How To Hard Boil Eggs
How To Hard Boil Eggs – I will tell you all the tips and tricks to do it! When learning how to make hard boiled eggs, there are a few simple guidelines to follow so that you get perfect eggs every time. Come Easter, you’ll be a pro!
HOW TO HARD BOIL EGGS
If a friend happens to stop by my house unexpectedly, 90% of the time I start of with the sentence, “Come on in! Sorry, it might smell a little funny because we just cooked eggs.”
We eat a LOT of eggs in our house. Scrambled, poached, boiled,…you name it.
My current favorite lunch is an egg white omelet. My husband is always boiling eggs to have hard boiled eggs on hand for healthy muscle building protein snacks.
Right now we have over three dozen eggs in our fridge and that’s after I came out of the shower yesterday to find my 20-month old egg washing our leather couches and wood floors with a dozen. So I guess you could say we are pros at hard boiling eggs now.
My husband asked, “So you can really do a whole post on boiling eggs?”
Uh, yeah.
I reminded him that very year around Easter we end up googling the best way to make the perfect hard boiled egg. Over time we learned the foolproof method to the perfect boiled egg every single time.
Here’s the easy way to get a just every so slightly soft yolk with firm whites.
HOW TO MAKE HARD BOILED EGGS
1) Start off with placing your raw eggs in a pot in a single layer and covering them with cold water about about an inch of water above the eggs. Just enough water to cover.
2) Turn the heat up to medium high and once water boils add some salt to the pot.
3) Bring water to a full boil. If your heat is too high, you will get some violent boiling and end up with egg casualties.
5) Once you have boiling water, place the lid on and turn off the heat.
6) Let eggs sit for 12-13 minutes making sure to not open the lid or all of the heat will escape. Make sure not to start your timer until right when you turn off the heat.
7) When the time is up remove eggs from pot with a slotted spoon and rinse in cool water or place eggs in a bowl of ice water to stop the eggs from continuing to cook. If they sit in hot water they will continue to cook and you don’t want that.
8) Store your cold eggs in the fridge. Label your eggs so that your family knows which ones are hard boiled and which ones are not. OR you can use my husband’s trick of spinning the egg really hard on a flat surface. If the egg is hard boiled it will spin standing up like this one below and if it’s not hard boiled it will spin horizontally.
HOW LONG TO HARD BOIL EGGS?
12-13 minutes. The size of the eggs will determine if you need longer but this time is for large whole eggs.
HOW TO PEEL HARD BOILED EGGS?
Tips for easy peeling eggs:
- Use eggs that are not fresh. Over time we have learned that the fresher the egg the harder it is to peel. If you can, don’t make your hard boiled eggs the same day you buy them. You would think that fresh eggs are better, but that’s not actually the case. Older eggs make the peeling process easier. Eggs that are a week old work best but of course make sure they are not past the expiration date.
- Run them under water when peeling. If you are using the hard boiled eggs right away, it also is easier to peel eggs under cold running water right after they have boiled.
- Add 1/2 tsp salt to the water. Adding a little bit of salt to the water may help make the eggs easier to peel.
- Add vinegar. Add a little vinegar to the water which makes the shell softer and easier to peel.
- Roll them on the counter. After you boil the eggs and you’ve cooled them, roll them on the counter and the egg shell will fall off.
HOW LONG ARE HARD BOILED EGGS GOOD FOR?
Refrigerate hard boiled eggs in their shell in the fridge for up to one week.
RECIPES TO USE HARD BOILED EGGS IN
- Deviled Egg Salad Sandwiches
- Mexican Deviled Eggs
- Chicken Salad Sandwiches
- Horseradish Deviled Eggs
- Hard Boiled Egg Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Chicken Salad
- Red Potato Salad
- Roasted Red Pepper Deviled Eggs
How To Hard Boil Eggs
How To Hard Boil Eggs - I will tell you all the tips and tricks to do it! When learning how to make hard boiled eggs, there are a few simple guidelines to follow so that you get perfectly cooked eggs every time.
Ingredients
- 12 large eggs
Instructions
- 1) Start off with placing your eggs in a pot in a single layer and covering them with cold water about an inch above the eggs.
- 2) Turn the heat up to medium high and once water starts to bubble add some salt to the pot.
