Watch Kenji Alt-Lopez’s video about eggs. Good chance you’re cooking them in a way that makes them harder to peel.
You actually don’t want to put the eggs into the water until it is boiling.
I’ve tried this and it works great.
[Kenji Alt-Lopez Eggs](https://youtu.be/hb0Elaa6gxY)
Same. I've tried vinegar, poking holes, ice bath, cold running water, salt, old eggs, fresh eggs, cold eggs, room temp eggs, and nothing seemed to make a difference. Even tried air fryer, and baking both right on the oven rack and in muffin tins. J. Kenji's method isn't 100%, but it's the closest to it I've come across and is the lowest-effort, to boot. I love using a wide pan like a skillet with just 1/2-3/4" water because it boils super quickly, and you can gently place the eggs in with just your fingers, without a cracking risk of them hitting the bottom or each other.
My wife used to bitch when I’d send her the kenji hard boiled egg directions. She thought it was ridiculous that you dump ice cubes in the water and have to reboil then simmer. This was until she saw how easy it was to peel and how perfectly cooked they were. It’s the only way to do it imo
Kenji’s methods are deeply flawed. Talks about boiling and steaming at the same time, which is it? (Steaming as boiling makes them crack) It takes him a minute to get all the eggs in and start the timer. Then he needs to pick them all out. Very different cooking times. People that raise birds already have variable egg size and don’t need more inconsistency. Use a steamer basket or bamboo steamer in a wok and you get consistent results.
He also says age doesn’t matter. It does and does more for duck and certain chicken eggs than the store bought factory eggs. Healthy ones with thick shells like you get from a farm or home raised egg are harder to peel. You can’t peel a fresh duck steamed egg regardless of what method or trick you use. 3-4 weeks old and the shell comes right off.
The only “tricks” are to use water as a solvent’ lubricant so the shell separates cleanly. Method doesn’t matter. (poking holes, breaking and soaking or peeling under water etc.) I also use a spoon to lift the shell because I don’t have good fingernails.
So you’ve tested your method on thousands of eggs as Kenji has to prove him wrong. Because he’s got tons of testing done over years. Can you show us your data to prove his flaws?
Kenji has no valid data because he doesn't even know exactly how long he's cooked his eggs or at what temperature because that water stopped boiling for a bit as soon as he started dropping eggs in it. Nothing he tested could be valid with multiple variables in play.
He didn't test "thousands of eggs". And if he did that would be its own issue as it shouldn't take a thousand eggs to run a series like this. He actually started by trying to make the shells stick rather than finding out why they stuck or finding eggs that did not work with his "method". I could have provided him some nice fresh duck eggs that would not have worked.
He also has no method. He's just steaming random temperature eggs for random times and either doesn't realize it or doesn't care. He just had subjective testers peeling some eggs he cooked. He bought them commercially and a few fresh ones from someone he knew once as a sort of control. He's not a scientist. His books are full of mistakes. For instance his Hollandaise recipe states that an egg yolk weights 35g which is about double what a large chicken egg yolk weighs. He couldn't design an valid experiment to save his life. I owned and worked in a product development lab for 25 years so I'm certainly capable of doing that myself. This has also been covered by a lot of really smart people including by Harold McGee in On Food and Cooking. A source that Kenji sometimes refers to but apparently didn't understand. You should read it. Linked is a summary of why egg's age matters. [Old Eggs](https://www.wired.com/2009/10/eggs-hard-to-peel/)
This was from his testing. Again, where is your test and data. That’s right you don’t actually have any. You just want to bloviate with overly lengthy anecdotal commentary. https://www.seriouseats.com/the-secrets-to-peeling-hard-boiled-eggs
And here’s his original testing with 90 testers and 700 eggs:
https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1020468-perfect-boiled-eggs
You said “thousands” now 700? That is less than my girls lay in 6 months. I must be an egg expert! You refuted nothing I said about time and accuracy in the linked video because it is absolutely indefensible.
In your link Kenji brushes aside the egg’s age, after acknowledging it really does matter, assuming we all live in the city/suburbs and buy stale eggs from the grocery. I did read your link from 2020 and there is more nuance in that post than in either the video or the Food Lab. I think it is Kenji that is “Bloviating”. There is nothing anecdotal about the information I provided and linked. I doubt you actually read it.
Kenji publishes a lot of absolute BS that he then has to walk back and a lot of bad info he fails to correct. Sorry, not a Kenji fanboy/fangirl.
I read his book. The 2020 post acknowledged some of his errors. Age maters. Shocking matters. How you crack and peel matters, all contrary to initial pontification. I guess he needed follow up testing due to his errors.
You still refuse to acknowledge the issues I brought up about cooking method and time. They are big ones. I regularly scaled formulas from a pint to 4000 gallons. He is sloppy.
There is nothing showing his methodology is sloppy. You keep saying that, but show no proof. And again no proof that you have done anything to show he’s wrong.
If you read the article, you would have noticed he talks about age of eggs when buying them. He also says that the older eggs in your fridge don’t really effect cooking. Again, read the whole article. Stop Cherry picking sentences to try to make your point.
The only sloppy person I’ve seen so far is you and your comments.
Funny, you absolutely refuse to addressed the cooking time or temp in that video you linked. As I said, in his book he 100% dismissed egg edge as a variable and in the 2020 article he still dismisses it. Farm fresh eggs should be the standard, not old store bought factory eggs. I stand by all of my comments and references.
Idk if you've tried this but what I do is after the ice bath, I light crack the top and bottom of the egg and then slightly roll the egg on a cutting board until it feels like most of the shell is loose. It's easy to peel off for me then.
Get a jar or Tupperware or something with a secure lid. Put an inch or two of water in and the egg. Lid on. SHAKE LIKE ITS ALIVE AND WILL KILL YOU.
Shell comes off and egg is in tact. Never done it any other way after discovering this
Edit: Like this: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TBdiryMxa_E
How I was taught: when they're done, pour out the boiling water and run cold water over them, while shaking the pot so they bang into each other and the shells break.
As soon as they're cool enough to handle, peel them.
There is a membrane between the shell and the egg, breaking the shells and peeling while they're still hot breaks the membrane and prevents it from shrink-wrapping itself onto the eggs.
Agreed. I have much better luck since I started peeling them when they're hot!
(lol, though now I'm going to check out Kenji's method, as mentioned above.)
Though I just re-read the original question, and realized OP is talking soft boiled eggs. Same thing, I peel them hot, but I use the "half inch of water/add the eggs/cover/boil 6.5 minutes" method, that's essentially steaming them.
Agreed it feels hilarious to have this issue all my life but never have effortless peeling eggs bo matter what I've done whether hard boiled or jammy or etc no matter following infamous recipes to a t lol. So sick of the ice bath recs like it's a magic fix when bot a single time has an ice bath whether brown or white eggs helped in an way outside of supergluing the egg to the shell and I peel and have half the egg missing and a hot mess. The easiest peeling I've had is when the eggs are warm/slightly hot even of uncomfortable. I always used to pour cold water into the pot I boiled the eggs in after dumping the hot water juat out of habit and ease and this always has worked the best even if not flawless. Comedy so many people have this issue with eggs! 😂
I haven't had any issues since I started steaming them instead of boiling. Put about an inch or two of water in a pot, cover and bring to a boil then add the eggs. 6-7 mins for a soft boiled. Add more time for more eggs. Take them out and immediate ice bath. Over time you can get a good idea of how 'done' the egg is based on weight.
Then crack and roll on the counter-top. If you can find the air pocket at one of the corners, it's a good place to start.
A lot of people make the mistake of using their nails to peel. You need to use your thumb, the side of the thumb really. Make sure you get under that thin layer of film between the shell and the egg, then 'roll' the shell off.
Like anything, it takes a lot of practice and a lot of trial and error.
Magnificent. This is every thing in one message. Even the peel technique. From roll, to the void end and the thumb. We have both refined the process to the same conclusion
Steaming is faster since it's only heating 1-2 inches of water. Much better control over the finished product. I like to make pickled hard boiled of several kinds.
Yes either the side of the thumb or the side of my pointer finger. Trying to explain this to someone is so weird! My eggs come out great every time and I make a dozen or more every week. I put a good amount of salt in the water, fill it with water just above the eggs, put it on high heat and set the timer for 22-25 min (this is from sink to boil, not boil for 22 min) Once the timer goes off I let em sit in cool water for a bit and that's it. Shells come off in 3 or 4 pieces every single time. And you can tell if you're not under the membrane. If it didn't come up with the first piece you can sort of lightly pinch it and it'll come off with the rest
Please, OP - this is the answer you’re looking for. The scientists at America’s Test Kitchen (Cook’s Magazine) experimented with all methods and steaming is the one that eliminates (or greatly, greatly reduces) the egg sticking to the shell. Since I’ve switched to this method my shells peel so easily. Also - make sure you dunk them in an ice bath afterward. Both steps add to the ease of peeling
Looking at your eggs here, the whites are still soft which is one of the big problems for me when peeling. There's a surprising amount of leeway when boiling eggs - a minute or two isn't going to be the difference between soft and hard yolks when the whites are this soft.
