# how to peel hard boiled eggs



## redon (Jan 26, 2009)

I love hard boiled eggs and I noticed lately, that when I peel them the shell sticks and I remove most of the egg white. Does anyone know what I am doing wrong. I cook my eggs for 7 minutes exactly. 

Thanks 

Redon:suprise:


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## Guest (Jun 22, 2010)

A couple of things to try:

Use older eggs, those tend to peel easier.  Add a bit of baking soda to the water, that does something to cause the white to bond to itself rather than the shell (but can enhance the sulfur smell).  Chill the eggs after boiling.  Heaps of salt in the water seems to work in place of baking soda.

Myself, I just bring the eggs to a boil, immediately cut the heat, cover and leave to sit for 10 minutes afterwards, rinse, chill and peel.

Justin


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## sockpuppetdoug (Jun 22, 2010)

Another thing that might help is peeling the eggs under running water.  The shell membrane often lifts easier from the egg whites that way.  Just be sure you have a filter over the drain or a garbage disposal.  Egg shells are notorious for clogging pipes.

+D.


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## maryb (Mar 21, 2008)

Once the eggs are cooked empty the hot water from the pan then put the pan under cold running water. Shake the pan around to crack the shells and let the eggs cool down. Peel fairly easy after doing this. I also use salt in the water. Old eggs are better but the ones you get from the store have usually been in storage a week or more already.


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## seaside (May 2, 2010)

Hope this helps. I use this method as like using very fresh eggs, once they are boiled and completely cooled as mentioned previously, with the palm of your hand roll them over the work surface pressing on them gently, until the shell cracks evenly all over, they will be ready to peel much more easily now. /img/vbsmilies/smilies/redface.gif


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## onei (Jun 14, 2010)

Yes, as Seaside says roll the egg over the work surface until the shell is cracked evenly all over. The shell will probably stay attached to the membrane making peeling much easier.


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## celie (Jul 1, 2010)

Hold under cold running water, crack shell all over, it will all peel off so easily.


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## chefedb (Apr 3, 2010)

To All. There is no such thing as a hard boiled egg. The word is misused. Don't believe me ? check with American Egg Board.


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## russellnewnham (May 26, 2010)

I use iced water personally especially if doing a heap of them, commercially I steam my eggs less drama than mucking around with boiling water and can leave the eggs in the carton or tray depending on how they come to me. So I suppose I do hard steamed eggs not hard boiled.While we are on eggs can anybody tell me what the difference in feed to the chooks between Amercia and Australia as your American eggs are so yellow when raw and our Aussie eggs are more of a orangey colour, who is feeding thier chooks dodgey food OZ or USA or both?


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## eliza (Jun 3, 2010)

when i boil eggs, after 3-4mins, i crack the eggs a bit, just a small crack, to make cooking faster. when the egg white sticks out then it's cooked. then remove it from the hot water then let it stay in cold water a few seconds, when it's already cool then you can already crack open the egg and viola! perfect hard-boiled egg!

--

i started my bakery with HTSB


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## chefedb (Apr 3, 2010)

Our feed in most cases probably contains more additives and hormones then yours, which I do not think is good.


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

Yolk color usually has more to do with the type of chicken than the feed. 

However, the egg industry (in the US, at least) has shifted towards feed containg less calcium.  If you (as a US resident) has noticed that egg shells are thinner and more difficult to peel -- that's why.

BDL


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## garnette (Jun 29, 2010)

does any one know how to make a salad dressing out of a boiled egg pls.? I know my Uncle use to make a Penguin with black olives and carrots as the legs the only thing is that i can't remember how he use to make it but it looked great !!!!!!!!!


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## ethanwaber (Jun 26, 2010)

Nice info, thanks


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## nisa5759 (Dec 7, 2009)

I've used this technique for at least 18 years and it works 98% of the time depending on the age of the eggs.  I usually use the same technique that someone mentioned about bringing the egg completely covered in salted water to a boil, take it off heat then keep covered for the desired minutes according to your preference.  Then I simply drain all of the water off then vigorously shake the pot.

The next step is to swirl the eggs around in the pot which breaks up most of the surface of the egg's shell.  I immediately shock the shell with ice cold water and let it sit for a few minutes which will usually separate the membrane from the surface of the egg and stops the egg from cooking any further. I then peel them while holding them underneath the cold water which makes everything slide off easier.

This is not recommended for soft boiled eggs of course.

This usually works very well for me.


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## sockpuppetdoug (Jun 22, 2010)

Nica:  that's the same method that I've seen Jacque Pepin use when he's cooking three or more eggs.  Agreed: it works beautifully.


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## sockpuppetdoug (Jun 22, 2010)

On the subject of boiling eggs:  I've also seen one chef poke a hole in one end of the egg (forget which end) to let the air escape so that the occasional leakage doesn't happen as it heats.  No fun peeling a partially exploded egg.