- 3) Bring water to a rolling boil. If your heat is too high, you will get some violent boiling and end up with egg casualties.
- 5) Once water comes to a rolling boil, place the lid on and turn off the heat.
- 6) Let eggs sit for 12-13 minutes making sure to not open the lid or all of the heat will escape. Make sure not to start your timer until right when you turn off the heat.
- 7) When the time is up remove eggs from pot and rinse in cold water or place in an ice bath to stop the eggs from continuing to cook.
- 8) Label your eggs so that your family knows which ones are hard boiled and which ones are not. OR you can use my husband's trick of spinning the egg really hard on a flat surface. If the egg is hard boiled it will spin standing up like this one below and if it's not hard boiled it will spin horizontally
Notice how this does not work the same for everyone?
That is because everyone has a different cook top and every burner will put out a different amount of heat.
Cooking is a matter of time and temperature. The protein in eggs begin to cook or set at 160 F and it actually takes a total of 16 minutes for a room temperature egg to be in the hot water to get a perfect hard cooked egg. Whites are firm but not rubbery and the yolk is fully set yet not green. So starting the time when you THINK the water boils does not account for the time the eggs spent in the water as it went from 160F to 212F. My gas burner takes 8 minutes to go from 160F to 212F in a large pot. Quicker in a small pot.. A large electric burner might do that in 4 minutes. That makes HUGE difference. Also altitude will change when water boils. ….
So to eliminate all of these variables I put a digital probe meat thermometer with an alarm in the water and when it reaches 160F I begin the timer. If I waited until the water boiled then in my case I would need an extra 8 minutes. Also using a rack to keep the eggs off of the bottom is better because when the eggs sit on the bottom the point were it touches is much hotter than the water so it transfers higher heat to the egg more quickly. BTW, the same is true for pasta. The starch and protein begins to cook and set at 160F so I put my pasta in cold water and begin the timer when it reaches 160F then time it for the 7-10 minutes. Much faster and uses less energy. You don’t think that restaurants throw out the pasta water and start from cold each time a customer orders do you?
WHY does everyone complicate everything.
WHY so many steps to boiling & peeling a few eggs?
WHY add unnecessary sodium?
Perfect.
I have not had great luck with hard boiling eggs this way.
The method I use that works every single time is the hot start method:
bring a pot of water to a boil, then, gently lower the room temp eggs into it. boil gently for 13 minutes…then rinse in cold water and / or an ice bath. I have luck with just rinsing with cold water and dumping and repeat a couple times. : )
I just laughed at this… I have live on a farm all my life… I learned to boil egg from my grandmother… she showed me the only way I will ever boil an egg…
1. Bring the water to a gentle boil add teaspoon of salt… 2. check eggs to make sure there is no hair line cracks in them…place in a spoon and place them in the salted boiling water… 3. boil 10 minutes turn off burner and remove from heat cover pot with a lid and let stand in the pot 10 minutes 4. spoon out eggs place on a towel then fill sink with very cold water spoon eggs into the sink and using the other sink run cold water and crack egg and roll the egg on center 5. place under running water and peel the egg the shell comes off very easy… 6. you can do what ever you wish with the eggs…
Thanks for the tips! We will use them all.
I cooked eight eggs last Thursday— i peeled the last two this afternoon— peels slipped of very easily . But I steamed mine in a collapsible steamer— the only way I will hard “boil” eggs any more. Thanks for all your egg recipes.
Thank you Deloris. That is very kind of you.
I boil my eggs in a ratio of 1/4 vinegar, 3/4 water. The vinegar dissolves some the calcium in the egg shells and they get soft. Sometimes peeling off in ribbons. Shake the drained eggs in the pan, cracking the shells all over then begin peeling from the small end with a thin stream of water running between the shell and the egg.. But the best trick of all is to use a teaspoon, carefully slipping the spoon between the shell and the egg, with bowl of the spoon against the egg. The shell slips right off! Use a cake decorating bag and a large decorating tip to fill the eggs.
Save the vinegar from cleaning out the coffee pot for boiling eggs (and for cleaning our shower heads and sink spray nozzles. We have hard water!)
I’ve heard that before but haven’t felt like it made a huge difference.
Hurrah, that’s what I was searching for, what a material!
present here at this blog, thanks admin of this web
page.
