You must log in or # to comment.
U running an ice bath after boiling?
Hey. You. Yeah, you.☝️See that up there? That whole “ice bath” nonsense? That’s it. That’s the trick. Ice bath after boiling. Off you go.
That’s not enough. It’s also important that the water is boiling when one initially drops the eggs in, instead of them putting the eggs into cold water and bringing to boil.
Also: older eggs. The newer an egg is the more the shell will try and stick after hard-boiling.
I’ve used the drop in cold water, heat to boiling, then turn heat off. Leave eggs in hot water, set a timer for 12 minutes and once complete, transfer to ice bath in fridge.
I just peel it under running cold water. Fast and easy.
I used to do a 12 minute egg with an immediate ice bath. Works well. Egg peels easily. Yolk isn’t overcooked.
Recently switched to the 10-5-5 method. 10 minutes of cook, 5 minutes in the pan but removed from heat, 5 minutes in an ice bath. I’d argue the results are slightly better.
Always soak your eggs before boiling. This forces any air to escape which reduces the likelihood of your eggs cracking once in the hot water.
Whacking the top of the egg right after the ice bath with like a spoon helps with peelability. I always forget to tho. But yeah, I do bring the water to a boil and set a timer for 12 minutes after it starts boiling, then immediately put into ice bath. My eggs are consistently perfect with that method. I’ve seen the one you mentioned, but I’m too lazy lol.
“The way I peeled this egg” is the correct title.
You didn’t give it the ice bath.
I don’t entirely disagree with you, but I’ve boiled eggs. I’ve peeled boiled eggs. I’ve never once given boiled eggs an ice bath - I didn’t even know that was a thing until I saw a roommate doing it in my early thirties (though to be fair I didn’t have my first boiled egg until my mid twenties).
I’ve definitely peeled eggs poorly, as shown in the OP, but I’ve also peeled them nearly perfectly with no ice bath. I don’t know if it helps, but it’s not necessary.
The ice bath will give you consistency so it’s not such a dice roll. It also helps stop the egg cooking, in case your going for a jammy or soft-boiled egg. And you can peel sooner because it’s not so hot.
“The way I impatiently didn’t follow instructions”*
Shock it in an ice bath immediately after removing from the boiling water. This helps the membrane between the shell and the rest of the egg peel away easier.
Another method I’ve seen recently says to add like half a cup of vinegar to the water you boil them in, tho I have yet to try this one myself. Makes sense tho; dyed easter eggs are usually easier to peel and those are dyed by dipping them in vinegar with dye.
Also don’t let the water come to a boil with the egg in it. Put eggs directly into boiling water.
this happens usually with very fresh eggs, leave them for a couple of days.
(German popular “science”, note the quotation marks, magazine) GEO: https://www.geo.de/wissen/endlich-verstehen-darum-lassen-sich-frische-eier-schlechter-pellen-30173258.html
this happens usually with very fresh eggs
Exactly, I came to mention that too. So he/she should enjoy the egg being fresh.
I had an egg this morning that I had to get by basically chasing the chicken away from the nest. It had the same problem. Even after an ice bath
I think you misunderstood. Fresh eggs have that problem more. If you boil an older egg, the shell doesn’t stick as much.
I think they were agreeing. Offering evidence in support.
Oh, okay
How has no one responded with correct response: steaming eggs.
Seriously, every egg peels super easy after I steam them for 15 minutes. My grandpa has bought a steamer because I brought mine to his house.
Instant pot 5-5-5 recipe has never let me down.
I tried this once, but stupid me didn’t think it through all the way. My steamer basket is for the microwave… do not steam eggs in a microwave steamer.
A simpler method is to just add a little salt to the water, and they peel easily. Vinegar works too.
It also helps to leave a tiny bit of the egg above water. This will create an air pocket in the egg, and if you start peeling it from there, it will be a lot easier.
The egg always has an air pocket on the bottom, at the blunt end. This is an air pocket that the developing chicken embryo uses for gas exchange. See the diagram:
Source: Bird eggs on Wikipedia.
That egg’s more on the balut phase.
Yes, though the air pocket is there right from the start. If you pierce the bottom of the shell with a pin before boiling then the egg will have less of a dent at the bottom after boiling, giving a more uniform shape.