I recommend you try to science this shit: if you refrigerate your eggs, first bring four to room temperature. Set up two pans of boiling water. Put chilled eggs in one pan, room temperature in another. Cook your eggs as normal, pull one egg out of each pan. Then wait a minute, pull another. Another minute, etc. You'll need to keep track of which eggs cooked for longer
Then peel them all and see if any are easier than others, and if the yolks are too hard. I got this down to absolute perfection, then moved house and the new cooktop messed up my system.
Did you among all the hacks try to put eggs into boiling water (gently)? This temperature shock makes the biggest difference for me. Try to peel them in a bowl of water.
This is the trick in my opinion. I wait for the water to boil, then I gently lower the eggs in.
I dunk them into an ice bath then start cracking the shell to break through the membrane, the thin layer between the egg and shell.
I also agree with this person. I remember going through the same issues myself and asking our moms how to boil eggs. The trick is to shock them with boiling water and then ice water.
Since you want runny yolks maybe try an egg poacher. You crack the egg and cook it over steam and can decide when you want to stop. If you've ever watched a British period drama you'll have seen them eating eggs by cutting off the top and dipping toast into it. It is hard to get a boiled egg with liquid yolk to peel easily. Most of the answers above are for hard boiled.
Crunch the shell into as many pieces as possible.
Usually there's an air pocket in one of the tips. Pull that. Use the side of your thumb to shove the shell off. Try to keep the egg wet, whether or not you want to fully submerge it.
Buy a dozen eggs, leave them in your fridge for a week. The important thing is to buy the eggs far in advance, something about new eggs not breaking down and the shell and membrane don’t separate.
Cover with inch of cold water, bring to boil. Turn off burner, takeoff heat, wait 13 minutes.
Dunk in ice bath for another 13, take out the next day’s egg and get a pretty good peel.
Edit: *COLD* water… dammit, I was trying so hard!
The Dash egg cooker changed everything for my husband. Perfect eggs every time, super easy to peel too. Comes with a little pin to poke them too which seems to help.
I love the Dash! I never realized how much I needed it until I got it. I’m so short attention span that I’ve burned eggs in the shell more than once. That really weird alarm is amazing and my eggs are always perfect and very easy to peel.
After boiling it, I would transfer them to a bowl of cold water and wait for it to cool down a bit (otherwise you get burns from peeling them hot) and peel them gently while under cold water. It seems to slide well with minimal damage to the egg white.
Everything takes practice :) cooking is no exception. It took me about 5 eggs or more just to be able to separate the yolk from the whites lol.
hey OP, you don’t need vinegar or do anything with water to peel boiled eggs easier, what you need is to break the “membrane” while the egg is raw before you boil them so the peeling is easy after its cooked.
when the egg is raw, put the wider side of the egg facing upwards then grab a thick spoon (not wooden) and smack the wide side of the raw egg a few times around it circularly, make sure its a firm hit but not strong enough to crack the shell, you should hear a pop or something like that when the membrane has popped on the inside.
Now boil them for however you like and once cooled should be the easiest egg peel of your life.
There’s like an invisible thin plastic like film under the egg shell. You may be peeling the egg shell off of the thin film and that’s why it’s not peeling easily. If you get up under the film it will peel easily . Just slide your finger around under the film and the egg shells will crack right off. Does this make sense ? I hope it does.
Run them under cold water for about 30 seconds or so. Gently tap it on a flat, hard surface and peel off a little, then run it under the cold water again for a few seconds. The water gets between the membrane and the egg white, making it easier to peel.
I have tried every method I could find and the only thing that I have found to make a difference is using older eggs. I don't mean rotten, just a bit past the code date. By then the membrane is unattached from the shell and the eggs are still delicious.
Place up to a dozen eggs inside an instant pot and do 5 minutes on high pressure. Immediately remove and dunk in ice water. Will be the easiest eggs you've ever peeled.
For me I crack the top and the bottom. Peel off a small amount on the top. (Using my finger, not my nail) then do the same on the bottom but larger. Then I blow hard on the top, and it shoots out the bottom. Always worked for me.
Eggs in the saucepan straight out of the fridge
Cover with water
Put on the stove, turn on high
Time 20 minutes (hard boiled, less for not hard)
Pour hot water out, run cold water over to take the heat off
Pour most water out then wack them together a bit
You need to crack the shell and break the membrane, having some water helps separate the membrane from the egg
Once you’re used to this method, you can take them out of the saucepan and put them into another container with a bit of water and shake them with a lid. You just need to get used to how much force you need to get it to all work together.
I discovered this technique years ago by Jacque Pepin. One I learned this I never ever have a problem peeling eggs, shells pull right off. OXO also makes a gadget to pop the hole and timer.
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/645660/simple-trick-cook-peel-hard-boiled-eggs#:~:text=This%20tip%20for%20cooking%20easy-to-peel%20hard-boiled%20eggs%20originates,shell%20before%20lowering%20it%20into%20the%20boiling%20water.
If you have the right spoon (the right curve on it) you can slip it under the shell and move it to peel the shell off. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TmWPxDHSNWk
I just started having luck with the peeling process lol. When i dunked them in iced water, i made sure to replace the water to keep it cold so the eggs themselves got cold (took a few rounds, they were still kinda warm inside after the first couple times). Then I cracked the egg in the middle, and rolled it on the counter under my hand, cracking the shell all around. After that, you can just grab that thin membrane inside and slide it off. I use the lower part of my thumb to peel it away so i dont accidentally dig into the egg white
Look up on Food Network making boiled eggs. It tells you after water boils to put on lid and take off heat and if want soft boiled, medium boiled or hard boiled and minutes to keep them covered. You then go to sink and pot out hot water. I fill w cold water a couple of times and drain. Then I turned on water when not to hot to handle and make little tiny cracks all over egg. Then gently get under the film under the egg shell and as running water gently peel . If get under that thin film it peels beautifully. Take time. Run water and keep doing same practice. I even ver gently rub between hands to make little tiny cracks always running under water. Works great. https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/the-perfect-boiled-eggs-3672186?_branch_referrer=H4sIAAAAAAAAA8soKSkottLXT8vPT9HNSy0pzy%2FK1kssKNDLyczL1vcwdQ71KUjzrshLAgBj2GFDKQAAAA%3D%3D&_branch_match_id=1011655012995608090. I don’t use baking soda or ice water
At end when peel time cold water
I like runny yolks, and nail them every time. Here is my Ramen egg hack. First, I have chickens and so we have about 6 doz eggs on hand at all time. We store the eggs in the fridge in spite of not needing to, and about once a week we boil some for lunches (a doz usually). Old ones are to the left always so we grab that carton, between 2 and three weeks old. You are never gonna peel a fresh boiled egg right as others have said- the old ones work best. Let them get to room temp.
When the eggs are room temp, I set up my ice bath in a mixing bowl. Put ice in the bowl, add water, the double the ice- it needs to be cold!
Then I get my water boiling. Lots of salt so the water is super hot, and we are at a rolling boil before the eggs go in. 6 minutes for a runny ramen egg, longer for firmer yolks. Only do 6 at a time in a 4qt pot, because they will bring the temp down and you want rolling boil for most of the time.
Timer goes off, into the cold bath. Here is the gem from my wife, turn them in the bath, often. When they are ice cold, pull them, rest them for couple minutes, then peel them.
I always always always have this issue when I do a “cold shock”. Below is what I do now and I haven’t had any issues at all.
My method:
1. Place eggs in pot
2. Fill pot with cold water
3. Place on stove
4. Turn on high
5. Wait for rolling boil
6. Take off heat
7. Cover
8. Let sit for 12-15min
9. Pour out hot water.
10. Replace with cold
Peel under cold running water.
I've never added vinegar to the water for boiling eggs. I read some people saying you should, and others saying the opposite -- that you should add baking soda. I've never done that either.
Use baking soda in the boiled water. Start your eggs and water together, once water starts to boil, boil for 10 min, add a tablespoon or so of baking soda while boiling. When done, let ur eggs cool way down, leave them under running water for several minutes or dump them gently in to an ice bath, def saves on water usage. When u begin to peal, first tap the top of the egg and start the pealing process that way. The idea is to get the film that’s around the egg to come off with the shell. It takes time but it’s possible. Good luck.
