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Hard boiled eggs and sticky peels

AdamL Nov 18, 2006 07:36 PM

OK, I know about the foolproof method for making hard boiled eggs (boil a pot of water w/ eggs, then turn off & let sit for 10 min) and I follow it faithfully. But lately, I've been having a heck of a time peeling many of them. With about 1/3 of of each batch I make, the peel sticks to the cooked white so much that by the time I'm done peeling, there's hardly any white left.
Am I doing something wrong? Does it have something to do with eggs themselves?
thanks in advance...

  1. hotoynoodle Nov 19, 2006 03:55 PM

    fresher the egg, the tighter the shell, so it will be more difficult to peel.

    when time is up, plunge them in a bowl of ice and water. that helps, and also stops the cooking, avoiding discolored yolks. also i find just 8 minutes makes a creamier yolk.

    1. j
      JPomer Nov 19, 2006 03:32 PM

      My Method works 90% of the time...sometimes they're hard to peel no matter what you do.
      Anyway, put eggs in pot and cover with cold water. Bring to rolling boil. Off heat, cover pot and let sit for about 12 to 15 minutes. Then plunge eggs into cold water.
      Now here's the trick that seems to work pretty well. When the eggs are cool, use the back of a knife to crack them all around the MIDDLE of the egg. Then peel under running water.
      I don't know why the 'middle' thing works, but it does.

      1. a
        another_adam Nov 19, 2006 05:53 AM

        That's interesting about the ph! It's probably just folklore, but my mother always said it was because gases from the white escaped and stayed outside the membrane, meaning it was already separated slightly from the shell. (And for the same reason, you should use fresh eggs to beat the whites, since they have more volume)

        Anyway, I use the cracking-slightly-in-the-pot-while-cooling method too! But I can't say it always helps that much, if the eggs are too fresh...

        1 Reply
        1. re: another_adam
          coconutz Nov 19, 2006 08:12 AM

          it is because the older eggs have a larger air bubble

        2. Non Cognomina Nov 19, 2006 02:45 AM

          Immediately after boiling/cooking the eggs by whatever method you use, tip the hot water out of the pot and set the pot in the sink. Run cold water in the pot until you can handle the pot without burning yourself (about 1 minute). Tip the water out of the pot again, then place ice over the eggs to fill the pot. Slowly run water into the pot and let the eggs sit in the ice bath, circulating the water for 5-10 minutes. Remove an egg to test it. If you can hold it in your hand for 30 seconds without it radiating heat, remove the batch and put them into the fridge. You will have no trouble peeling them.

          1. c
            christy319 Nov 19, 2006 01:15 AM

            After you pour the hot water off, shake them around in the pan so that the shells crack all over, then fill the pan back up with cold water. The cold water gets under the shells and makes them easier to peel. It is true that the fresher the egg, the harder to peel. According to this month's Gourmet, that's because older eggs are more alkaline; younger eggs with a ph that is more acid=sticky shells.

            1. t
              tannazie Nov 18, 2006 08:08 PM

              what i do is crack them all over -- tiny cracks across the whole shell. this usually helps me to be able to take off the peel without having to scrape at the white.

              another trick, after doing this, is to run it under water to get the last bits of shell off -- the water shakes off the shell without pockmarking the whites.

              and finally, i'm not sure about this one,but if my memory serves me right they are easier to peel when still warm.

              1. r
                RiJaAr Nov 18, 2006 07:40 PM

                usually, the fresher the egg, the harder it is too peel, i usually make hard boiled eggs when i have extras and they're getting close to their bb date, they peel way easier then.

                also, don't the yolks turn black when you let them sit in hot water? i was taught that you had to cool them off quickly to prevent that, and i've never had the problem since

                1 Reply
                1. re: RiJaAr
                  christy319 Nov 19, 2006 01:16 AM

                  I make mine like AdamL and have never even seen a black yolk! Yuck!

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