Also removes the pressure when cooking and helps the shell to separate.
if you fully submerge them, the airpocket will be on the bottom (fat side) of the egg. IIRC, eggs always have an air pocket there.
The fresh eggs thing is a myth, this happens to all eggs. Here’s what you do: Boil the water first and then place your eggs in it. You can lower the heat afterwards to a lower simmer.
6 minutes for really runny eggs. 7 minutes for runny yolk. 8 minutes and the yolk is almost firm. Egg size matters of course.
After, put the eggs in cold water so they stop cooking. This also helps the membrane to separate.
Another method is to prick the bottom of the egg where the air pouch is with a small needle before dropping them in the boiling water along with some vinegar. Same steps after, cold water etc. This is what they do in restaurants but honestly I never bother, the first method delivers easily peelable eggs 80% of the time and that’s good enough for me.
This is the answer humanity arrived at after J. Kenji Lopez-Alt cooked a shit-zillion boiled eggs and tried peeling them to see what actually worked. You can’t guarantee a 100% peelable egg 100% of the time, but this method gets you as close as we can with the technology he had. What’s more shocking (and disappointing to me) is how much bro science misinformation is getting posted about this. This isn’t exactly a hard claim to check.
After, put the eggs in cold water so they stop cooking.
You mean a separate container (large enough to hold plenty cold water I presume)? How long? How cold? Icy, so it hurts your hand, or just not warm, not even lukewarm?
I struggle to get consistent results with this method, but I don’t always put the eggs in when the water already boils.
I just run the same pot under running cold water and then I leave the eggs in that cold water for a couple of minutes. I guess if you want you can prepare an ice bath, that would be better but I can’t be bothered. I need to have breakfast ready in a few minutes so I don’t care about perfection. Sure, some might break when you lower them into boiling water, and some might not peel as easy. But in general this method gives me easy peeling eggs for the most part.
Thanks.
for a couple of minutes
This is clearly the crucial part. I take them out much too soon.
While I’m cooking the eggs (I use a $10 egg steamer I bought years ago for fully cooked eggs I’ll want to use cold) I’ll throw a random large bowl in the sink. I’ll throw a clean reusable ice pack in the bottom of the bowl and cover it with cold water. When the eggs are done I’ll put them in the cold water for at least 10 minutes, though honestly usually way longer because I’ll be doing other things while making the eggs lol.
If I’m planning on peeling all the eggs right away, I’ll crack the shells lightly before putting in the cold water. This seems to let some water seep under the shell as they cool and helps with peeling as well.
Putting cold water into a hot pot can warp the pot.
Both of you. please buy a cooking book. I’m sure there is something like “Cooking for men living alone for the first time in their lives”.
- you always poke a hole in the bottom of the egg, otherwise it will split the shell.
- 7 minutes?? what are you cooking? Ostrich eggs? at most 4 minutes for runny yolk, maybe a bit more for large eggs.
- rinse the eggs in cold water when finished. more cold, more better, helps detaching the shell.
- how do you even measure time when you put them in before the water boils??? don’t do that. smh
Wow sounds like you also need a good prick up the bottom to release all that air you absolute insufferable gasbag.
My advice came from Kenji López-Alt, specifically from this video: https://youtu.be/hb0Elaa6gxY Now I don’t know where you’re from and what kind of eggs you’re used to, but in Europe we have normal eggs straight from the chicken’s ass and that’s how long they take to boil.
It’s called a cloaca, you uneducated swine!
(Sorry, couldn’t pass on a good streak of online insult throwing)
lol
You should have added that you live above 4000m where water boils at 86 degrees centigrade.
Then 7 minutes to soft yolk make total sense.Oxygen starvation might then also explain your very strange insult game.
So no response to Kenji’s video huh? What do you have to say to Kenji? Is he wrong? Is he cooking his eggs for too long? Are you a better chef? Sounds to me like you’re just a reactionary internet expert but in reality you can’t even boil an egg.
no, didn’t watch it. He’s obviously wrong if he cooks eggs for that long and expects anything but firm yolk. Anyone can boil an egg. the very slightly more complex task is boiling a soft egg.
Hahah don’t watch it it’s not for you, obviously your eggs game is superior
Fuck. Off.
😁
Haven’t seen this mentioned, best way to prevent this is to fry the egg, make an omelette or even scrambled eggs 👀
I feel like that scene in Forest Gump with the shrimp
The comments are hilarious, as eggspected.