These are perfect. First time making hard boiled eggs 🙂
Glad I could help!
I add red wine vinegar to my water for hard boiled eggs. I was always told …..;vinegar was the way to keep the inside from escaping. I use red wine vinegar to remind me they are hard boiled, the red turns the eggs a rose color-pink color.
Chemia Nowej Ery Sprawdzian Do Pobrania Gimnazjum
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Yes, I had creativegirlmedia design my blog. I use a wordpress platform. It’s pretty complicate. I know how to code and I needed help.
I use your “recipe” every time I make hard-boiled eggs and it works perfect every time!!
Except this time.
Because I never heard the kitchen timer go off and my poor half-dozen eggs hung in hot water for at least 30 minutes. I haven’t tried one yet, but I’m sure the yolks be will be that greyish color and stinky. Any advice on what I can do to salvage them? I don’t want to throw it out but I also don’t want to eat them alone since I know they’re super over-cooked!
I wish I had a remedy! I don’t. Sorry!!!
I put my fresh eggs into boiling water with a large slotted spoon; turn heat down to gentle boil; cook about 13 minutes. Drain eggs and fill pot with cold running water. Crack egg gently on the counter and peel. Works every time!
I tried this method and the egg was under cooked. The yolk and the egg whites were too soft and we’re the consistency of jelly. Although, I started with cold eggs from the fridge. You didn’t specify if you start with cold eggs or room temperature eggs. Does it make a difference?
If you plan to peel the eggs right away, I pour off all the hot water, run cold water over them till covered and then put on the lid and shake the pan………….this is a hard shake to crack the eggs. This loosens the peel thus ending up less frustration in peeling. Works for me!
Tell me what causes the green ring around the yolk? Boiling was too severe?
Yes, The gray ring means that they were cooked too long.
If you have only FRESH eggs (as we tend to have ‘cuz we have our own laying hens), try steaming them instead of boiling them. I’ve had great success utilizing this method and still having “pretty” end product appearance after peeling.
I really enjoy your blog and your wonderful recipes and pictures. Thank you so much!
We eat a lot of eggs too and I’ve always hated peeling hard boiled eggs.
But have you tried baking eggs in the oven ? I ran across this tip recently and it’s great!
You can also sit them in a muffin tin to keep them from rolling around and easier to take out of the oven. Works great every time, even on ‘fresher’ eggs.
http://www.food.com/recipe/hard-cooked-eggs-in-the-oven-baked-eggs-61856?layout=desktop
I haven’t tried baking them in the oven but I think it’s a great idea.
THANK YOU SO MUCH. I have used this “recipe” many times now and gotten perfect eggs every! single! time! I used to just boil the heck out of them and they always had that ugly greyish yolk. No more!! THANK YOU! I am so happy.
D8TSoH Very informative blog post.Much thanks again. Really Great.
To tell which eggs are hard boiled, add a few drops of food coloring to the boiling water. Then, your hard boiled eggs will have a slight tint to them and the others will not.
@Unknown,
Shoot! I’m not an egg expert but I would try to put them back in and boil them longer.
So if; let’s say, your eggs didn’t get quite “hard boiled” enough? Is there a way to save them? Or am I stuck with a pot of squishy Half boiled eggs for the trash to eat?
I do something similar. I pretty much follow all of your steps, but then at the end I use the “bumper eggs” method, where I smash the eggs against each other and they easily peel without effort.
http://www.elisesaidso.com/2012/03/how-to-make-perfect-hard-boiled-eggs.html
To those who are looking to get rid of the smell….After eggs have cooled off in ice water, place them in a large zip lock bag and put them in the fridge. TaDa! 🙂
Thanks! I made some eggs today and it took forever for the water to boil on medium heat…like almost an hour!
I did it a little differently and let it boil for 2 minutes, then sit for 11 minutes and cool in an ice bath. That worked too. If only I can get rid of the smell!
I learned how to boil the perfect egg from a fireman. They cook a lot when they are on duty and have to please a lot a guys. Your way is very similar to mine rolling boil and the addition of the salt to me is THE secret.
