After years of trying to make perfect boiled eggs for Deviled Eggs, and ending up with chunks out of them, I have finally found the answers. Begin by placing your eggs in a single layer in a pan and covering with cold water. Add a wooden toothpick (believe it or not, this will keep the egg shells from cracking while they are cooking). Bring the water to a rolling boil. Boil for one minute, cover and remove from the heat. Allow to cool.
For hardboiled eggs that are easier to peel, start with old eggs (that have been in your fridge a few weeks). Very fresh eggs will be hard to peel. To prevent cracking, make a tiny hole in the round/larger end with a push pin before boiling. (01/14/2009)
By OliveOyl
I agree with OliveOyl. I too thought I had the perfect method of bringing them to a boil and letting them sit for 15 Minutes but when I started buying eggs from Costco, they were at times within a few days of being laid and that didn't work for them as they were hard to peel unless I let them age a little. You can tell how old eggs are by finding the Julian Date that they were laid on the cartons. It will be a two or three digit number. Julian Dates run from 1 for January 1 through 365 for December 31.
Altitude you live in also affects the time you need to hard boil eggs. I lived in a town that was 3000 feet high They were not done there at 15 minutes. It was nine years ago but I think I had to wait 18 minutes before peeling at that altitude.
Another good hint that I learned from a professional chef was that you could hard boil the eggs and after they have sat in the water the appropriate time for where you live, Pour the hot water off and cover them with ice water (I use water and ice cubes) and then drain the water off and shake the pan back and forth. The shells at times (seems to depend on the age of the eggs) will slip right off while you're shaking the pan. (01/15/2009)
By Kathryen
Thanks for all the good ideas. I'd like to add one. When needing to transport as well as 'display' your finished eggs - use a vegetable peeler to 'even-off' the non-filled side of the egg and they'll stand-up straight for a 'perfect presentation'! (01/15/2009)
By Jayne
Here's some more tips ;-)
Pierce the large end of the egg with a needle because this will release the pressure and the eggs won't crack. As soon as you remove the eggs from the stove drain and continue rinsing with cold water until the pan is cooled. Drain and shake the pan back and forth vigorously to crack the shells and let rest for about five minutes. Add more cold water to the pan and peel in the water. (01/15/2009)
By Deeli
The best way to crack hard boiled eggs is to drain most but not all of the water out of the pan and then shake and bounce the eggs which will crack them and not bust up the egg whites. Also, if you can't peel immediately, let the cracked eggs sit in water so the membrane doesn't dry out, and they will easily peel even a couple of days later. (01/15/2009)
By Dakota
The older the egg is the easier it is to peel. If I know I want to make deviled eggs for an occasion, I buy the eggs 2 weeks or so before I want to use them. They will still have a week or more to go before the expiration date. (01/15/2009)
By Janette
A friend of mine gave me the perfect solution for peeling the eggs. After cracking them, open the large end of the egg slightly and put a teaspoon inside this opening. The spoon should be between the egg and the thin skin. Revolve the spoon around the egg and it will come out in one piece. Also to fill deviled eggs more quickly put in to a ziploc bag, cut a tiny corner off and use it to squeeze the yellow filling on to the egg quickly and without a mess. Just throw away the bag and you're done! (01/16/2009)
By TheBonster
I too use the boil for 1 minute, cover and take off heat for 10 minutes. Then I immediately spoon them into a bowl filled with ice water. Use lots and lots of ice. It keeps the yellow part from turning green. All of the various peeling methods mentioned do work. (01/16/2009)
By OGeorgie
Regarding how long hard boiled eggs kept in frigde and in shell: No more than one week to be safe and less if the shell has a crack in it. (01/16/2009)
By Deeli
First, I take a small stainless steel dog food bowl, fill it with cold water and put it in the freezer compartment of my refrigerator. Then I add eggs to a pot of warm water and start heating. When the water begins to boil, turn down the heat to a gentle simmer and leave it there for three minutes. Then remove the pan completely from the heat and cover for fifteen minutes.
Then, remove the dog food bowl from the freezer, place one egg at a time in the cold water. Stir it around for about thirty seconds, remove it, dry it, crack it and peel it.
I use a dog food bowl because I have one and because a steel container like that will react more quickly to a temperature differential than would plastic of ceramic, i.e. the water cools faster.
The cold water helps the egg shell come off very easily. (01/16/2009)
By Tracy
I used to have trouble peeling the shells off the eggs. I boil them for 13-15 minutes, take them off the stove and immediately turn the cold water on and let it mix with the boiling water. After the water runs for a few minutes, I leave a small stream of cold water running and start shelling them. I think the trick to this is the eggs are still warm and the shells come off easily. I do not have trouble since I started doing this. (01/16/2009)
By Mary
All I do is, cover the eggs with cold water bring to a boil. When it comes to a full boil take it off the heat and cover it tightly for ten 10 minutes. Presto! A perfect hard boil egg! Go ahead and try it next time, and let me know what you think! (01/27/2009)
By Denice
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