Peeling a hard boiled egg

[clamum]

I thought I remember reading before, more than once, that running them under cold water after boiling will make them easier to peel. Dunno though, never tried it.

 

[Muse]

This

Just put Salt in the water, it makes peeling easy.

Also don't forget to shock the eggs once done boiling.

If you peel them right away it's MUCH better than after you refrigerate them.

I like to refrigerate them afterwards for usage later, shells intact, of course. I only peel them when preparing a meal.

How much salt?

By shock you mean plunge in cold water, I believe.

 

[DrPizza]

I like to refrigerate them afterwards for usage later, shells intact, of course. I only peel them when preparing a meal.

How much salt?

By shock you mean plunge in cold water, I believe.

Salt doesn't make any significant difference in peeling the eggs. Shocking them with cold water doesn't make any significant difference. Letting the eggs get a couple weeks old before you boil them - that makes a difference.

 

[MarkXIX]

Salt doesn't make any significant difference in peeling the eggs. Shocking them with cold water doesn't make any significant difference. Letting the eggs get a couple weeks old before you boil them - that makes a difference.

I believe that the cold water shock only helps to curtail the green coloring of the yolks, which has no real bearing on the taste of the egg anyway. Agree though that cold water does not help with peeling.

 

[Fritzo]

I put a towel/napkin on the table and roll the egg. Shell comes right off.

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

I believe cooking them too long can cause problems. I usually bring mine to rolling boil on 9 (~10 minutes usually) then remove from heat and cover for 20 (minus two minutes for every minute I accidentally left it boiling too long (I'm not usually paying attention when I'm cooking them.))

I read a tip online that to after you've cooked them crack the shells all around before putting them in cold water/refrigerating. It seems to have greatly reduced the number of difficult eggs to peel (I do 18 in two batches when I'm making deviled eggs). I haven't had any that were completely unusable either when before there'd usually be 2 or 3 that would just come out completely ragged after peeling.

 

[Lifted]

I used to have this problem quite often and thought it was because the eggs were too fresh.

I have since concluded that it was the result of not boiling them long enough. I now let the eggs boil for 15 minutes (sometimes I forget and leave them up to 20) with large or extra large eggs, and then stick them into cold water for 10+ minutes. This is with eggs coming straight from the fridge. I have not had a problem since, and never have I had a green yolk.

Also good to take them out of the fridge a few hours or a day before you plan to cook them so they aren't cold when they hit the water, which obviously results in the eggs taking longer to cook than if they were room temp to start with. I think this is why people still stick with the 10 - 12 minute boiling times, as back in the day when eggs were fresh (i.e. not in the fridge), and probably not as large, they didn't have to boil as long.

To peel I just crack the egg once or twice and roll it back and forth between my hands so that the shell has already separated from the egg when I start removing it.

 

[jayzds]

I believe that the cold water shock only helps to curtail the green coloring of the yolks, which has no real bearing on the taste of the egg anyway. Agree though that cold water does not help with peeling.

I think if the yolk gets green or dark outside of the yolk then you're over cooking/boiling them.

I only like my hard boild eggs to be fairly soft and somewhat dark yellow. So this would be just hardend/firmed past the runny yolk stage. As they boild longer the yolk lightens and the outside of the yolk starts to darken to a greenish color.

 

[Howard]

All the techniques listed have virtually zero effect.

If the eggs are fresh, you can't peel them. The older they get, the easier it is to peel them. Period.





If anyone wants to bet that their method works, I'll put up as much money as you want, and you can come to my house for the bet. I'll go out to the barn and get the egg within minutes of the chicken laying it. Or any time that day. You are not going to be able to peel it easily.

Also, fresh eggs from the chicken do not need to be stored in the refrigerator. They're good for weeks if left at room temperature - provided you don't wash them first. Once you wash them, or so I'm told, you should refrigerate them. I've got a basket of eggs on my counter that are roughly 2 1/2 to 3 months old. (They're for next week's physics experiments. :twisted: )

You've tried the blowtorch method?

 

[Lanyap]

I stopped buy eggs to boil from Walmart because if this problem. I now buy them at Publix and they always peel easy.

 

[Kelvrick]

Wow, am I the only one who uses the spoon? Its so easy, you just slide it in and around the egg and it separates the shell completely. I'll post a video when I get home tonight. No salt, cold water shocks, other tricks necessary. Put eggs in cold water, boil, drain, cool, peel.

 

[the DRIZZLE]

All the techniques listed have virtually zero effect.

If the eggs are fresh, you can't peel them. The older they get, the easier it is to peel them. Period.





If anyone wants to bet that their method works, I'll put up as much money as you want, and you can come to my house for the bet. I'll go out to the barn and get the egg within minutes of the chicken laying it. Or any time that day. You are not going to be able to peel it easily.

Also, fresh eggs from the chicken do not need to be stored in the refrigerator. They're good for weeks if left at room temperature - provided you don't wash them first. Once you wash them, or so I'm told, you should refrigerate them. I've got a basket of eggs on my counter that are roughly 2 1/2 to 3 months old. (They're for next week's physics experiments. :twisted: )

If I lived nearby I would take you up on this. I'm not saying that you are wrong about the effect of age because I've never had farm fresh eggs, but shocking them with cold water does help when done properly. If you let them sit in the ice water too long they become hard to peel again.

 

[bvalpati]

My wife uses an egg cooker which basically steams the eggs instead of boiling them, you have to poke a tiny hole in the shell before you cook them. I don't know if it's due to this method of cooking or something else but since she started using that cooker I've never had any problems with peeling like I used to. She usually puts them in ice water directly after they finish cooking.

 

[Scotteq]

I usually use a Teaspoon to peel hard boiled eggs - crack the thing all around with the spoon, start peeling at the air pocket, then slip the (moistened) spoon between the membrane under the peel and the egg itself...

 

[shopbruin]

For me I've noticed if the egg is still warm when I try to peel it, it doesn't separate easily from the membrane. I try get the eggs as cold as I can once I take it out of the water. The age of the egg may affect it... if the second egg of the two eggs I boil that sits in the cold water longer didn't always peel easier than the first.

 

[Elixer]

Just use a laser to peel the egg, it can't be easier!

Never tried this, since I hate eggs, but granny says this always works for her. She boils them in salt water for a few mins (at this point, they are considered soft boiled), then shocks them. Then stores them in the fridge, then when she needs eggs, she boils them again (to get them hard boiled), and then they are simple to peel.