's hard boiled. For softer yolks do may be half minute less on the timer. I find that smaller eggs get a little too hard in 8 mins.

Judi's response about the ice water is correct. We used this method at the sandwich shop I used to work at. They should go into the ice water directly after boiling is done. Also, you roll them on a hard surface when you're ready to peel them, sort of like peeling an orange.

Put a little bit of white vinegar into the water before you start boiling. This will ensure the egg does not stick to the shell and its lining. Good luck!

I'm no cook, so don't listen to me, but it's my understanding that that happens when you boil the egg for too long. Try boiling them no longer than 12 mins.

Bring to a boil. Then turn the pot off & let sit for 20 minutes--use a timer. Then put the pot under the cold water faucet and run cold water. Let the eggs sit in cold water a little while. This works unless your eggs are very, very fresh (extremely unlikely with grocery store eggs).

Hi C.-
My sister was just telling me about this! She said if you use older eggs (let them sit in the fridge for a week or so), they won't stick to the shells. Also, I boil mine at night and stick them in the fridge. By the morning, they seem to do well and not stick so much. Other than those two tricks, I have no luck with the shells.
Hope this helps!
-E. M

After letting them sit for the 15 minutes, put them in a ice water bath until completely cool. I continue to add ice into the water as it melts. This helps pull the shell away from the egg. They come out perfect every time. Good luck!

This is how I do it & mine never crack.

Older eggs are better but.

Place eggs in pan and cover with cold water, add salt.
Bring water to a boil, remove from heat and cover for 15 minutes.
Put eggs directly into icy water to shock them
Peel when cool

My dad tells me that it's best not to use really fresh eggs. If they are a little older, the shell peels off so much easier. I have found this to be true.

I boil my eggs at a low boil for ten minutes and then immediately drain and run cold water over them. Then I let them sit til they're cool enough to handle. I hardly ever have a problem with the whites sticking to the shell.
And I don't know if it makes a difference (?) but I usually buy brown, organic, cage free eggs.

Hi C.,
I put my eggs in a pot of tap water and let the eggs come to room temperature. Then turn the stove on and after they come to a boil, boil them for only 1 minute. Turn off the stove, but leave the eggs in the hot water and set the timer for 12 minutes. After that drain the hot water, cover the eggs with cool water and let them cool down. This also prevents the graying around the yolks that looks so terrible. Good Luck! M.

C., isn't this just the most annoying thing? I hate this! I have heard that you are to boil older eggs as well; the fresher ones stick. My Mom and Uncle swear by an "egg prick". It's a plastic thing with like a little needle in it. You put the egg over is (the bottom of the egg) and lightly push it down (before boiling) and it puts a little prick hole in the egg. Then you boil as normal and that is supposed to stop this from happening! I don't have one, but am planning on getting one! Good luck!!!
Jen

here is how my MIL makes hers ( I looked it up online, but this is very similar):

How to Make Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs

Method
1 First make sure that you are using eggs that are several days old. If this is Easter time, and everyone is buying their eggs at the last minute, buy your eggs 5 days in advance of boiling. Hard boiling farm fresh eggs will invariably lead to eggs that are difficult to peel. If you have boiled a batch that are difficult to peel, try putting them in the refrigerator for a few days; they should be easier to peel then.

2 Put the eggs in a single layer in a saucepan, covered by at least an inch or two of cold water. Starting with cold water and gently bringing the eggs to a boil will help keep them from cracking. Adding a tablespoon of vinegar to the water will help keep the egg whites from running out of any eggs that happen to crack while cooking, but some people find that the vinegar affects the taste. I don't have a problem with it and I usually add a little vinegar. Adding a half teaspoon of salt is thought to help both with the preventing of cracking and making the eggs easier to peel. Put the burner on high and bring the eggs to a boil. As soon as the water starts to boil, remove the pan from the heat for a few seconds.

3 Reduce the heat to low, return the pan to the burner. Let simmer for one minute. (Note I usually skip this step because I don't notice the eggs boiling until they've been boiling for at least a minute! Also, if you are using an electric stove with a coil element, you can just turn off the heat. There is enough residual heat in the coil to keep the eggs simmering for a minute.)