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## carriei (Jun 15, 2010)

I use cold water and salt. Also let it cool for a few moments to avoid cracking.


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## cookpiper (Jul 6, 2010)

MaryB said:


> Once the eggs are cooked empty the hot water from the pan then put the pan under cold running water. Shake the pan around to crack the shells and let the eggs cool down. Peel fairly easy after doing this. I also use salt in the water. Old eggs are better but the ones you get from the store have usually been in storage a week or more already.


Yeah same here. I do exactly how MaryB peeled the eggs but minus the salt. Well, i might try it next time for a smooth and perfect peeling.


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## dgasler (Jun 10, 2010)

I have an egg question...

I have always thought that brown eggs were better tasing than white eggs.

anyone disagree? and why?

Don.


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## silvercliff46 (Jul 10, 2010)

My friend raises chickens. I get mine so fresh I need to wash them before using.  Yeah they are a bear to peel.  I will have to try the suggestions here.  By the way he says the only thing different between brown eggs, and white eggs is the color.

Oh yeah "Hi" this is my first post.


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## Guest (Jul 22, 2010)

salted ice water shocks the membrane. you salt the water so that the water reaches below zero temperatures. crack the shell to enhance the cooling of the egg itself. baking soda softens the water. not the egg.


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## oldisbest (Jul 4, 2010)

I posed this very question to a large egg producer.

The answer was quite convoluted, but any way.

It apparently depends upon the type of bird that laid the egg and the freshness.

A fresh egg tends to "push" on the shell when boiled making it tougher to peel, and an older egg having lost some moisture does not thus easier. A pin hole in the bottom (wider part) will eliminate cracking when cooked, but will not make it easier to peel.

I buy eggs from a lady that raises Bantams and when boiled the shell just peels off even if the egg was laid the same day and the yolks are bright orange; they are fed natural grains and not corporate hen food.

Thus there is no slick fail safe method to shell an egg and the simplest of all foods still provokes questions.


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## oldisbest (Jul 4, 2010)

There was a dressing popular in the UK dating from WW2, my mother used to call it "Mimosa dressing" it was made using dried eggs a little oil, vinegar, a pinch of mustard and salt and pepper. The recipe was later refined or reverted to its original form using hard boiled eggs instead of the dried variety. The resultant dressing was a little like pasty mayo, but quite tasty nonetheless.


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## titomike (May 20, 2009)

Using cooked/pasteurised yolks in mayo can give a little more confidence if you want to take potato salad to a bbq in the heat...

This guy seems to have used his PhD to sort it out...


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## Guest (Jul 23, 2010)

...so we were costing the labor on boiled eggs today and I managed to peel 100 eggs in 17 minutes (5.88 eggs a minute). Anyone else have egg peeling times or a good target to be at?


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## chefedb (Apr 3, 2010)

From things I have read in some books and articles  the original 1000 Island dressing contained chopped hard cooked eggs.Thats why it was called 1000 isle because when on a plate it reminded one of islands floating n the ocean, For that matter the original Russian dressing was red caviar and sour cream. some mayo ..  Over the years both became Americanized


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## silvercliff46 (Jul 10, 2010)

Quote:


Justin Thomas said:


> ...so we were costing the labor on boiled eggs today and I managed to peel 100 eggs in 17 minutes (5.88 eggs a minute). Anyone else have egg peeling times or a good target to be at?


Takes me that long to do a dozen.

Wasn't there some sort of gadget, where you placed the egg in a small cup shapped thingy, pumped another thingy, which supposedly blew air between the shell and egg = "TaDA" the shell all, but fell off???? No I'm not thinking of the "In-the-shell-scrambler" this was for hard boiled eggs.


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## venom (Jan 12, 2010)

Not getting into the food chemistry but boiling eggs a shorter, high heat cook causes the negative reaction of the sulfur and iron in the eggs. This produces the dark ring outside the yolk and the strong sulfur smell. I found a much harder time peeling the eggs when this happens.

Place eggs in pot, add water one inch above eggs and bring to a rapid boil. Once boiling, remove from heat and cover for 17 minutes. Drain hot water and add very cold tap water. For me, this method has never produced that dark ring and strong egg smell and is easier to peel.

When eggs are cool enough to handle, cracks eggs thoroughly all the way around and place back in the cold water. Let eggs set in the cold water for at least 10 to 30 minutes. Water will get under the membrane between the white and the cracked shell and peel much easier.

I tried piercing the eggs before the cook and ice in the water to super chill the eggs after the cook and both steps were unnecessary IMO.