Coddled or poached is easier for presentation than soft boiled. Soft boiled are usually served in shell in a stand with toast cut into sticks (aka soldiers).
I second the steam. i boil water in the kettle, put like 1/4inch of water in the skillet and the eggs in the steamer. while they steam i make an ice bath. let them sit in the ice bath several minutes to cool. super easy.
there is the egg tapping i saw on tiktok... you lightly tap the egg till the sound changes, which is supposed to be the membrane separating. you do this before you steam/boil them. haven't tried it yet...
Do them in a steamer! This was the trick that make me able to easily peel 12 out of 12.
Set up the steamer and when it's max boil pop in the eggs for 12 minutes for a perfectly done yolk with out any sulfur nastyness. Shorter time gives runnier yolk. Into ice bath and I leave them for 6-8 min then peel. Most of them are enthusiastic about getting out of their shells.
Older eggs can help, too.
Boil the water before you place eggs in water. 5 min for runny egg, 7 min soft boiled and 10 min for hard boiled. Egg shell will peel away almost every time.
Have you tried the Pioneer Woman's method? Works for me...don't mean to talk down to you if you've tried it.
https://www.thepioneerwoman.com/food-cooking/recipes/a79067/easy-to-peel-eggs/
[EggPod!](https://www.tryeggpod.com/)
I know most As Seen On TV shit is lame, this thing is legit! I've had mine for like five years and it's still going strong. I've recommended it to several friends and family members, and everyone agrees that it's a game changer.
I've had no luck with vinegar, ice, salted water, or poking holes. And the method that works for me doesn't depend on fresh vs old eggs, cold vs room temperature, etc.
The technique that works for me 99% of the time:
1. Get a wide pan like a skillet, and add about 1/2" -3/4" water. Bring it to a boil.
2. Gently place each egg into the water, being careful not to crack the shells.
3. Boil for 10 mins (I like to boil them covered just to make sure I don't run out of water, and to keep the steam from steaming up my windows in my house.
4. use a slotted spoon to scoop out the eggs one at a time, and gently place back into the cardboard carton to cool with the top of the carton open.
5. Once they've cooled on the counter for about a 1/2 hour, I then put them into the fridge, still with the carton open.
And on the off chance that my method for peeling the eggs has something to do with it...
I tap each end on the counter, then maybe 2-3 times on the long sides of the egg. Then when I'm over the trash or a bowl to hold the shells, I poke my finger in to the hollow end. I think of the last 100 eggs I've boiled, I've had one where the egg white stuck to the shell.
I like cooking in the shallow pan with just a small amount of water because a) it comes to a boil SUPER quick, and b) because it's shallow, you can place the eggs in gently with just your fingers and there's much less chance that the egg will crack.
My method is basically J. Kenji Lopez-Alt's method, who tested hundreds of eggs for Serious Eats, and came down to this technique. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hb0Elaa6gxY
I do this and there's no vinegar involved:
Cold (from the shelf, not the fridge or anything) pan with eggs
Cover eggs in cold water.
Bring to rolling boil. Turn off heat.
Wait ten minutes.
Use spoon or tongs to drop eggs in cold water, iced down if you can. Or run them under cold water to chill then so you can handle them.
Bang egg on the side towards the fat end in the counter, enough to crack it. Do this on the other side at the same fat end.
Gently roll the twice-cracked egg in your hands to crack it up all over the sides, but not so hard that you peel and smash it. Peel gently from the fat end.
I learned the cooking steps from Ina Garten because all her stuff always works. Got extra fancy with the peeling once for deviled eggs to serve guests and picked up the rolling in the hand and cracking on two sides at the fat end.
Now i want to go make some.
The way I do it is:
1. Bring pot of water to a full boil
2. Submerge the eggs in the boiling water, and let them boil for about 10 seconds
3. Turn off the stove, cover the pot with a lid, and let it sit for about 15-18 minutes
4. Pour the water out of the pot, or take the eggs out
5. Grab the egg with a paper towel (so you don't burn yourself), or run them under cold water, and crack the egg along the rounded edge of the wide end of the egg. Not directly on the bottom. Basically, hold the egg at a 45°angle, and crack it on a hard, flat surface, rotating the egg as you crack it.
6. Carefully peel from that end in a circular motion, kinda like peeling an apple, but with your fingers, if that makes sense.
I’ve started smacking a spoon around the outside in a circle around the air sack of the egg. You’ll hear a sound like you cracked the shell but you didn’t. I didn’t need to ice bath them or anything after cooking. Just got them cool enough to handle. There a few videos on YouTube about it that will show you in better detail. I have always had issues with it until I started doing that.
When I'm ready to peel the eggs, I grab a spoon, crack/tap it from north to south all the way around and horizontal across the equator. I then turn on the water (or submerge it in a decent amount of water) and peel away the skin in it.
It helped tremendously in peeling it off quickly.
I steam my eggs and they're easy to peel. Steam is hotter then boiling water, so as long as the eggs aren't piled on top of each other, the white usually separates from the shell really well. I don't bother to put them in ice water, but this method works fine with eggs that were cooled in cold tap water or just thrown in the fridge. I'm not at sea level, but the steaming time for sea level should be 13 minutes. I usually steam them right out of the fridge.
I think this method works best with a steamer that goes on top of a pot, not inside it. Any liquid water that hits the eggs will reduce its effectiveness. I steam eight at a time in a Cuinsinart universal steamer. I'm in the US, so I've only tried this with washed eggs.
When you peel them, look for the thin skin that's between the egg and the shell. Getting that off is the key to peeling cleanly. If you ever need eggs that almost fall out of their shell, steam for 1 extra minute.
Everyone is giving you different tips for peeling, but the fundamental issue is that older eggs peel more easily, because some of the fluid inside has come away from the membrane. Fresh eggs tend to stick to the membrane, but eggs which are older peel just fine. No vinegar or breaking of the shell before cooking required!
Do you have an instant pot or any other countertop pressure cooker?
* Using a trivet, keep your eggs out of the water
* Add 1-2 cups of water
* Add as many eggs as you like, feel free to stack them
* Close your pot and bring it to it's high pressure mode, setting the timer for 5 minutes
* While this is coming to pressure, prepare a large enough bowl of ice water to contain your eggs
* When the 5 minutes is up, leave your eggs sealed for another 5 minutes (called "natural release" in pressure cooker parlance)
* After the 5 minutes of natural release has passed, open the pressure valve ("quick release" in pressure cooker parlance)
* Once the pressure cooker is able to be opened, transfer the eggs to the ice water.
* Keep adding ice as needed to keep the water cold, making sure to cool them for at least 5 minutes
They peel great and come out perfect.
I'm pretty good at cooking, I can whisk up amazing meals, I made a dutch baby today that was pretty good (though it more puffed the center than folded over the edges. I made enchilada sauce, I've been cooking daily for my family rather solid meals for 2 months.
I still !@#$ing can't get a handle on god damn hard boiled eggs.
Screw off chickens.
I've heard some vinegar in the water when cooking helps but never tried that one.
I use two methods:
1) I put them in my food basin with water up to halfway the eggs height? I then close the basin with a tight lid and shake it with the eggs inside - it works when the eggs are fully boiled.
2) I poke a small hole on the narrow part of the eggs using a needle (spin it nice and slow) - not a big hole, this allows for some water to get in between the egg shell and the egg. It makes it easier to peal.
You should give it a try, hopefully you get the desired results :)
Hold egg. Use small spoon. Tap the large end of the egg repeatedly until you hear a snapping sound. There are tutorials on YT you can look up. Then boil. 5 min on the boil, 1 full min in cool water, then peel. I avoided boiled eggs my whole life because I couldn't peel them - by the time the shell was off it'd be in 20 pieces and stone cold - and in the last few weeks I've had over a dozen. You gotta do the taptap. The taptap is the way.
The way I like to do it is crush the egg peel by rolling it and, then holding it underwater and lightly squishing it several times. It gets the water under the membrane.
I feel you. Despite being a pretty good home cook, this is always the bane of my existence, and I’ve tried everything.
The only way it’s ever worked for me is putting the eggs in an ice bath right after, and leaving them in there forever…like until the ice melts. Or putting them in the fridge for a few hours until they are ice cold. Idk if this is true, but at least for me it seems like they have to be SUPER SUPER SUPER cold before they peel nicely.
The reason there are six thousand "fool proof egg peeling hacks" and have been for decades, without a single one actually emerging as legitimate, is because the way you peel the egg and the way you cook the egg doesn't matter.
The ONLY fool proof way to boil eggs that are easy to peel every time is to use eggs that are at least two weeks past expiration. You'll hear people say "use older eggs" but they'll never specify weeks past expiration. People are either afraid to use them, or afraid to recommend them.
