why boiled egg shells can sometimes be easy to peel and other times stick and take chunks of egg with them
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Last time this question came up, a bunch of opinions were offered. A lot of people claim the bit about new eggs vs store bought eggs is a myth.
Mostly it has to do with how they are cooked. All these “test kitchen” videos say the thing to do is get salted water boiling vigorously, and gently lower in room-temperature eggs. Don’t over-cook them, cool them in cold water or ice water water you remove them from the boil.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgBSvpKSSYM](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgBSvpKSSYM)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4A8Cudduu0g](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4A8Cudduu0g)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFFDXJ2DR9w](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFFDXJ2DR9w)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RV9nz1qlY64](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RV9nz1qlY64)
If you want to make your hard-boiled eggs easier to peel, remove the pan from the heat when the timer rings. Put the pan into a sink and immediately run ice cold water into it. The eggs will cool more quickly and make them easier to peel.
The shell of a fresh egg is full, but the shell is porous, so as it ages some liquid evaporates through the shell. Having extra space within the shell makes the cooked egg easier to peel. So a fresh egg will be hard to peel cleanly, while an older egg will be easier to peel.
Age. An older egg has had more time to break down and become more brittle.
Put a splash of salt and vinegar in the boiling water before you boil your eggs, and you’ll find the shells separate much easier. The salt penetrates the egg shell and the vinegar breaks it down a bit more. fresh or older eggs all peel well with this trick.
If you have an instant pot, use that. That’s the best way to consistently get easy to peel eggs. The pressure separates the shell from the egg and they usually come off in two halves when you break them.
Chilling the eggs is the simplest way to get good results no matter the prep method. The egg shrinks at a greater rate than the shell, so once chilled peeling is a breeze.
My method that works for me:
Place eggs in a pot, cover with water.
Lid on pot and bring to a rolling boil.
Turn off heat and set timer for 14 minutes.
When done, dump hot water.
Cover in lots of ice water and forget about them.
I have battled eggs that don’t peel as well and this is what I found works best.
I love this video because he actually did an enormous amount of practical research.
Two take-aways:
1. Have the water boiling before you put the eggs in
2. Sometimes it just doesn’t work out
A tablespoon of baking soda in the water.
My wife swears by it, and they’re always easy to peel.
My tip is about the peeling technique: gently smash the boiled egg over and over so the shell breaks in a million pieces.
Don’t worry, they still will be attached to the egg, or more specifically, to the membrane underneath. Now pinch it with your fingers and focus on removing said membrane. It will easily come off, with all the shell pieces attached.
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