Hard Boiled Eggs

[ZiprHead]

I made potato salad this morning. I boiled a bunch of eggs and half of the egg peeled off with the shell. I just can't seem to get eggs right consistently.

Tips for making peelable hard boiled eggs wanted here.

 

[rousseau]

This has worked for us in the past. Alternatively you could poach instead of boil.

 

[Cheerful Charlie]

I made potato salad this morning. I boiled a bunch of eggs and half of the egg peeled off with the shell. I just can't seem to get eggs right consistently.

Tips for making peelable hard boiled eggs wanted here.

Dump your hot eggs into a bowl or pan of ice water and let cool down. Works for me.

 

[Bronzeage]

Buy your eggs at least two weeks ahead of time. The day before you make your potato salad, take them out of the fridge and let them sit overnight at room temperature. Boil them like you usually do, 10 to 12 minutes. A slightly runny yolk is not a problem for potato salad.

The extra aging will let the membrane separate from the shell and the eggs will peel cleanly.

 

[Arctish]

Buy your eggs at least two weeks ahead of time. The day before you make your potato salad, take them out of the fridge and let them sit overnight at room temperature. Boil them like you usually do, 10 to 12 minutes. A slightly runny yolk is not a problem for potato salad.

The extra aging will let the membrane separate from the shell and the eggs will peel cleanly.

I read somewhere that the fresher the egg, the harder it is to peel cleanly after cooking, which is not usually a problem where I live.

 

[ZiprHead]

Buy your eggs at least two weeks ahead of time. The day before you make your potato salad, take them out of the fridge and let them sit overnight at room temperature. Boil them like you usually do, 10 to 12 minutes. A slightly runny yolk is not a problem for potato salad.

The extra aging will let the membrane separate from the shell and the eggs will peel cleanly.

Yeah, I had heard that before. I just bought the eggs the day before and suspected that was a big reason I had so much difficulty this time.

 

[James Brown]

There are 43 methods for making boiled eggs easier to peel.

None of them work.

 

[ZiprHead]

I tend to agree. I've tried many of them, including adding vinegar to the water as some had suggested.

 

[Bronzeage]

I read somewhere that the fresher the egg, the harder it is to peel cleanly after cooking, which is not usually a problem where I live.

Yeah, I had heard that before. I just bought the eggs the day before and suspected that was a big reason I had so much difficulty this time.

There are 43 methods for making boiled eggs easier to peel.

None of them work.

My goto side dish for family gatherings is Deviled Eggs. You have to have clean egg halves, or there's no point. After 40 years of boiling and peeling eggs, I have found, older eggs peel clean. Let the eggs cool and then crack the big end and hold it under a running faucet. The shell will come off in large pieces.

 

[James Brown]

44 methods.

 

[ideologyhunter]

Not that I've tried it, but why wouldn't duct tape work? I can see it in my imagination.

 

[steve_bank]

What I do is when they are hot bouncy then off the counter all around. . Let cool and then peel.

I have seen ads for egg peelers, have not tried one.

 

[ronburgundy]

Cook's Illustrated Test Kitchen did some research on this, and their method has worked gloriously for me every time.

Older eggs do work best, but this method works quite well with fresher eggs too.

First, steam the eggs instead of boiling. This has multiple benefits. The temp won't drop as much when you put the eggs in, the eggs won't knock around in the water and crack.
Get the water boiling in a pot with a steamer basket of some sort, then add the eggs and cover. Cook for 10 -12 minutes depending on how hard you want the yolks. I like 10 min for a fully cooked but still slightly soft gooey yolk.

Immediately transfer the eggs to an ice water bath and let them soak for 5-10 min.

You can pick your cracking peeling method, but one trick is to use a plastic tupperware with lid for the ice bath, then empty all but a 1/2 inch of the water, put the lid on, and shake up and down vigorously about 10 times. The eggs will flop around and crack all over and the shells should slide off easy.

 

[fromderinside]

Not too hard hard boiled eggs are perfect for an egg salad sandwich my bride makes for us now and then. As for time it depends on elevation and egg shell thickness. We prefer white thinner shelled eggs.

She goes the whole way chopping up sweet pickles, micing that with a good mustard. We preprep eggs five minutes in the freezer which increases temperature difference between shell, egg skin and egg. Peels fly off.

Now prep eggs by chopping up whole eggs from down to pieces, then adding mayo to the bread instead of making some soft goo of egg. A bit of salt and pepper to finish.

Now she adds fresh red or green leaf lettuce and just enough tomato to give one the taste. Not toasted pretty fresh whole wheat bread from La Brea bakery rebaked in the oven for 11 minutes to harden the crust then personally sliced right out of the oven just for the occasion.

 

[jab]

I made potato salad this morning. I boiled a bunch of eggs and half of the egg peeled off with the shell. I just can't seem to get eggs right consistently.

Tips for making peelable hard boiled eggs wanted here.

Dump your hot eggs into a bowl or pan of ice water and let cool down. Works for me.

Or cold water--doesn't have to be ice water, also boil the eggs for awhile. I put them on the stove burner in cold water, turn on the stove, take them off 25-30 minutes later, dump the hot water, run cold water into the pot, and keep them there until they're cooled down.

 

[ronburgundy]

I made potato salad this morning. I boiled a bunch of eggs and half of the egg peeled off with the shell. I just can't seem to get eggs right consistently.

Tips for making peelable hard boiled eggs wanted here.

Dump your hot eggs into a bowl or pan of ice water and let cool down. Works for me.

Or cold water--doesn't have to be ice water, also boil the eggs for awhile. I put them on the stove burner in cold water, turn on the stove, take them off 25-30 minutes later, dump the hot water, run cold water into the pot, and keep them there until they're cooled down.

So, the Cook's Illustrated tests I referred to compared your method of starting them in cold water vs putting them into already boiling water or hot steam. They note that for year, you method was the common advice. However, their trials showed that the cold water method lead to many more eggs sticking to the shells. They explain that the membrane is what sticks to the white, and it this happens because the low heat causing the two to seal together, but directly into high heat causes the egg white to shrink away from the shell before it has a chance to bond with the membrane.

 

[T.G.G. Moogly]

What works for me is the 12 minute method. Cold water then works great, but you have to change it when the water gets warm. An occasional sticker is not worth the extra bother.

Nice, firm bright, yellow yokes not overcooked. Yummerz.

 

[blastula]

The blow method makes the chore fun.

[YOUTUBE]v=vKwjoD_QIQI[/YOUTUBE]

 

[ZiprHead]

I did this the last time.: Dropped the eggs into the boiling water, twelve minutes later placed them into ice water until cooled. 12 eggs cooked and peeled perfectly. The eggs were fairly fresh from the store too. The only issue was a couple cracked dropping into the pan. Next time I'll use the tongs.

 

[T.G.G. Moogly]

I did this the last time.: Dropped the eggs into the boiling water, twelve minutes later placed them into ice water until cooled. 12 eggs cooked and peeled perfectly. The eggs were fairly fresh from the store too. The only issue was a couple cracked dropping into the pan. Next time I'll use the tongs.

Put the eggs into the water making sure the eggs are covered with about an inch of water, then bring things to full boil. Then turn off the heat. After 12 minutes drain the water and refill with tap water. Drain and again when the water gets hot again because the eggs were hot. This should do it. Ice really isn't needed. Works great every time.