Thread: hard-boiled eggs

Given six eggs, an unfamiliar kitchen, and a goal to produce at least five eggs with firm whites and gelatinous (not overcooked) yolks; how should I do it? Bonus if they peel easily.

Get saucepan. Add eggs. Cover with water.
Place on stove. Turn to high. Bring to boil.
Let boil for one minute. Turn off heat.
Let eggs sit in hot water for 10 minutes on the turned off stove.
Drain water, rinse with cooler water a few times.
Cover again with cold water, add ice, let sit 10 minutes.
Peel.

The cooling part is especially needed for the easy peeling. I also tend to peel under slowly running water, cracking the egg from the larger flatter side and then running my finger under the peel from the bottom of the egg to the top (like I'm drawing a finger sized stripe vertically across the egg). This then allows you to brush away the rest of the shell, taking it off like a jacket or dress shirt in one easy pass.


Not sure that's the best way, but that's how I always do it. If you want looser yolks just let them sit for less than 10 minutes after turning off the heat. Good luck.

First ask what elevation your kitchen is at. Then look up the boiling point of water at that elevation. Then follow inow's directions, except for the peeling part (put in an eggcup and cut off the top instead) but adjust times according to boiling point.

Since you have six eggs and only need five use the extra one to verify assumptions and adjust if necessary for the other five.

I could google it, but what's an "eggcup?"

Originally Posted by inow

I could google it, but what's an "eggcup?"

Surely you jest? An eggcup is a cup for holding an egg; standard equipment for any household ranging in design from the banal to the glorious and in materials from stainless steel to bone china. Some are single and others are two-holers. Some come with a built in saucer for holding salt and your teaspoon, or in upper-crust households your silver eggspoon.

You also need to consider the intial temperature of the egg.

http://www.helpwithcooking.com/egg-g...-boil-egg.html

First of all, the temperature of the egg before it goes in the pan to be cooked is important. Really, the egg should be cooked at room temperature, otherwise when you place it into the pan of boiling water, it will most likely crack from the pressure.

If you store your eggs in the refrigerator, they should be removed at least half an hour before you start to prepare them, as this will bring them up to room temperature. On the other hand, you may run them under a hot tap for a few minutes or add an extra minute onto the cooking times below.

Good point.

Originally Posted by Bunbury

Originally Posted by inow

I could google it, but what's an "eggcup?"

Surely you jest? An eggcup is a cup for holding an egg;

Wow... apparently I've led a sheltered life.

Actually I think Pong is trying to put one over us. His title referred to hard-boiled eggs but he described an egg with a gelatinous yolk, which is a soft-boiled egg.

Reminds of the video we were just shown in our monthly safety meeting. Three people in white shirts and three people in black shirts all passing basketballs to others - white to white and black to black and all intermingled in a confusing way. We were asked to count the number of passes whites made. I counted fifteen as did most others. Then the video was run again. This time we were told not to count but just to watch. A person in a gorilla suit walked into the midst of the players and did some gorilla stunts. Most of us never saw the gorilla at all when we were counting passes.

Originally Posted by Bunbury

Reminds of the video we were just shown in our monthly safety meeting.

I do believe you are referring to this one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ahg6q...layer_embedded

It's not the same one. Ours had only six players and it was definitely a gorilla. But it's the same setup.

I could google it by what is a spoon?!

It's that thing you'd now be removing from your anus had you said that to me face to face. 8)

I didn't know you were into that kind of thing, inow...

Yeah I guess I mean "soft-boiled" by Western standards. My wife expects eggs fresh and likes the whites snotty, yet abhors runny yolks. Apparently if you get the temperature just right only the yolk solidifies - and some Japanese prefer eggs that way. Yich.

Inow's directions are authoritative, but isn't there a large time variable in "bring to boil"? This'll depend on initial water temperature, heat source, pot mass, water volume... egg temperature too. Yet bringing eggs to boil seems the universal method.

Currently I first boil a volume of water large enough it keeps boiling as I gently add the eggs by spoon. Then boil maybe 2-3 minutes, then stand roughly another 10, then flush with cold. Eggs from refrigerator, about 5°C because they stand by as water comes to boil.

Thanks for confirming cold shock helps separate egg from shell. I'd do that anyway to stop the yolk from continuing to cook.

I have a dozen fresh "Canada large" (65g) free-range eggs, awaiting directions.

i could google it but what is an anus?!

Immersed in boiling water 2.5 minutes.
Turned off heat and sat 11 minutes.
Flushed cold.

Peeled okay, egg feels a bit baggy.
Whites slightly soft but no trace of runny.
Yolks consistently soft-textured.


I'm aiming for more rubbery white, and yolk definitely cooked outside with viscous dripping core.