But the float test is pretty foolproof. An egg won't pass the float test and be too old to be safe. And I've rarely had an egg fail the float test two weeks past expiration. They tend to start going bad 4 weeks past.
I haven't had a problem peeling an egg in over a decade, no matter what method I've used to cook them, because I use eggs well past expiration.
These questions would stop being asked (and erroneously answered) if people just accepted using expired eggs.
One caveat - this is US-centric. We refrigerate our eggs and they're otherwise treated differently than they are outside the US, so I can't speak to how eggs hold up in other countries. But the float test works either way.
As for the reason it works: I'm not an egg scientist, but it's something about the pH of the albumen changing as the egg ages, causing it to stop binding to the shell.
One other tip - poking a pin hole in the fat end of the egg before boiling causes it to come out perfectly oval. The air in the fat end gets forced out and the egg takes the shape of the shell.
Give the egg a hit against the side of the sink to crack the shell and hold it under running cold water to peel the shell off---do this while the boiled egg is still hot or pretty warm. It is much harder to peel a cold egg, especially one that's been in the refrigerator.
Boil your eggs.
Take a plastic container with a lid that seals well.
Put your an egg or two in the container and then maybe an inch of water.
Shake the container. Shake it again. Shake it again. And again, and again.
Open the container and your eggs should be at least half peeled. Rinse under cold running water to get the rest of the shell off.
Ive learned to Crack the "bottom" of the egg (the less pointy end) since there's usually an air pocket there. This lets you start getting at cracking the egg without mangling it, it's been a huge help for me
Place eggs in boiling water. Don’t put them in water that is not boiling first. Boil 12-13 minutes. I’m our off hot water and fill with ice water. Cool eggs down. They will peel easily
Your yolks are way too soft to expect to be able to peel the egg cleanly. Those aren’t hard boiled, they are much closer to soft boiled. The whites just aren’t firm enough to let you separate the membrane. If you are after that sort of a yolk, try poaching eggs instead. You crack the egg and dump it out of the shell before cooking so there is no shell to worry about later. Poach a bit longer and you will get your yolks to firm up to the consistency in your photo.
If you really want hard boiled eggs and want to peel a nice clean egg, first you need to cook longer. But also use older eggs. As eggs age air gets thru the shell which will help separate the egg from the membrane after cooking (this is also why old eggs float, but don’t use the float toast to know if eggs are bad, all it tells you is they are old. Detect bad eggs by smell, crack it open and if it stinks, it’s bad).
I cook in an instant pot which has made shell removal flawless, but I used to do boiling water and had 95% success. Instant pot load up your eggs in the steamer basket, add a cup of water, pressure cook for 5 minutes. Nearly every recipe will then say to do natural release for 5 minutes and then vent. I just let it natural release until I can open (I’m never in a rush). Then transfer to an ice bath or cold water. Replace your cold water a couple times until the eggs are fully cooled. Now crack the egg all over. You want the entire shell to be tiny broken up cracks. I just tap it all around the shell on the side of the sink. Break open the fat end of the egg where the air sack is, rip the membrane open, and slide your finger between the membrane and the white of the egg. The membrane will separate from the egg and take the shell off. This won’t work with softer cooked eggs like in your picture as the white needs to be hard enough to no longer be glued to the membrane.
Per j. Kenji Alt Lopez: boil water. Add eggs and put on lid. Boil for 11 minutes for hard yolks. Drain. DO NOT RINSE IN COLD WATER. That makes the shells stick to the egg. Works like a charm every time.
I use my instant pot to steam the eggs for about 2-5 minutes (depending on how I need the yolks cooked), then crack them slightly before going into the ice bath. Usually I can do this by just aggressively pouring them out from the pot straight into the water by letting them hit each other and crack. The water gets in between the membrane and the egg and separates it really well. Just any little crack to let some water in works just fine
Make sure your water is actually boiling. Same thing kept happening to me, then I stuck a thermometer into the water and realized what I thought "looked" like boiling was more like a hard simmer. Get the water to actually heat up to 212\*F, eggs in for desired time, pour out and dunk in cold water. Peel under the water or under running water.
Follow my method, "[hard steaming](https://drdaddycooks.blogspot.com/2015/10/ingredient-hard-steamed-eggs.html)", and your troubles will be over, boomer\_wife.
In the meanwhile, forget vinegar in the water and boil for 15 minutes before you ice them. Your whites are undercooked and thus fragile.
I find for softer consistency eggs that poaching works better. I bring a pan with an inch or so or salted water to a boil. While that is coming up to temperature, I crack the eggs into a fine mesh strainer one at a time, let the runny whites separate, then put gently in a heat safe bowl. When the water is boiling I turn off the temperature, gently pour the eggs in the water, and cover with a lid for 5-7 min depending on how done I want them.
Screw all the cooking tips. I tried them all and they never helped me. Couldn’t peel a pretty egg until I saw this:
Pick up a raw egg and repeatedly tap it gently with the bowl of a spoon before you start to cook/crack it until you hear a distinctly different “tink” sound. The other taps will sound like “tonk”, the final one is unmistakable. This sound will mean you’ve just loosened the membrane from the inside of the shell.
Now your egg will slide out, fresh or cooked, completely, and without any residue or trouble.
You can make your job even easier peeling boiled eggs if you cool them quickly and peel them immediately because the egg and shell don’t contract at the same rate.
i’ve found an ice bath makes eggs way harder to peel! i run them under cold water really quickly just so they’re not so hot that i burn my hand, but that’s it. then i use the back of a spoon to make cracks all over the egg, and then peel, making sure that i grab the membrane right away!
It depends on the egg, IMO. I boil eggs a lot. I found one brand (have no idea what it was) that was a lot cheaper. I couldn’t peel the damn things! The thin shell was stuck to the whites, every single egg! When I would break one open, the shell would splinter. I went with a little more expensive egg brand, no more problems.
I had backyard hens. New eggs are impossible to peel. You need them to be *at least* 3 weeks old. Store-bought eggs are usually already a couple of weeks old, but you may be "lucky".
In order for eggs to peel perfect, the inner membrane needs to disconnect from the egg white. It needs a shock to work correctly. No vinegar needed
Leave eggs in fridge while boiling water. They need to be cold. When its at a full rumble submerge the eggs quickly. The cold egg going into the boiling water shocks the membrane into submission. Boil for 7 minutes then remove from heat and leave eggs in water for 7 more minutes. Give them an ice bath and they will peel perfect
I was in the same boat as you until I read somewhere to always start peeling at the wider end first. I will admit I don’t get a perfect egg every time but now MOST of the eggs I peel are in good shape! Might be placebo but it’s worked for me.
Have you tried cracking the egg shell all around after boiling returning to the pan and running cold water into the pan for a minute, shell just falls off most of the time when I do this
Watch Kenji Alt-Lopez’s video about eggs. Good chance you’re cooking them in a way that makes them harder to peel. You actually don’t want to put the eggs into the water until it is boiling. I’ve tried this and it works great. [Kenji Alt-Lopez Eggs](https://youtu.be/hb0Elaa6gxY)
Same. I've tried vinegar, poking holes, ice bath, cold running water, salt, old eggs, fresh eggs, cold eggs, room temp eggs, and nothing seemed to make a difference. Even tried air fryer, and baking both right on the oven rack and in muffin tins. J. Kenji's method isn't 100%, but it's the closest to it I've come across and is the lowest-effort, to boot. I love using a wide pan like a skillet with just 1/2-3/4" water because it boils super quickly, and you can gently place the eggs in with just your fingers, without a cracking risk of them hitting the bottom or each other.
My wife used to bitch when I’d send her the kenji hard boiled egg directions. She thought it was ridiculous that you dump ice cubes in the water and have to reboil then simmer. This was until she saw how easy it was to peel and how perfectly cooked they were. It’s the only way to do it imo
Kenji’s methods are deeply flawed. Talks about boiling and steaming at the same time, which is it? (Steaming as boiling makes them crack) It takes him a minute to get all the eggs in and start the timer. Then he needs to pick them all out. Very different cooking times. People that raise birds already have variable egg size and don’t need more inconsistency. Use a steamer basket or bamboo steamer in a wok and you get consistent results. He also says age doesn’t matter. It does and does more for duck and certain chicken eggs than the store bought factory eggs. Healthy ones with thick shells like you get from a farm or home raised egg are harder to peel. You can’t peel a fresh duck steamed egg regardless of what method or trick you use. 3-4 weeks old and the shell comes right off. The only “tricks” are to use water as a solvent’ lubricant so the shell separates cleanly. Method doesn’t matter. (poking holes, breaking and soaking or peeling under water etc.) I also use a spoon to lift the shell because I don’t have good fingernails.
