Until the self-timing egg hits the shops, is there a definitive method to cooking the perfect boiled egg?

Answer 1

yes, if you want a soft inside boiled egg then you boil the water and drop it in, start a timer at 3 minutes. when the timer gets down to about 20 seconds left take the egg OUT. because it will continue to cook until you break it.

if you want it hard take it out AT 3 minutes

Answer 2

Eggs in the UK should be cooked in simmering water for over 4+1/2 minutes so that the yolks are HARD because with runny yolks you can get salmonella poisoning which is a lot more common than you think. Very surprised none of you lot mentioned this before me. It all depends on the size of the egg too.
Before you place the egg in a pan... take a sharp knife and gently scratch a little cross in the pointier end of the egg until you get down to the whiter section of the shell. Make sure you don't puncture the shell though. This releases the pressure so it doesn't crack while boiling.

Answer 3

The best way to cook the egg in perfect boiled one is to add a 1/4 portion of vinegar (depend on water content) so when it boiled the shell will just have a crack but not the egg.so if you have 3 eggs and boiled it in 3 cups of water and 1/2 cup of vinegar then let it cook.

Answer 4

I find that the most successful way to cook a perfect runny boiled egg is as follows:

- Half fill a deep saucepan with cold water and put on the stove. Make sure your eggs are room temperature.

- Small bubbles will soon start forming on the bottom of the pan. As soon as these start rising to the top put in your eggs.

- Time 4 minutes from the point that the water begins a rolling boil and hey presto! Fabulous eggs.

Serve with soldiers - happy dipping!

Answer 5

The basic old-fashioned way of putting it into boiling water and timing it so that you get the egg the way YOU like it is of course cheap, efficient and requires you to spend a little time until you get it right.

But there are two other methods I have found are QUITE successful and relatively automatic.

One is to use an "egg coddler" - although again you have to learn exactly how long it sits in the boiling water to produce the perfect egg for you, it is tidy and even permits you to include some tasty spices, bits of bacon or sausage, cheese or croutons. The egg coddler is a porcelain cup with a screw top - they are docorative as well as functional. Of course, in this case your egg exits the coddler sans shell - but it is of course already firm and you can put it into a little bag or plastic holder if you wish to have it later.

The perfect boiled egg in the shell comes out of the wonderful "egg muffin toaster."

I love this invention. I bought it last year INSTEAD of an egg coddler - they cost about the same - and by Christmas had given 4 to my kids and friends. It will toast your English muffin, sliced croissant, bagel or bread, heat up some pre-cooked meat such as bacon or sausage, AND cook your eggs so that all is ready to eat at the same time - in about 4 minutes! I turn mine on, then go shower, and when I'm done it's breakfast time!

The toaster uses steam to cook eggs and heat the meat. You can either cook a scrambled or poached egg, or make up to 4 boiled eggs. You simply vary the amount of water - there's a nifty measuring cop with a shell-piercer on the bottom so that eggs in the shell don't blow up! - according to the number of eggs and the degree of doneness. The manual gives cooking times and amount of water. I prefer using distilled or filtered water to avoid getting a bit of scum buildup in the heating basin of the toaster.

Using this device IS in a sense having a self-timing egg!

Answer 6

Fill a saucepan with water. Lightly place the egg(s) in the pan. Turn cover the pan and bring to a boil. Turn off the stove. Wait 5min (softer) or 6min(harder).

With the egg(s) still in the pan, hold the pan in the sink and run cold water over the eggs. The cold water will push out the hot water. Continue running cold water on the eggs until only cold water is in the pan. Then take out the egg(s) and dump out the cold water. Knock the egg(s) on something to break the shell a little. Begin peeling. Peel in large chunks by peeling under the thin skin layer. The shell will just pop and slide off perfectly.

Wala, a perfect boiled egg. Use some seasoned salt on it for a perfect snack.

Answer 7

I place in boiling water and boil for 3 mins then immediately takeout, run under cold tap and take the top off. The yolk keeps on cooking until it is broken into, explains why if you're having 2 eggs for brekkie first one is perfect and by the time you start on the second it is baked hard.

They were talking about the perfect soft boiled egg on my local radio station this morning, and the presenter said that he puts the eggs in boiling water, sings "On The Street Where You Live" and they are perfect!

Might not work, but made me smile anyway.

Answer 8

Keep your eggs stored in the refrigirator after all they are dairy products and can go off.

Boil some lightly salted water (brings down the boiling point) in a saucepan. Keep the water on simmer above the level of the egg.

Using a spoon place the egg to the bottom of the saucepan, gently resting it on the bottom of the saucepan totally submerged.

Depending on the size of the egg and how you like to eat it will give you your desired results.

For example we use extra large (breakfast) free range eggs and I like my white solid but the yolk runny. Therefore using the above method 5 minutes is exactly right. Place the egg directly into an egg cup, leave to stand for 1 minute and then enjoy.

Answer 9

Place the fridge temperature eggs in a pan of cold water (no more than 6 in the pan) and bring quickly to the boil, reduce the temperature promtly to a gentle bubbling boil and time for 2 minutes for a soft egg or 3 minutes for 'sticky' egg. Remove from water immediately and stand in cup for 30 seconds before opening.

Answer 10

When I want a soft inside boiled egg, I simply put it into cold salty water and cook it for about three minutes.

When I want a hard inside, I do the same thing, only I cook the egg a bit longer.

Of course it all depends on the size of an egg. But salt is essential.

Nigella Lawson once said in 'Nigella Bites' that she puts a match into the pan. I tried it once, combined with salt - the egg didn't break.

Answer 11

The easy and best way to cook a perfect boil egg is that boil water in the pan for 4 to 5 minutes and add 2 pinches of salt in it. then put egg and boil for 5 to 8 minutes depending what actually you want. if you want half boil egg , then let it cook for 6 minutes and if you want full boil egg then let it boil for 10 minutes.