Cooking eggs

Dang. You always see that in movies about the guy with 2 families, and all those business trips. :slight_smile:

However, we probably are safe, since mine will eat his beef medium.

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I have switched to steaming and putting the cooked eggs into cold, not icy, water and since I have, there has only been one egg* that did not peel easily. Kenji Lopez-Alt cooked something like 700 eggs to come up with this (probably behind a paywall). There is also a Bon Appetit article on steaming eggs which I found useful. I use a steamer rack above water and either an Instant Pot or much more often a pot on the stove. I like my “hard boiled” eggs to be slightly fudgy in the center for some applications but cooked through for others and find that for large eggs 12 minutes has a slightly fudgy yolk (at sea level).

*The problem with that one egg was that I did not get under the membrane before ripping off the shell and so it stuck.

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Thanks. I’m trying this next. I’ve never steamed eggs before. Do you crack them a little before immersing in cold water? And how long do you let them sit before peeling?

No I don’t crack them. If I’m making jammy eggs for ramen (about 6.5 minutes) I take them out of the water as soon as I can bear to touch them. I leave them till cooler for hard “boiled”. I have had no luck leaving them in their shells, BTW, they always get that grey ring, but peeled and stored in a covered container they are good for days.

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My favs are soft boiled eggs. Will cook 6 at a time, 5 minutes once the water comes to a boil.
Cold (not icy) bath till I can handle them.
If I can peel them whole, will leave for salads or burgers or something. If they break, into the bowl they go with butter and s&p with toast.
Usually get 4 peeled, 2 to eat. Sometimes 3 to keep and 3 to eat. Its a sacrifice I am willing to make.

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Everything you wanted to know and more about steaming eggs by Kenji. No paywall.

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My Turkish eggs. Never thought I’d say this, but too much butter.

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You can control a lot of it…buy eggs that have the soonest expiration date. Buy them as far in advance as you can (I know I’m boiling a dozen a week, so I know to buy them about halfway through the current carton)

I’ve found that letting them rest in the fridge after cooking helps…overnight at a minimum, but I notice them getting harder to peel towards the end of the week.

I also thoroughly crack my 2 for breakfast, then put them in a small resealable plastic container with a little water and shake GENTLY…the shells peel right off.

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Kenji Lopez-Alt has a great method for ending up with hard boiled eggs that are easy to peel. I’ve adopted this method, and it’s really upped my egg salad and deviled egg game!

Boil the water
Drop eggs into boiling water.
Let them boil for 30 seconds.
Lower heat to 180 to 190 (barest simmer)
Cook for 11 minutes
Shock in ice water bath

Here’s the link for more detailed info: https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2009/10/perfect-boiled-eggs-recipe.html

My apoligies if this is a repeat somewhere else higher in the discussion. but it works great for me!

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When my son was young, he stayed at Grandma’s & Grandpa’s house overnight. She fixed eggs for breakfast & asked how he wanted his. He was unsure about the difference options, so she asked “How about Sunny Side Up”? He thought that sounded yummy, but when he got them, he was horrified. He said “They should have called them ‘Runny Side Up’”. :slight_smile:

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I have been using this method for several years now and have not had a hard to peel egg since regardless of the age of the egg. I don’t take the temperature of the water but like you say I keep it at the barest simmer. Before that I always started with cold water.

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how the hell did i miss this egg thread???

I poach eggs the way you describe but I don’t do the mesh strainer part. I actually tried that once (very tight mesh) and MOST of the white went through and was lost to the sink! So i just gently plop a cracked egg into the barely simmering water, no vinegar, no swirling, and let it do its thing. usually get very nicely shaped eggs and any of the unruly strands of white (apparently , the “loose white”) that result are easy enough to cut away when lifting the spoon out of the water and pressing it agains the inside edge of the pot.

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I too use the IP method for steaming eggs. can do 7 or 8 at a time. love it.

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This article was revelatory for me, because of his observation that 50% of eggs started in cold water didn’t peel well. This had nothing to do with freshness, or with how they were treated after being boiled. I was always taught to start eggs in cold water. Something about them bursting if you put them in boiling water. It made sense to me. But that could very well be the source of all my ills. Next time I have a need for HB eggs, you bet I am trying them in a hot water start.

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Genius! “But then she pours the whole mix into a springform pan and bakes it.” Will try this on my next tortilla!

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Replying to the post . Try poach a egg in hot oil the way Jaques Pepin does . I wasn’t even close . I’ll try it again one of these days .

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Quasi Martha Stewart method = crack each egg into a custard cup. Boil water + tablespoon vinegar. TIP egg into pan, off center, and immediately spoon water over it, turning the egg over onto itself. One more time. Then add additional eggs in same manner. -> tight oval eggs.

Also lots of fun = the Arzak egg, essentially poached in saran bundles. Additional seasonings a plus.

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Offered for entertainment value. At sea, cooking gas and water are both limited resources. Even if we have plenty why waste it? On pasta night a pot of water goes on the fire and heated to boiling. The pasta goes in which lowers the temperature a bit, fire down, in go a bunch of eggs. The whole mess goes into a colander. Fish out the eggs and put in a mesh bag and hang over the side for a few minutes to cool them faster.

Works fine.

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Made some soft boiled eggs for ramen. Instruction from Ramen Obsessions. Use eggs at room temperature. Drill a small hole with a pin or a needle on the bigger round end of the egg. Bring the water to a boiling. Put up to 6 eggs in the pot and cook for 6 minutes. I cooked 2 of them for nearly 7 minutes… Drop the cooked eggs in ice water until cold. I found peeling was easy.

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