The yolks on you
Aren’t you eggsaggerating a bit here?
This may also signal stress or calcium deficiency or excess in the animal’s diet.
Hens over one year old tend to lay very thick and hard shelled eggs, that break unevenly and peel poorly, even with every single technic to boil it used, when a surplus of calcium is available.
Younger hens, below 6 months of age, tend to lay fin shelled eggs that stick more to the inner membrane.
havent seen anyone add this yet in the comments so here goes: are you adding the eggs to already-boiling water? or adding them to cold water and bringing them to a boil? i switched over to adding them to boiling water, and have had no trouble peeling since. 7mins for over-medium. no ice bath necessary, i just run a little cold water over them so i can handle them easily.
I’ll have to check that out. Thanks unknown stranger.
Don’t expect it to work 100% of the time because it doesn’t. It’s not enough of an improvement (if it even is actually an improvement – debatable) for me to justify the extra electricity cost.
I always boil the water first, so i can’t speak to that portion. But what I do is add the boils to a sealed container with cold water. Then give it a good shake so that shells crack, but not so hard the eggs themselves are damaged. But after that the shells slide right off
Yeah, the best peeling trick I know is a mason jar with a little water in it and you just shake the egg around like a bartender with a sleeping child next to them.
Riskier with soft boiled eggs though.
Funnily enough, I add them when the water is cold and never had trouble. Just run the tap for maybe 10 seconds and let it sit for a bit
We have 30 chickens, we get fresh eggs every day. We can cook them the same day after they’re laid with a dash rapid egg cooker which uses steam. It comes with a little device to poke a hole in the wide end where the air pocket usually is and then we just cook them upside down. They peel easily whether they’ve been in cold water or not.
Dammit! I only have 29 chickens, will this method still work?
Unfortunately no. Id mail you one of mine, but then I’d be in the same boat. You’re just going to have to put a stuffed chicken out there to fool the universe.
Eeeey, we have that machine as well! Device to poke holes that doubled as the measuring cup for the water to put into the steam unit! Cool stuff!
That’s the one, works incredible and the eggs never stick to the shells.
Pressure cooker will force steam between the membrane and egg with no hole needed so you get the same effect with longer shelf life - probably doesn’t matter if you have your own chickens and are in the routine of doing it daily but I prefer no poking of holes so I can make a weeks worth at a time and if I forget them they stay fresh in their unbroken shells
Should have scared it with cold water, right after boiling.
It’s even more infuriating when I hard boil a bunch of eggs and about half of them peel pristinely clean, the other half end up looking like the surface of the moon. Ya’ll was in the same damn pot, what’s the excuse?
I’m a little late to the party. Did anyone say to use eggs close to the date on the carton. Old eggs peel a whole lot easier than any other. Ice bath too but everyone is saying that already.
I made boiled (well, steamed) eggs in my instant pot and they came out perfect…
Put eggs on trivet/riser. Add 1c water. Lid on, sealed. 5 minutes high pressure. 5 minutes off and sealed. 1 minute venting. 5+ minutes ice bath.
The ice bath is the critical part.
The shells slide off.
I have chickens, and steam eggs in a steamer pot on the stove, but these kind of eggs when they didn’t peel right is from an old chicken. Something to do with membrane is not great on them
How old are your girls?
Mine are just turning two and it’s my first flock…I’d gotten some soft-shell eggs lately (which are surprisingly durable), but that’s about it.
You might need to get some oyster shells. They might not be getting enough calcium. Especially young hens need it sometimes.
Well most are now over 5 yrs old, my oldest hen was 12, and she just died last July. My oldest hen now is like 8.
This is the girl who turned 12 last year
Just did 5 dozen in batches in my instapot, game changer for sure. Its the only way id do it now.
60 eggs all at once, or 5 batches of a dozen each?
As I understand it, you should be able to pile the eggs on in there, they shouldn’t move like they would in a full rolling boil.
But at the same time, I had been warned not to put all of my eggs together.
Warned not to put your eggs in one basket, as it were?
I do mine on the stove.
No special prep, just in a pot with a steaming trivet or basket with water up to the basket, eggs in for exactly 10 minutes with a lid on, then immediately transfer over to ice cold water.