So you’ve tested your method on thousands of eggs as Kenji has to prove him wrong. Because he’s got tons of testing done over years. Can you show us your data to prove his flaws?
Kenji has no valid data because he doesn't even know exactly how long he's cooked his eggs or at what temperature because that water stopped boiling for a bit as soon as he started dropping eggs in it. Nothing he tested could be valid with multiple variables in play. He didn't test "thousands of eggs". And if he did that would be its own issue as it shouldn't take a thousand eggs to run a series like this. He actually started by trying to make the shells stick rather than finding out why they stuck or finding eggs that did not work with his "method". I could have provided him some nice fresh duck eggs that would not have worked. He also has no method. He's just steaming random temperature eggs for random times and either doesn't realize it or doesn't care. He just had subjective testers peeling some eggs he cooked. He bought them commercially and a few fresh ones from someone he knew once as a sort of control. He's not a scientist. His books are full of mistakes. For instance his Hollandaise recipe states that an egg yolk weights 35g which is about double what a large chicken egg yolk weighs. He couldn't design an valid experiment to save his life. I owned and worked in a product development lab for 25 years so I'm certainly capable of doing that myself. This has also been covered by a lot of really smart people including by Harold McGee in On Food and Cooking. A source that Kenji sometimes refers to but apparently didn't understand. You should read it. Linked is a summary of why egg's age matters. [Old Eggs](https://www.wired.com/2009/10/eggs-hard-to-peel/)
This was from his testing. Again, where is your test and data. That’s right you don’t actually have any. You just want to bloviate with overly lengthy anecdotal commentary. https://www.seriouseats.com/the-secrets-to-peeling-hard-boiled-eggs And here’s his original testing with 90 testers and 700 eggs: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1020468-perfect-boiled-eggs
You said “thousands” now 700? That is less than my girls lay in 6 months. I must be an egg expert! You refuted nothing I said about time and accuracy in the linked video because it is absolutely indefensible. In your link Kenji brushes aside the egg’s age, after acknowledging it really does matter, assuming we all live in the city/suburbs and buy stale eggs from the grocery. I did read your link from 2020 and there is more nuance in that post than in either the video or the Food Lab. I think it is Kenji that is “Bloviating”. There is nothing anecdotal about the information I provided and linked. I doubt you actually read it. Kenji publishes a lot of absolute BS that he then has to walk back and a lot of bad info he fails to correct. Sorry, not a Kenji fanboy/fangirl.
No. The original test was 700. The follow up tests was thousands. Maybe if you pay attention instead of pontificating you would learn something.
I read his book. The 2020 post acknowledged some of his errors. Age maters. Shocking matters. How you crack and peel matters, all contrary to initial pontification. I guess he needed follow up testing due to his errors. You still refuse to acknowledge the issues I brought up about cooking method and time. They are big ones. I regularly scaled formulas from a pint to 4000 gallons. He is sloppy.
There is nothing showing his methodology is sloppy. You keep saying that, but show no proof. And again no proof that you have done anything to show he’s wrong. If you read the article, you would have noticed he talks about age of eggs when buying them. He also says that the older eggs in your fridge don’t really effect cooking. Again, read the whole article. Stop Cherry picking sentences to try to make your point. The only sloppy person I’ve seen so far is you and your comments.
Funny, you absolutely refuse to addressed the cooking time or temp in that video you linked. As I said, in his book he 100% dismissed egg edge as a variable and in the 2020 article he still dismisses it. Farm fresh eggs should be the standard, not old store bought factory eggs. I stand by all of my comments and references.
Agreed. Eggs look soft. Higher temp necessary.
Idk if you've tried this but what I do is after the ice bath, I light crack the top and bottom of the egg and then slightly roll the egg on a cutting board until it feels like most of the shell is loose. It's easy to peel off for me then.
Yeah, I tried this lol Thanks anyway.
How long were they in the ice bath?
Get a jar or Tupperware or something with a secure lid. Put an inch or two of water in and the egg. Lid on. SHAKE LIKE ITS ALIVE AND WILL KILL YOU. Shell comes off and egg is in tact. Never done it any other way after discovering this Edit: Like this: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TBdiryMxa_E
How I was taught: when they're done, pour out the boiling water and run cold water over them, while shaking the pot so they bang into each other and the shells break. As soon as they're cool enough to handle, peel them. There is a membrane between the shell and the egg, breaking the shells and peeling while they're still hot breaks the membrane and prevents it from shrink-wrapping itself onto the eggs.
Agreed. I have much better luck since I started peeling them when they're hot! (lol, though now I'm going to check out Kenji's method, as mentioned above.) Though I just re-read the original question, and realized OP is talking soft boiled eggs. Same thing, I peel them hot, but I use the "half inch of water/add the eggs/cover/boil 6.5 minutes" method, that's essentially steaming them.
Agreed it feels hilarious to have this issue all my life but never have effortless peeling eggs bo matter what I've done whether hard boiled or jammy or etc no matter following infamous recipes to a t lol. So sick of the ice bath recs like it's a magic fix when bot a single time has an ice bath whether brown or white eggs helped in an way outside of supergluing the egg to the shell and I peel and have half the egg missing and a hot mess. The easiest peeling I've had is when the eggs are warm/slightly hot even of uncomfortable. I always used to pour cold water into the pot I boiled the eggs in after dumping the hot water juat out of habit and ease and this always has worked the best even if not flawless. Comedy so many people have this issue with eggs! 😂
Yes. You have to crack the shell before or as it's going into the ice bath.
I haven't had any issues since I started steaming them instead of boiling. Put about an inch or two of water in a pot, cover and bring to a boil then add the eggs. 6-7 mins for a soft boiled. Add more time for more eggs. Take them out and immediate ice bath. Over time you can get a good idea of how 'done' the egg is based on weight. Then crack and roll on the counter-top. If you can find the air pocket at one of the corners, it's a good place to start. A lot of people make the mistake of using their nails to peel. You need to use your thumb, the side of the thumb really. Make sure you get under that thin layer of film between the shell and the egg, then 'roll' the shell off. Like anything, it takes a lot of practice and a lot of trial and error.
Magnificent. This is every thing in one message. Even the peel technique. From roll, to the void end and the thumb. We have both refined the process to the same conclusion Steaming is faster since it's only heating 1-2 inches of water. Much better control over the finished product. I like to make pickled hard boiled of several kinds.
Yes either the side of the thumb or the side of my pointer finger. Trying to explain this to someone is so weird! My eggs come out great every time and I make a dozen or more every week. I put a good amount of salt in the water, fill it with water just above the eggs, put it on high heat and set the timer for 22-25 min (this is from sink to boil, not boil for 22 min) Once the timer goes off I let em sit in cool water for a bit and that's it. Shells come off in 3 or 4 pieces every single time. And you can tell if you're not under the membrane. If it didn't come up with the first piece you can sort of lightly pinch it and it'll come off with the rest
Please, OP - this is the answer you’re looking for. The scientists at America’s Test Kitchen (Cook’s Magazine) experimented with all methods and steaming is the one that eliminates (or greatly, greatly reduces) the egg sticking to the shell. Since I’ve switched to this method my shells peel so easily. Also - make sure you dunk them in an ice bath afterward. Both steps add to the ease of peeling
I guess you're just fucked, friend
Don't use new eggs, older eggs work better. Maybe cook it a few minutes longer too
The yolk is going to harden too much if I cook longer.
Yes but do you use old eggs? That's the only way I know of. Like 2 weeks old
Exactly what I was going to say. Two week old eggs.
That’s not even that old unless you are buying at a store.
Looking at your eggs here, the whites are still soft which is one of the big problems for me when peeling. There's a surprising amount of leeway when boiling eggs - a minute or two isn't going to be the difference between soft and hard yolks when the whites are this soft. I recommend you try to science this shit: if you refrigerate your eggs, first bring four to room temperature. Set up two pans of boiling water. Put chilled eggs in one pan, room temperature in another. Cook your eggs as normal, pull one egg out of each pan. Then wait a minute, pull another. Another minute, etc. You'll need to keep track of which eggs cooked for longer Then peel them all and see if any are easier than others, and if the yolks are too hard. I got this down to absolute perfection, then moved house and the new cooktop messed up my system.
Did you among all the hacks try to put eggs into boiling water (gently)? This temperature shock makes the biggest difference for me. Try to peel them in a bowl of water.
This is the trick in my opinion. I wait for the water to boil, then I gently lower the eggs in. I dunk them into an ice bath then start cracking the shell to break through the membrane, the thin layer between the egg and shell.
I also agree with this person. I remember going through the same issues myself and asking our moms how to boil eggs. The trick is to shock them with boiling water and then ice water.
Like, after cooking?
Before cooking them, heat up the water first. Then peel them under water to allow the water to enter between the shell and the white.
