Just so everyone knows before I launch - I am a charter member of this web site. I visit it frequently and recommend it incessantly.
Meathead is always interested in dispelling cooking myths, so I thought I would take care of one he seems to have missed.
There is a method of hard cooking eggs that has been 100% successful for me, and it isn't the one listed on this site. In addition, the picture on the "colorful pickled eggs" recipe shows eggs that were cooked incorrectly (yolks with green edges).
The "myth" is that if your boiled eggs don't peel easily, it is likely that the eggs are too fresh. I would never recommend using old eggs, and it isn't age but rather method that determines how easy they are to peel. In addition, if you overcook them, you risk a reaction between the sulphur and the iron in the eggs, which will turn the edges of the yolks green. To see this reaction, check the picture of the eggs in the recipe mentioned above.
The method that ensures easy peeling while avoiding green yolks is as follows:
Before cooking, poke a small hole in the large end of the eggs with a bulletin board push pin. This will allow the air in the eggs to escape when you cook them, preventing cracked shells.
Then lower the eggs into a pan containing enough boiling water to cover the eggs by an inch or two. Return to a gentle boil and cook for ten minutes. Boiling gently will keep the whites from getting rubbery, and the ten minute cooking time will give you set yolks without the green edges.
Drain the eggs and rinse them in cold water until they are completely cooled.
You can then shake the pan to crack the shells or you can tap them one at a time on a hard surface to peel.
I have yet to encounter an egg that was difficult to peel using this method, and I have done a bunch.
Meathead is always interested in dispelling cooking myths, so I thought I would take care of one he seems to have missed.
There is a method of hard cooking eggs that has been 100% successful for me, and it isn't the one listed on this site. In addition, the picture on the "colorful pickled eggs" recipe shows eggs that were cooked incorrectly (yolks with green edges).
The "myth" is that if your boiled eggs don't peel easily, it is likely that the eggs are too fresh. I would never recommend using old eggs, and it isn't age but rather method that determines how easy they are to peel. In addition, if you overcook them, you risk a reaction between the sulphur and the iron in the eggs, which will turn the edges of the yolks green. To see this reaction, check the picture of the eggs in the recipe mentioned above.
The method that ensures easy peeling while avoiding green yolks is as follows:
Before cooking, poke a small hole in the large end of the eggs with a bulletin board push pin. This will allow the air in the eggs to escape when you cook them, preventing cracked shells.
Then lower the eggs into a pan containing enough boiling water to cover the eggs by an inch or two. Return to a gentle boil and cook for ten minutes. Boiling gently will keep the whites from getting rubbery, and the ten minute cooking time will give you set yolks without the green edges.
Drain the eggs and rinse them in cold water until they are completely cooled.
You can then shake the pan to crack the shells or you can tap them one at a time on a hard surface to peel.
I have yet to encounter an egg that was difficult to peel using this method, and I have done a bunch.
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