What is the secret to hard boiled eggs??

hesn92

What is the secret to peeling a hard boiled egg?? I suck at it. The egg white always wants to come apart with the shell. Is the secret in how you cook it? Do you put the eggs in already boiling water or cold water? So many different opinions on google!

jemhh

I think they peel better when they are not brand new. Once they are a week or so old there has been more time for air to get between the egg and membrane so it makes it easier to peel.

Azexas

I wait until the water is boiling then add the eggs. I boil them for 10-12 minutes and then when I remove the eggs from the pot I put them in ice cold water for 5 minutes. I usually don't have an issue peeling the egg.

redpandora56

i've heard it's to do with the freshness of the eggs too - the fresher they are, the more they stick, so the ones you've had for a week before you hard boil them tend to peel more easily. I don't know how true that is, but the last few times I've had some that were really hard to peel, I'd just bought them. So it seems true in my experience anyway!

anachronicles

I put them in already boiling water and let them boil for exactly 10 minutes (with the lid partially on the pot). I've never had an issue peeling mine, usually I just roll them over the counter to crack the whole shell and then the peel just flakes off when I add pressure.

bermudamel

peel a section off the top and bottom of the egg, then hold it in your hand and blow it thru the shell. I don't eat eggs myself but have seen it done that way

BillRicks1

I normally do mine a dozen at a time.....add eggs to a pot of tap water. Bring water and eggs to a boil for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool. Rinse in cold water for a minute or 2 and refrigerate.

aubreyjordan

Adding salt to the water while they cook has helped me.

Snip8241

Use eggs that are not fresh. Here is how I do it
Cover eggs with at least an inch of cold water.
Cover and bring to a boil
As soon as they boil turn off or remove from heat
Cover and let sit for 10 minutes
Pour off hot water and rinse in cold water so you can handle them to peel them
Peel while warm. Start at the large end of the egg where there is a little pocket of air
This cooking time prevents the yolk from being green.

GalgoMomAnita

I saw a great video on youtube last week that I think may be the answer, although I've not tried it yet. Take a small glass (looked like four ounces appx), put the egg in, and fill most of the way leaving some room for air. Holding this over the sink, cover the glass with your hand and shake viogorously for about 10 seonds. Reach in and the whole shell came off in one piece with the egg sliding out.

emdeesea

Yeah, the fresher the eggs the easier they will peel. I've tried everything I can find on the internet about making it easier to peel them and nothing has worked. I guess it is just up to the freshness of the egg.

lisalsd1

As previous posters said, it read that happens when they are fresh. I buy mine, let them sit in the fridge for a couple of days, then boil.

hesn92

Hmm. My eggs were at least a week old, probably more like 2 or 3. I tried the water in a cup trick, I tried rolling one on the counter. I think it comes down to how you cook it. I always put them in cold water, bring to a boil, cover, take off the heat. I think next time I will try starting them in already boiling water.

wizzybeth

Snip8241 wrote: »

Use eggs that are not fresh. Here is how I do it
Cover eggs with at least an inch of cold water.
Cover and bring to a boil
As soon as they boil turn off or remove from heat
Cover and let sit for 10 minutes
Pour off hot water and rinse in cold water so you can handle them to peel them
Peel while warm. Start at the large end of the egg where there is a little pocket of air
This cooking time prevents the yolk from being green.

That's how I do it. The yolk is not too hard or dried out and is moist and tender.

knardozza

I used to have the same problem, and found an article online by a chef who advised putting the eggs in already boiling water, then when finished cooking, immediately put into an ice/water bath until cool. It has worked for me. Eggs peel easier.

jesiann2014

Just a warning...
A guy I work with dropped a cold egg in boiling water and it exploded leaving him with 3rd degree burns on his face. Very lucky his eyes were not hit. Since this accident, I always begin with my eggs in tepid water and bring to a boil.

ChicagOH

Once boiled, change water to cold in pot right away. The eggs shrink away from the shell with the cold water. Put in fridge ASAP.

AngryViking1970

Snip8241 wrote: »

Use eggs that are not fresh. Here is how I do it
Cover eggs with at least an inch of cold water.
Cover and bring to a boil
As soon as they boil turn off or remove from heat
Cover and let sit for 10 minutes
Pour off hot water and rinse in cold water so you can handle them to peel them
Peel while warm. Start at the large end of the egg where there is a little pocket of air
This cooking time prevents the yolk from being green.

Exactly this.

abuck_13

I've always done this and it seems to work pretty well - eggs in pot, cover with water, add a pinch or two of baking soda...bring to a boil for one minute, then turn off heat and cover for 10, spoon out of pot and into a bowl of ice water for a few minutes.

This is definitely one of those situations where there are probably 50 different ways that will all be just as good.

alasin1derland

poke a hole in the fat end of the egg with a straight pin. place in boiling water. eggs won't crack or seep. when done cooking do the cold water bath to handle them. crack and peel.

martyqueen52

I use an egg cooker I got off of Amazon for $15. Takes 10 minutes and it's always super easy to peel. I just bang the egg off the counter, and start tearing away.

dbmata

jesiann2014 wrote: »

Just a warning...
A guy I work with dropped a cold egg in boiling water and it exploded leaving him with 3rd degree burns on his face. Very lucky his eyes were not hit. Since this accident, I always begin with my eggs in tepid water and bring to a boil.

lulz.

Exploding eggs! Ermagerds.

No, an egg dropped into boiling water will crack, and the crack makes it look terrible. It won't explode though. I hope you didn't believe their story.

For the OP, a spoon has been helpful for me, using that to deshell the egg.

esjones12

Someone once told me that if you put the eggs in a muffin tin and put them in the oven they peel super easy. Would have to google to see if you can find the temperatures, time in, etc. Never tried it. *shrug*

cwolfman13

hesn92 wrote: »

What is the secret to peeling a hard boiled egg?? I suck at it. The egg white always wants to come apart with the shell. Is the secret in how you cook it? Do you put the eggs in already boiling water or cold water? So many different opinions on google!

I use a spoon and it works perfectly every time...

JPW1990

My son pokes a hole at the narrow end, blows in it, and then peels. Something he saw on YouTube, and it works about half the time.

Also, someone mentioned getting rid of the green ring - add some baking soda to the water and they never turn green or get the sulfur smell.

krissyreminisce

I bake mine in the oven, directly on the rack, at 325 for 25-30 minutes and then drop them in a bowl of water I had chilling in the freezer. I normally don't have many issues with peeling and they taste better this way.

JoRocka

The blowing egg trick never worked.

I have a rotational system in my fridge for eggs- buy the 2-3 dozen- use them for a week or two- and when I get down to the last dozen I buy a fresh pack- and then I boil the last of the old one.

Old eggs boil better.

Baking apparently is a way to go too- but too much work.

I put mine in cold/tepid water. Bring to a rolling boil- kill the heat- put a lid on- let sit for another 10-12 min.
Put in cold water.

SoDamnHungry

I read an article saying it's because new eggs are more acidic. Try adding a dash of baking soda to the boiling water if you must boil new eggs, as that's supposed to help balance it out and make them stick less. I've never done it myself, so if you try this let us know how it works.

bamagirlintn1

Tap both on ends on the counter, then peel. Works most of the time for me.

jennifershoo

THIS is the secret! Perfect eggs, every time!

dbmata

60 percent of the time, works every time.

Eggs are my nemeses.