I grew up in the country and learned as a child that eggs have a tiny “air pocket” on the larger/wider end of the egg. If you crack that portion of the egg against the edge of your pan, the peel will literally slip off. This “pocket” is there to help baby chicks crack their own egg when it’s time to hatch. Another tip I can give for easy egg-salad, or quickly “cutting” your boiled eggs is to use a pizza cutter! Just put them all in a bowl and go crazy. My mother uses a cheese grater.
If you add the eggs directly to boiling water, they will peel perefectly every time when they are done. Just let them cook in the boiling water for a couple of minutes and then turn the heat off. Let them get to room temperature before you add them to the water or the shells will crack.
can’t wait to try out this method—thanks!!!
i was so grateful for your blog post when it came time to boiling eggs for easter. thanks! 🙂
I told my husband I was going to consult a blog about how to boil eggs. He said, “did someone really do a blog post about boiling eggs?” and then he noticed the comment that your husband had made to you and had a bit of a laugh 🙂
Hi Christy! I have been reading your blog for a while and I love it! I love boiled eggs but somehow I have never boiled them myself up to this point. I followed your instructions and boiled 5 tonight and they turned out awesome. Thanks so much for the tutorial as well as all the other delicious recipes you post!!
I don’t know why, but I never manage to boil hard eggs. 🙁 I will try again following your advices. 🙂
very fresh boiled eggs can be easily peeled if you gently crack them against the countertop before placing them into the water. Granted, you might end up with a “bad egg” (as pictured in your post) but that is easier to deal with than throwing away an egg that refusese to peel!
Awesome I’m glad someone did the scientific research to make the perfect egg!! Thanks this will be handy I have 2 dozen just waiting to be boiled!!
When you spin a hard-boiled egg, it spins faster because of the increase in mass compared to the mass in the raw egg. Great tutorial!
thank you, i google this every year!
I drain off the hot water, then roll the eggs around inside the pot so the shells crack, then rinse under running cold water till cool. This way they are always easy to peel.
I always crack my eggs under the water, roll them around a little, and ta-da! The eggs peel perfectly almost everytime! The water gets under the shell and loosens it up away from the egg =)
rachel b: i was looking for this tip! i have been doing something like this for quite a while, but while it’s just a little different; it works so well! like with others, hard boiled eggs have been a learning experience for all of us i think! some boil, some turn off the heat. i find if i boil just below high for exactly 10 min., then drain, put the pot of eggs in the sink w/cold water running on them (maybe even some ice), cool slightly, THEN crack just oh so gently; it lets the water in to release the membrane. 99.9 times out of 100 it will peel easily! it has taken many years of me experimenting to figure this out, i think, because there are so many different ideas on this about how to do it. good luck! i just made some and they all peeled easily!
ps: i let them sit in this cool water – cracked – for just a little bit before peeling.
Thanks for the tips!
Love the whole post on hard boiled eggs- I just hoped for the best having them boil in a pot of water.
Try adding a teaspoon of vinegar to the water; it helps prevent breakage, and the yolks seem to come out brighter. Weird, but it works. We did an entire series on eggs a couple years ago, and every batch that got the vinegar, came out so much better.
This post is perfect !! I hate eggs and never eat them, so was wondering how i would boil them perfect enough to paint on it ! 🙂 thanx for the lovely post ! loads of love
if you peel them under cold running water while they are still hot from boiling they will peel much better than waiting for them to cool off……….
i’m excited to try your way to boil eggs! i always just place them in the pot and let them boil away….tending to usually forget about them. 🙂 great tutorial!
I just boiled up a dozen a few minutes ago. I love eggs…so quick and easy and they really make breakfast so much more satisfying! I never had an egg salad sandwich until I was an adult. I love them now! And they are great for snacking. Great tutorial. I agree that older eggs work best. The incredible edible egg!
When I plan to boil a bunch of eggs, and I’ve just purchased them, I just leave them out on the counter overnight and then boil them in the morning. They always peel fine.
I love cold and hot hard boiled eggs! Having a cold egg is so great when I need a snack before a meal – it curbs cravings!
I like to add a few drops of olive oil to the pot and it seems to help them slip out easier too. And you’re right, when I think about boiling eggs, I always have to google again. Silly.
i made some hard boiled eggs last week. first, none of them peeled well. it was HORRIBLE! and they made my fridge smell so bad. why is that? i’m grateful for this tutorial. thanks!