I absolutely hate kitchen gadgets as cluttered drawers and cabinets aggravate the hell out of me. I like the KISS method, however, I used one of these at a friend's house for making a ton of deviled eggs and it was super fast. Poor quality gadget and I would never buy one but it was fast.

http://www.eggstractor.net/


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## silvercliff46 (Jul 10, 2010)

I know what you mean about junk gadgits. I hate them, and the drawers I have full of them! Thanks for the link, ya gotta know it will end up in one of my drawers./img/vbsmilies/smilies/wink.gif


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## Guest (Aug 28, 2010)

I always buy free range eggs. Hopefully they are fed better..Nowadays (Aug '10) the US is hard hit by salmonella scare and Im wondering if it will affect us in Canada in BC particulary.


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## vohrtex (Apr 21, 2009)

Several Points:

egg shell color is dependent on the eye color of the chicken, hence Araucana eggs are pink and blue. And you have to ask for them at my farmer's market. Color doesn't affect taste, in my opinion.

yolk color is heavily influenced by diet. the eggs at my parent's house are much more orange, and the chickens graze the farm. Varied diet equals richer color. But again, just personal experience.

I like the start in cld water, boil, kill heat, wait and shake pan method discussed. Always 90% good results.


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## robertwhite (Aug 13, 2010)

Hi..!!

The age of the egg is the most important factor in ease of peeling, and overcooking is the main reason for a discolored yolk.


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## fooddiaryuser (Jun 29, 2010)

This is great info...I bring eggs to a boil and then let sit for 10 min or until water is cooled down and eggs are perfect and yoke is fluffy. Then when the eggs are completely cooled I peel them.

I also wash my eggs before I use them...I have to wash my hands anyway, so I wash the eggs and then after I crack them into the bowl I wash off my hands. Hmmm sounding a little OCD...I didn't know eggs were not washed before being packaged.


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## Guest (Sep 4, 2010)

I'm going to try this shake technique. I've tried baking soda with no success. I've tried fresh eggs and eggs one month past the date with no difference. I've tried every iteration of full boil, simmer, covered uncovered, on heat heat off heat that anyone has posted and still _always _the same crummy results.

I can say 10 years ago, I _never _had a problem with boiled eggs, _*never*_. But in the last 10 years, every egg I have boiled, and I mean _every_, 15-50% of the egg ends up gong down the garbage disposal while I'm peeling, And I've noticed in the past 10 years the membrane does *not *come off easily like it used to. :-\

-AJ


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## silvercliff46 (Jul 10, 2010)

Ya know, I got to agree with you........, what's that about.



AJ Huff said:


> I'm going to try this shake technique. I've tried baking soda with no success. I've tried fresh eggs and eggs one month past the date with no difference. I've tried every iteration of full boil, simmer, covered uncovered, on heat heat off heat that anyone has posted and still _always _the same crummy results.
> 
> I can say 10 years ago, I _never _had a problem with boiled eggs, _*never*_. But in the last 10 years, every egg I have boiled, and I mean _every_, 15-50% of the egg ends up gong down the garbage disposal while I'm peeling, And I've noticed in the past 10 years the membrane does *not *come off easily like it used to. :-\
> 
> -AJ


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## katya (Sep 6, 2010)

Hi!

What I do, and it works like 90% of the time, is to add a bit of salt to cold water, bring it to a boil, and then add the eggs to a roiling boil, very carefully obviously. I use a large spoon to lower them into the water gently, so they don't crack. Most every time I have no membrane problems with this method!


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## bobbleheadbob (Apr 30, 2010)

I have found that steaming eggs is by far the best way to cook eggs for easy peeling.

If you have a rice cooker use that, if not, just use a steaming basket.

I live at 8,000 altitude and steam for 25 minutes so a little shorter time at sea level.

Chill in ice water or under running cold water and then peel.

Most of the time my shells come off  in one piece held to together by the membrane

.

Best 2 Ya

Bobbleheadbob


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## Guest (Nov 21, 2010)

I think I am going to have to try this steaming method. I am almost ashamed to admit it but the only way I have found to make easy-to-peel, tear free boiled eggs is this:



I was skeptical at first but it works every time! Who knew? Ten minutes for hard boiled. Only draw back is sometimes the divot is in the side of the egg instead of the bottom. And it only does 4 eggs at a time.

-AJ


bobbleheadbob said:


> I have found that steaming eggs is by far the best way to cook eggs for easy peeling.
> 
> If you have a rice cooker use that, if not, just use a steaming basket.
> 
> ...


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## idaclaire (Nov 11, 2010)

i agree, the age is what matters most. Old eggs don't peel ..cooking with a few drops of white vinegar in the water is how i learnedto boil an egg


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## down2earth (Nov 22, 2010)

Drop the hot eggs in ice water to stop the cooking process. This is also tightens the proteins (shrinkage). Then, I usually roll the egg all around on a hard surface to cause many fractures all over the shell. Then, it should easily slip right off.


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