Avoid fresh eggs if you plan to hard-boil them.
Whether you are boiling a single egg to enjoy at breakfast or a dozen eggs to devil and serve to company, you will certainly become frustrated if the shell or membrane sticks to the egg white and makes your egg an unattractive, lumpy mess. For consistently pleasing, easy-to-peel eggs, use eggs purchased a week in advance, as fresh eggs are more difficult to peel. If that is not possible, you can still prepare the eggs in a manner that should simplify the peeling process. Add this to my Recipe Box.
Instructions
1. Place the eggs in a bowl on the countertop and leave them at room temperature for two hours.
2. Lower the eggs gently into a pot and cover them with water. Place the pot on a stovetop set to high heat.
3. Monitor the eggs, and turn the heat off when the water reaches a full boil. Cover the pot with a lid and set the kitchen timer for 15 minutes.
4. Pour the still-hot water out of the pot when the timer sounds, and run cold water over the eggs to hasten cooling. Refrigerate hard-boiled eggs in their shells at this point, if desired, for up to one week.
5. Tap the egg against a hard surface, gently cracking the entire shell. Roll the egg, still in its cracked shell, on the countertop to loosen the shell's hold on the egg.
6. Hold the egg under cold running water as the shell and membrane slip away.
Tags: fresh eggs, shell membrane