4 After a minute, remove the pan from the heat, cover, and let sit for 12 minutes. If you are doing a large batch of eggs, after 10 minutes you can check for doneness by sacrificing one egg, removing it with a slotted spoon, running it under cold water, and cutting it open. If it isn't done, cook the other eggs a minute or two longer. The eggs should be done perfectly at 10 minutes, but sometimes, depending on the shape of the pan, the size of the eggs, the number of eggs compared to the amount of water, and how cooked you like them, it can take a few minutes more. When you find the right time that works for you given your pan, the size of eggs you usually buy, the type of stove top you have, stick with it.

I also find that it is very hard to overcook eggs using this method. I can let the eggs sit, covered, for up to 15-20 minutes without the eggs getting overcooked.

5 Either remove the eggs with a slotted spoon and place them into a bowl of ice water (this is if you have a lot of eggs) OR strain out the water from the pan, fill the pan with cold water, strain again, fill again, until the eggs cool down a bit. Once cooled, strain the water from the eggs. Store the eggs in a covered container (eggs can release odors) in the refrigerator. They should be eaten within 5 days.

sorry this is late~ i really think it's the quality of the egg. we are big egg fans around here and i used to make lots of deviled eggs for holiday parties... since i switched to free-range, hormone free eggs about 4 years ago, i have never had a problem with eggs like that again. i really think the hormones and poor living conditions affect that membrane protecting the egg.

Dear C.,

I use the same method of boiling eggs as you and have good success with it. I believe the difference in peeling them is that fresher eggs are much more difficult to peel. Try leaving your eggs in the fridge for a few days before hard boiling them. I know that sounds like an old wives tale, but it works for me.

I poke a little hole in the end of each raw egg using a clean pushpin or tack. Cover them with water and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a gentle boil for ten minutes. Remove from heat and run cold water over them to cool them off enough to peel.

Grace K is correct. adding Vinegar to your water will hold poached eggs together when cracking them into your simmering pan of water to cook. It also holds your boiled eggs together when boiling them in their shell making them easier to peel. It's probably why easter eggs usually peel so well because they are dyed in a vinegar solution.

Just add a Tablespoon or two of white vinegar to your boiling water and cook like usual. Cooling them immediately with a cold water rinse is always advisable and will ensure a good peel.

(After cooking) If you tap the eggs on a hard surface all aroung them (lots of taps all around the egg), then roll them around, the eggshell will come off pretty easily.

Hi C.,
I haven't seen the other responses yet, so sorry if this is a repeat! Put salt in the water while you boil them. I don't know exactly how much you need, but I put in about a teaspoon and it's definitely worked wonders!
A.

What seems to work best for me is to immediately put the eggs into cold water and start peeling the first egg under cold running water. sometimes I even put ice in the pan if I have several eggs to peel. Since the eggs are still hot I have to use the running water and it seems to help. I lightly hit the larger end of the egg to start the crack and that is usually where the air bubble is where the egg is not so close to the shell and you can get under the membrane to separate it from the white and keep it next to the shell instead. Good luck. I don't think waiting works well although maybe if you get the eggs cold enough soon enough.

I leave the eggs on the heat at low, just warm heat after bringing to almost boiling for 10 minutes and you don't want to overcook them, so I do not know about the removing from the stove method.

Good luck!!

N.

If the shell sticks to the egg it means the eggs are fresh. The older eggs are the lees the shell sticke to them after they have been boiled. Boil your oldest eggs. Keep your freshest eggs for baking and frying.
J.

Put eggs in a pan and barely cover eggs with cold water. Bring water to a boil, decrease heat and lightly simmer for 12 minutes. Remove eggs and put in bowl of cold water. After a few minutes peel off shells. If any small pieces remain on the egg, rinse with cold water.

Good luck!

What timing! I just received an e-mail from Cook's Illustrated with the info below. Good luck!

• Don’t overcook the eggs. After countless tests, we found it best to cover the eggs with an inch of water, bring to a boil, cover, and remove from the heat. After 10 minutes, drain the eggs and cool in ice water. The gentle heat perfectly cooks the eggs—not a chance of a green tinge or unpleasant smell.
• To peel the eggs easily, first rattle them around in the pot to fracture their shells before their ice-water plunge. Then begin from the large, more-rounded end of each egg; this end has an air pocket that lets you grasp the shell for easy removal without marring the white.

Try pricking a small hole on the BIG end of the egg before putting them in the water to cook. That end has a small cavity of air and pricking the shell allows the inner membrane to shrink away from the egg white while it cooks....Works most of the time! I use one tine of a fork or a large safety pin. You only pierce the shell not the insides of the egg.