How to peel an egg without taking half the inside off??

Question

I swear, everytime I peel boiled eggs, the inside comes off with the shell! I've waited until they are completely cooled, ran them under water while peeling, made sure the eggs were fresh, and made sure the she was sufficiently cracked before peeling. THIS REALLY FRUSTRATES ME!!!!! Any tips? Thanks to everyone!!!

Sorry...didn't mean to give the egg a gender (SHE) LOL! I meant 'it'.

Answer 1

I rarely have a problem egg... perhaps it is the way I boil them.

I bring my water to a boil first then carefully drop my eggs, one by one into the boiling water. I bring them back to a boil for 4 minutes then turn off the heat and let them set for 7 minutes till I drain and put them in cold water. I also don't have my yolks turn green around the edges Works for me.

I have had many people tell me that the freshness of the egg matters. I say this is bullshit and I tested it. I had 6 week old eggs from the store and then went to my chickens and grabbed one that was just layed seconds earlier. I boiled both using my method described above and they did NOT differ, To prove this point I did this 3 more times with the same result.

I will stick with what I KNOW TO WORK FOR ME !!

: ) Happy peeling !

Answer 2

From what I understand, it has to do with how you cook them, not how you peel them. My good friend who cooks large quantities of egg salad for parties recommends starting with the water cold and bringing it up to boiling with the eggs in it, while a cookbook I read by a famous chef recommends starting with boiling water, putting the eggs in (which may cool the water some, especially if they're straight from the fridge), letting it come back to a boil then turning it down to a simmer. I must admit, I don't know for sure which one is best. Maybe try both ways and see if one makes the peeling go better for you...?

But you're doing the right thing putting them in ice water - both of my sources recommend that! :)

PS. I've also heard that you should prick the wide end of the shell with a pin before boiling to let the air bubble out as the egg inside expands with the heat - this is supposed to prevent cracking.

Good luck and hope this helps!

Answer 3

Don't use fresh eggs. Really, they should be about a week old. Here's what I do: Put the eggs in a sauce pan with water and just bring to a boil. Then reduce the heat and let it barely boil for 10 minutes. Pour out water and immediately cool with lots of cold water. Let cool completely and peel under running water.

Answer 4

You got a lot of answers that contradict each other. Using eggs that are at least a week old will produce much better peeling results. I buy 2 cartons of eggs and always use the week old ones for boiling. This always works for me! You can also leave them out on the counter overnight. Salt or vinegar in the water helps prevent cracking. Also, as soon as they are cooked, remove them from the heat and run them under cold water As soon as they are cool enough to peel, peel them under the cold running water.

Answer 5

Place your eggs in a pot , place the cover on it , bring it to a rolling boil remove from heat . Let stand for 10 minutes then run cold water over the eggs until the water remains cold in the pot. When cooled drain the water from the pot, place cover back on and shake the pot back and forth letting the eggs hit each other this is a great method to peel hard boiled eggs. Tested and proven by a man who pickles thousands of eggs each year to sell in his neighborhood pub.

Answer 6

When I make hard boiled eggs I first put a hole in the broad end of the egg using a straight pin - this
supposedly allows air to escape during cooking
and the egg won't be prone to crack during cooking.

After cooking I plunge them into ice water immediately.

I still run into some problems with taking off somt of the white with the shell - but a lot less.

Answer 7

Easy!

1. Run boiled egg under cold water so you don't burn your fingers
2. Wrap a paper napkin around egg
3. Roll the egg on your kitchen counter with your palm back and forth, applying gentle pressure, until the shell has many cracks in it all over
4. Take off napkin and submerge egg in a bowl of cold water
5. Peel egg underwater.

It sounds like a lot of steps, but its foolproof!

Answer 8

Put eggs in water and turn on heat full blast . After boiling begins.. . count ten minutes . Remove and run in cold water for a few minutes .
Then peel without troubles .

Answer 9

use fresh eggs and put into pan before adding the water-- use cold water- just enough to cover
add salt to your water

bring to boil and allow to boil hard for just 4 minutes

remove from heat, pour water into sink and add cold water until pan is full-- add a glass of ice

let water come to room temp and peel your eggs then-- the shell should come off very easily for you...

break your shell in several places before trying to peel

usually the reson your shells wont come off is due to overcooking or not cooling properly

Answer 10

The best thing I have learned about this was from my mother. She always tells me NOT to use fresh eggs. Use eggs that are at their expiration date. I made deviled eggs a couple weeks ago with 1 dozen fresh eggs and 1 dozen "older" eggs. The fresh eggs were much harder to peel. The eggs that were at their date peeled so much easier. It sounds like you are doing everything else right by letting them cool, etc.