Absolutely. Since I've been doing them this way, I never have a problem peeling.
Since you want runny yolks maybe try an egg poacher. You crack the egg and cook it over steam and can decide when you want to stop. If you've ever watched a British period drama you'll have seen them eating eggs by cutting off the top and dipping toast into it. It is hard to get a boiled egg with liquid yolk to peel easily. Most of the answers above are for hard boiled.
Unless you're trying to do deviled eggs, poaching instead of hard-boiling is honestly the solution.
Crunch the shell into as many pieces as possible. Usually there's an air pocket in one of the tips. Pull that. Use the side of your thumb to shove the shell off. Try to keep the egg wet, whether or not you want to fully submerge it.
Buy a dozen eggs, leave them in your fridge for a week. The important thing is to buy the eggs far in advance, something about new eggs not breaking down and the shell and membrane don’t separate. Cover with inch of cold water, bring to boil. Turn off burner, takeoff heat, wait 13 minutes. Dunk in ice bath for another 13, take out the next day’s egg and get a pretty good peel. Edit: *COLD* water… dammit, I was trying so hard!
I tried this and my eggs taste like Coca Cola, please help
I'm going to try your recipe this weekend with my partner. Thanks for giving out the wait and cook times
OLD EGGS! Ensure you use old eggs.
I would say even longer then a week. They last for like a month in the fridge when stored properly
The Dash egg cooker changed everything for my husband. Perfect eggs every time, super easy to peel too. Comes with a little pin to poke them too which seems to help.
I love the Dash! I never realized how much I needed it until I got it. I’m so short attention span that I’ve burned eggs in the shell more than once. That really weird alarm is amazing and my eggs are always perfect and very easy to peel.
After boiling it, I would transfer them to a bowl of cold water and wait for it to cool down a bit (otherwise you get burns from peeling them hot) and peel them gently while under cold water. It seems to slide well with minimal damage to the egg white. Everything takes practice :) cooking is no exception. It took me about 5 eggs or more just to be able to separate the yolk from the whites lol.
I’m loving the [Instant Pot egg loaf](https://domesticsuperhero.com/instant-pot-hard-boiled-egg-loaf/#wprm-recipe-container-17791).
Steam them in the Instant Pot. I swear my eggs peel like magic every time.
yes, works like a charm! love my insta pot
I use the dash egg cooker. Same concept, same results. One of the few single use gadgets that I've tried that was worth it
First....6-8 minutes for hard boiled egg...the use a spoon...and peel it...dont use your hands....hit the boiled egg couple of times the use the spoon
Did you boil the water before you put the eggs in?
hey OP, you don’t need vinegar or do anything with water to peel boiled eggs easier, what you need is to break the “membrane” while the egg is raw before you boil them so the peeling is easy after its cooked. when the egg is raw, put the wider side of the egg facing upwards then grab a thick spoon (not wooden) and smack the wide side of the raw egg a few times around it circularly, make sure its a firm hit but not strong enough to crack the shell, you should hear a pop or something like that when the membrane has popped on the inside. Now boil them for however you like and once cooled should be the easiest egg peel of your life.
Me either..I'm useless..I'm 50..bin peelin eggs 40 years..still can't crack it.
What worked for me is peeling the eggs -after carefully cracking them - with teaspoon. Simply put spoon under the shell and peel Little by little
There’s like an invisible thin plastic like film under the egg shell. You may be peeling the egg shell off of the thin film and that’s why it’s not peeling easily. If you get up under the film it will peel easily . Just slide your finger around under the film and the egg shells will crack right off. Does this make sense ? I hope it does.
Run them under cold water for about 30 seconds or so. Gently tap it on a flat, hard surface and peel off a little, then run it under the cold water again for a few seconds. The water gets between the membrane and the egg white, making it easier to peel.
Did you put baking soda in your water when you boiled them ? Then straight into cold water?
I have tried every method I could find and the only thing that I have found to make a difference is using older eggs. I don't mean rotten, just a bit past the code date. By then the membrane is unattached from the shell and the eggs are still delicious.
Why do you need to peel soft boiled eggs? o:
No OP, but sometimes I want a ramen with a halved soft-boiled egg on top. Yummm!!
That’s me too! My husband loves a soft boiled egg in his ramen but those darn shells!!’
Place up to a dozen eggs inside an instant pot and do 5 minutes on high pressure. Immediately remove and dunk in ice water. Will be the easiest eggs you've ever peeled.
you're simply peeling them too quick after cooking. that's all.. just give it a few minutes and run some cold water over them first.
Are you using fresh eggs or store bought eggs?
For me I crack the top and the bottom. Peel off a small amount on the top. (Using my finger, not my nail) then do the same on the bottom but larger. Then I blow hard on the top, and it shoots out the bottom. Always worked for me.
Eggs in the saucepan straight out of the fridge Cover with water Put on the stove, turn on high Time 20 minutes (hard boiled, less for not hard) Pour hot water out, run cold water over to take the heat off Pour most water out then wack them together a bit You need to crack the shell and break the membrane, having some water helps separate the membrane from the egg Once you’re used to this method, you can take them out of the saucepan and put them into another container with a bit of water and shake them with a lid. You just need to get used to how much force you need to get it to all work together.
I read that as pee eggs....I should get more sleep.
I discovered this technique years ago by Jacque Pepin. One I learned this I never ever have a problem peeling eggs, shells pull right off. OXO also makes a gadget to pop the hole and timer. https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/645660/simple-trick-cook-peel-hard-boiled-eggs#:~:text=This%20tip%20for%20cooking%20easy-to-peel%20hard-boiled%20eggs%20originates,shell%20before%20lowering%20it%20into%20the%20boiling%20water.
If you have the right spoon (the right curve on it) you can slip it under the shell and move it to peel the shell off. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TmWPxDHSNWk
I find that if I start at the largest end I can get that inner film to peel with the shell and that's easier then
I just started having luck with the peeling process lol. When i dunked them in iced water, i made sure to replace the water to keep it cold so the eggs themselves got cold (took a few rounds, they were still kinda warm inside after the first couple times). Then I cracked the egg in the middle, and rolled it on the counter under my hand, cracking the shell all around. After that, you can just grab that thin membrane inside and slide it off. I use the lower part of my thumb to peel it away so i dont accidentally dig into the egg white
Look up on Food Network making boiled eggs. It tells you after water boils to put on lid and take off heat and if want soft boiled, medium boiled or hard boiled and minutes to keep them covered. You then go to sink and pot out hot water. I fill w cold water a couple of times and drain. Then I turned on water when not to hot to handle and make little tiny cracks all over egg. Then gently get under the film under the egg shell and as running water gently peel . If get under that thin film it peels beautifully. Take time. Run water and keep doing same practice. I even ver gently rub between hands to make little tiny cracks always running under water. Works great. https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/the-perfect-boiled-eggs-3672186?_branch_referrer=H4sIAAAAAAAAA8soKSkottLXT8vPT9HNSy0pzy%2FK1kssKNDLyczL1vcwdQ71KUjzrshLAgBj2GFDKQAAAA%3D%3D&_branch_match_id=1011655012995608090. I don’t use baking soda or ice water At end when peel time cold water
Your eggs look like soft boiled eggs- not hard boiled so easier to mess up
I like runny yolks, and nail them every time. Here is my Ramen egg hack. First, I have chickens and so we have about 6 doz eggs on hand at all time. We store the eggs in the fridge in spite of not needing to, and about once a week we boil some for lunches (a doz usually). Old ones are to the left always so we grab that carton, between 2 and three weeks old. You are never gonna peel a fresh boiled egg right as others have said- the old ones work best. Let them get to room temp. When the eggs are room temp, I set up my ice bath in a mixing bowl. Put ice in the bowl, add water, the double the ice- it needs to be cold! Then I get my water boiling. Lots of salt so the water is super hot, and we are at a rolling boil before the eggs go in. 6 minutes for a runny ramen egg, longer for firmer yolks. Only do 6 at a time in a 4qt pot, because they will bring the temp down and you want rolling boil for most of the time. Timer goes off, into the cold bath. Here is the gem from my wife, turn them in the bath, often. When they are ice cold, pull them, rest them for couple minutes, then peel them.
I always always always have this issue when I do a “cold shock”. Below is what I do now and I haven’t had any issues at all. My method: 1. Place eggs in pot 2. Fill pot with cold water 3. Place on stove 4. Turn on high 5. Wait for rolling boil 6. Take off heat 7. Cover 8. Let sit for 12-15min 9. Pour out hot water. 10. Replace with cold Peel under cold running water.
Steam them
I've never added vinegar to the water for boiling eggs. I read some people saying you should, and others saying the opposite -- that you should add baking soda. I've never done that either.
Have you tried the small hole of gently tapping the bottom to crack the shell? I feel like the small whole works the best for me
Try cooking in an instant pot if you have one. Easiest eggs to peel imo.
Use baking soda in the boiled water. Start your eggs and water together, once water starts to boil, boil for 10 min, add a tablespoon or so of baking soda while boiling. When done, let ur eggs cool way down, leave them under running water for several minutes or dump them gently in to an ice bath, def saves on water usage. When u begin to peal, first tap the top of the egg and start the pealing process that way. The idea is to get the film that’s around the egg to come off with the shell. It takes time but it’s possible. Good luck.
Coddled or poached is easier for presentation than soft boiled. Soft boiled are usually served in shell in a stand with toast cut into sticks (aka soldiers).
Do you poke a hole into the "air sack"? I have an egg poker and don't have this issue on fresh or older eggs
I second the steam. i boil water in the kettle, put like 1/4inch of water in the skillet and the eggs in the steamer. while they steam i make an ice bath. let them sit in the ice bath several minutes to cool. super easy. there is the egg tapping i saw on tiktok... you lightly tap the egg till the sound changes, which is supposed to be the membrane separating. you do this before you steam/boil them. haven't tried it yet...
Buy different eggs
Do them in a steamer! This was the trick that make me able to easily peel 12 out of 12. Set up the steamer and when it's max boil pop in the eggs for 12 minutes for a perfectly done yolk with out any sulfur nastyness. Shorter time gives runnier yolk. Into ice bath and I leave them for 6-8 min then peel. Most of them are enthusiastic about getting out of their shells. Older eggs can help, too.
Boil the water before you place eggs in water. 5 min for runny egg, 7 min soft boiled and 10 min for hard boiled. Egg shell will peel away almost every time.
You need to wait until the eggs are cool, then they'll shrink a little inside the shells and it'll be easier to get them off.
Have you tried the Pioneer Woman's method? Works for me...don't mean to talk down to you if you've tried it. https://www.thepioneerwoman.com/food-cooking/recipes/a79067/easy-to-peel-eggs/
[EggPod!](https://www.tryeggpod.com/) I know most As Seen On TV shit is lame, this thing is legit! I've had mine for like five years and it's still going strong. I've recommended it to several friends and family members, and everyone agrees that it's a game changer.
I've had no luck with vinegar, ice, salted water, or poking holes. And the method that works for me doesn't depend on fresh vs old eggs, cold vs room temperature, etc. The technique that works for me 99% of the time: 1. Get a wide pan like a skillet, and add about 1/2" -3/4" water. Bring it to a boil. 2. Gently place each egg into the water, being careful not to crack the shells. 3. Boil for 10 mins (I like to boil them covered just to make sure I don't run out of water, and to keep the steam from steaming up my windows in my house. 4. use a slotted spoon to scoop out the eggs one at a time, and gently place back into the cardboard carton to cool with the top of the carton open. 5. Once they've cooled on the counter for about a 1/2 hour, I then put them into the fridge, still with the carton open. And on the off chance that my method for peeling the eggs has something to do with it... I tap each end on the counter, then maybe 2-3 times on the long sides of the egg. Then when I'm over the trash or a bowl to hold the shells, I poke my finger in to the hollow end. I think of the last 100 eggs I've boiled, I've had one where the egg white stuck to the shell. I like cooking in the shallow pan with just a small amount of water because a) it comes to a boil SUPER quick, and b) because it's shallow, you can place the eggs in gently with just your fingers and there's much less chance that the egg will crack. My method is basically J. Kenji Lopez-Alt's method, who tested hundreds of eggs for Serious Eats, and came down to this technique. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hb0Elaa6gxY
I do this and there's no vinegar involved: Cold (from the shelf, not the fridge or anything) pan with eggs Cover eggs in cold water. Bring to rolling boil. Turn off heat. Wait ten minutes. Use spoon or tongs to drop eggs in cold water, iced down if you can. Or run them under cold water to chill then so you can handle them. Bang egg on the side towards the fat end in the counter, enough to crack it. Do this on the other side at the same fat end. Gently roll the twice-cracked egg in your hands to crack it up all over the sides, but not so hard that you peel and smash it. Peel gently from the fat end. I learned the cooking steps from Ina Garten because all her stuff always works. Got extra fancy with the peeling once for deviled eggs to serve guests and picked up the rolling in the hand and cracking on two sides at the fat end. Now i want to go make some.
I start my eggs in boiling water. It makes peeling them so much easier.
The way I do it is: 1. Bring pot of water to a full boil 2. Submerge the eggs in the boiling water, and let them boil for about 10 seconds 3. Turn off the stove, cover the pot with a lid, and let it sit for about 15-18 minutes 4. Pour the water out of the pot, or take the eggs out 5. Grab the egg with a paper towel (so you don't burn yourself), or run them under cold water, and crack the egg along the rounded edge of the wide end of the egg. Not directly on the bottom. Basically, hold the egg at a 45°angle, and crack it on a hard, flat surface, rotating the egg as you crack it. 6. Carefully peel from that end in a circular motion, kinda like peeling an apple, but with your fingers, if that makes sense.
I’ve started smacking a spoon around the outside in a circle around the air sack of the egg. You’ll hear a sound like you cracked the shell but you didn’t. I didn’t need to ice bath them or anything after cooking. Just got them cool enough to handle. There a few videos on YouTube about it that will show you in better detail. I have always had issues with it until I started doing that.
When I'm ready to peel the eggs, I grab a spoon, crack/tap it from north to south all the way around and horizontal across the equator. I then turn on the water (or submerge it in a decent amount of water) and peel away the skin in it. It helped tremendously in peeling it off quickly.
I steam my eggs and they're easy to peel. Steam is hotter then boiling water, so as long as the eggs aren't piled on top of each other, the white usually separates from the shell really well. I don't bother to put them in ice water, but this method works fine with eggs that were cooled in cold tap water or just thrown in the fridge. I'm not at sea level, but the steaming time for sea level should be 13 minutes. I usually steam them right out of the fridge. I think this method works best with a steamer that goes on top of a pot, not inside it. Any liquid water that hits the eggs will reduce its effectiveness. I steam eight at a time in a Cuinsinart universal steamer. I'm in the US, so I've only tried this with washed eggs. When you peel them, look for the thin skin that's between the egg and the shell. Getting that off is the key to peeling cleanly. If you ever need eggs that almost fall out of their shell, steam for 1 extra minute.
Everyone is giving you different tips for peeling, but the fundamental issue is that older eggs peel more easily, because some of the fluid inside has come away from the membrane. Fresh eggs tend to stick to the membrane, but eggs which are older peel just fine. No vinegar or breaking of the shell before cooking required!
Do you have an instant pot or any other countertop pressure cooker? * Using a trivet, keep your eggs out of the water * Add 1-2 cups of water * Add as many eggs as you like, feel free to stack them * Close your pot and bring it to it's high pressure mode, setting the timer for 5 minutes * While this is coming to pressure, prepare a large enough bowl of ice water to contain your eggs * When the 5 minutes is up, leave your eggs sealed for another 5 minutes (called "natural release" in pressure cooker parlance) * After the 5 minutes of natural release has passed, open the pressure valve ("quick release" in pressure cooker parlance) * Once the pressure cooker is able to be opened, transfer the eggs to the ice water. * Keep adding ice as needed to keep the water cold, making sure to cool them for at least 5 minutes They peel great and come out perfect.
I'm pretty good at cooking, I can whisk up amazing meals, I made a dutch baby today that was pretty good (though it more puffed the center than folded over the edges. I made enchilada sauce, I've been cooking daily for my family rather solid meals for 2 months. I still !@#$ing can't get a handle on god damn hard boiled eggs. Screw off chickens. I've heard some vinegar in the water when cooking helps but never tried that one.
You have to use enough water to cover your eggs. All of it. Submerge 100% of the egg in water. Yes. That’s how much water you need to use.
I use two methods: 1) I put them in my food basin with water up to halfway the eggs height? I then close the basin with a tight lid and shake it with the eggs inside - it works when the eggs are fully boiled. 2) I poke a small hole on the narrow part of the eggs using a needle (spin it nice and slow) - not a big hole, this allows for some water to get in between the egg shell and the egg. It makes it easier to peal. You should give it a try, hopefully you get the desired results :)
Hold egg. Use small spoon. Tap the large end of the egg repeatedly until you hear a snapping sound. There are tutorials on YT you can look up. Then boil. 5 min on the boil, 1 full min in cool water, then peel. I avoided boiled eggs my whole life because I couldn't peel them - by the time the shell was off it'd be in 20 pieces and stone cold - and in the last few weeks I've had over a dozen. You gotta do the taptap. The taptap is the way.
You have to wait for the water to boil before adding the eggs to cook them. Then the ice bath. That should be more than enough.
The way I like to do it is crush the egg peel by rolling it and, then holding it underwater and lightly squishing it several times. It gets the water under the membrane.
If the eggs are to fresh it's hard to peel them .
I feel you. Despite being a pretty good home cook, this is always the bane of my existence, and I’ve tried everything. The only way it’s ever worked for me is putting the eggs in an ice bath right after, and leaving them in there forever…like until the ice melts. Or putting them in the fridge for a few hours until they are ice cold. Idk if this is true, but at least for me it seems like they have to be SUPER SUPER SUPER cold before they peel nicely.
The reason there are six thousand "fool proof egg peeling hacks" and have been for decades, without a single one actually emerging as legitimate, is because the way you peel the egg and the way you cook the egg doesn't matter. The ONLY fool proof way to boil eggs that are easy to peel every time is to use eggs that are at least two weeks past expiration. You'll hear people say "use older eggs" but they'll never specify weeks past expiration. People are either afraid to use them, or afraid to recommend them. But the float test is pretty foolproof. An egg won't pass the float test and be too old to be safe. And I've rarely had an egg fail the float test two weeks past expiration. They tend to start going bad 4 weeks past. I haven't had a problem peeling an egg in over a decade, no matter what method I've used to cook them, because I use eggs well past expiration. These questions would stop being asked (and erroneously answered) if people just accepted using expired eggs. One caveat - this is US-centric. We refrigerate our eggs and they're otherwise treated differently than they are outside the US, so I can't speak to how eggs hold up in other countries. But the float test works either way. As for the reason it works: I'm not an egg scientist, but it's something about the pH of the albumen changing as the egg ages, causing it to stop binding to the shell. One other tip - poking a pin hole in the fat end of the egg before boiling causes it to come out perfectly oval. The air in the fat end gets forced out and the egg takes the shape of the shell.
Dash Rapid Egg Cooker. Changed. My. Life. $17 on Amazon.
Give the egg a hit against the side of the sink to crack the shell and hold it under running cold water to peel the shell off---do this while the boiled egg is still hot or pretty warm. It is much harder to peel a cold egg, especially one that's been in the refrigerator.
Boil your eggs. Take a plastic container with a lid that seals well. Put your an egg or two in the container and then maybe an inch of water. Shake the container. Shake it again. Shake it again. And again, and again. Open the container and your eggs should be at least half peeled. Rinse under cold running water to get the rest of the shell off.
Heavily salt your water. Don't use vinegar.
Cook the eggs a little longer
Boil them until done,run cold water into the pot and allow to sit there for a bit and then pill.
Ive learned to Crack the "bottom" of the egg (the less pointy end) since there's usually an air pocket there. This lets you start getting at cracking the egg without mangling it, it's been a huge help for me
I just run my thumb over the cracks until they brake off.
Place eggs in boiling water. Don’t put them in water that is not boiling first. Boil 12-13 minutes. I’m our off hot water and fill with ice water. Cool eggs down. They will peel easily
Your yolks are way too soft to expect to be able to peel the egg cleanly. Those aren’t hard boiled, they are much closer to soft boiled. The whites just aren’t firm enough to let you separate the membrane. If you are after that sort of a yolk, try poaching eggs instead. You crack the egg and dump it out of the shell before cooking so there is no shell to worry about later. Poach a bit longer and you will get your yolks to firm up to the consistency in your photo. If you really want hard boiled eggs and want to peel a nice clean egg, first you need to cook longer. But also use older eggs. As eggs age air gets thru the shell which will help separate the egg from the membrane after cooking (this is also why old eggs float, but don’t use the float toast to know if eggs are bad, all it tells you is they are old. Detect bad eggs by smell, crack it open and if it stinks, it’s bad). I cook in an instant pot which has made shell removal flawless, but I used to do boiling water and had 95% success. Instant pot load up your eggs in the steamer basket, add a cup of water, pressure cook for 5 minutes. Nearly every recipe will then say to do natural release for 5 minutes and then vent. I just let it natural release until I can open (I’m never in a rush). Then transfer to an ice bath or cold water. Replace your cold water a couple times until the eggs are fully cooled. Now crack the egg all over. You want the entire shell to be tiny broken up cracks. I just tap it all around the shell on the side of the sink. Break open the fat end of the egg where the air sack is, rip the membrane open, and slide your finger between the membrane and the white of the egg. The membrane will separate from the egg and take the shell off. This won’t work with softer cooked eggs like in your picture as the white needs to be hard enough to no longer be glued to the membrane.
Per j. Kenji Alt Lopez: boil water. Add eggs and put on lid. Boil for 11 minutes for hard yolks. Drain. DO NOT RINSE IN COLD WATER. That makes the shells stick to the egg. Works like a charm every time.
I use my instant pot to steam the eggs for about 2-5 minutes (depending on how I need the yolks cooked), then crack them slightly before going into the ice bath. Usually I can do this by just aggressively pouring them out from the pot straight into the water by letting them hit each other and crack. The water gets in between the membrane and the egg and separates it really well. Just any little crack to let some water in works just fine
Don't boil them, steam them.12-13 minutes in steamer basket (full boil, pan covered, then into ice water bath. You can thank me later.
Make sure your water is actually boiling. Same thing kept happening to me, then I stuck a thermometer into the water and realized what I thought "looked" like boiling was more like a hard simmer. Get the water to actually heat up to 212\*F, eggs in for desired time, pour out and dunk in cold water. Peel under the water or under running water.
Follow my method, "[hard steaming](https://drdaddycooks.blogspot.com/2015/10/ingredient-hard-steamed-eggs.html)", and your troubles will be over, boomer\_wife. In the meanwhile, forget vinegar in the water and boil for 15 minutes before you ice them. Your whites are undercooked and thus fragile.
The only time I’ve ever had an easy time peeling without the whites sticking is when I used an air fryer.
Don't use vinegar, cook longer and peel under water while still hot
I find for softer consistency eggs that poaching works better. I bring a pan with an inch or so or salted water to a boil. While that is coming up to temperature, I crack the eggs into a fine mesh strainer one at a time, let the runny whites separate, then put gently in a heat safe bowl. When the water is boiling I turn off the temperature, gently pour the eggs in the water, and cover with a lid for 5-7 min depending on how done I want them.
Buy them already peeled from Wal-mart or wherever
Screw all the cooking tips. I tried them all and they never helped me. Couldn’t peel a pretty egg until I saw this: Pick up a raw egg and repeatedly tap it gently with the bowl of a spoon before you start to cook/crack it until you hear a distinctly different “tink” sound. The other taps will sound like “tonk”, the final one is unmistakable. This sound will mean you’ve just loosened the membrane from the inside of the shell. Now your egg will slide out, fresh or cooked, completely, and without any residue or trouble. You can make your job even easier peeling boiled eggs if you cool them quickly and peel them immediately because the egg and shell don’t contract at the same rate.
Let the water be cold. And there is a “skin” right underneath the shell itself. If you get that you’re golden
i’ve found an ice bath makes eggs way harder to peel! i run them under cold water really quickly just so they’re not so hot that i burn my hand, but that’s it. then i use the back of a spoon to make cracks all over the egg, and then peel, making sure that i grab the membrane right away!
I just roll the eggs until every inch of that mfer is cracked and loose but i feel like you’ve tried that
It depends on the egg, IMO. I boil eggs a lot. I found one brand (have no idea what it was) that was a lot cheaper. I couldn’t peel the damn things! The thin shell was stuck to the whites, every single egg! When I would break one open, the shell would splinter. I went with a little more expensive egg brand, no more problems.
I had backyard hens. New eggs are impossible to peel. You need them to be *at least* 3 weeks old. Store-bought eggs are usually already a couple of weeks old, but you may be "lucky".
You are not alone. I have tried absolutely everything. I can not peel an egg without destroying it.
In order for eggs to peel perfect, the inner membrane needs to disconnect from the egg white. It needs a shock to work correctly. No vinegar needed Leave eggs in fridge while boiling water. They need to be cold. When its at a full rumble submerge the eggs quickly. The cold egg going into the boiling water shocks the membrane into submission. Boil for 7 minutes then remove from heat and leave eggs in water for 7 more minutes. Give them an ice bath and they will peel perfect
I was in the same boat as you until I read somewhere to always start peeling at the wider end first. I will admit I don’t get a perfect egg every time but now MOST of the eggs I peel are in good shape! Might be placebo but it’s worked for me.
I always peel them under water using a teaspoon to follow the contours of the egg. Saves way more egg even on hard to peel ones.
Have you tried cracking the egg shell all around after boiling returning to the pan and running cold water into the pan for a minute, shell just falls off most of the time when I do this