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Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Cooking Eggs |
How to tell if an egg is fresh
Old wives' tales? Maybe. Lower uncooked eggs into a
bowl of water. If the egg settles horizontally, the egg
is fresh enough for human consumption. If it settles
vertically, feed it to the dog. If it rises to the top, feed
it to the hydrangeas.
How to hard cook eggs without cracking them
Cold water method or hot? Room temperature eggs
or cold eggs? Cold water plunge or no cold water
plunge? We tested every possible permutation, and
found the very best way to hard cook an egg:
How to color eggs without the silly kit
In a bowl (not metal), pour in enough water and white
distilled vinegar to cover the eggs. For pastel colors
use one cup of water to 1 tablespoon of vinegar.
(Intensify the color by reducing the amount of water
used or leaving the eggs in the dye for longer periods
of time.) Using basic food coloring, mix your own
shade in the water and vinegar. Be sure the food
coloring is completely blended so there are no
"stains" on the eggs. Carefully submerge hard cooked
eggs in the color bath, rotating frequently, until of
desired intensity.
Egg coloring tricks
How to peel a hard cooked egg
Cold eggs peel more easily than room temperature
eggs. Gently tap the egg shell on the counter along the
egg's 'equator.' Place the egg between hands and roll
back and forth as if you were making a hot dog out of
clay. You should feel the shell and membrane
loosening from the egg white. Peel off the shell. If the
shell is still coming off in irritating bits, peel under
running water (this is the last resort).
Old wives' tales? Maybe. Lower uncooked eggs into a
bowl of water. If the egg settles horizontally, the egg
is fresh enough for human consumption. If it settles
vertically, feed it to the dog. If it rises to the top, feed
it to the hydrangeas.
How to hard cook eggs without cracking them
Cold water method or hot? Room temperature eggs
or cold eggs? Cold water plunge or no cold water
plunge? We tested every possible permutation, and
found the very best way to hard cook an egg:
- Use fresh eggs, preferably organic or grain fed,
as they peel more easily once cooked. They also
have better texture and flavor.
- Handle like eggs. Or nitroglycerin.
- Bring eggs to room temperature before cooking.
This helps prevent cracking due to the sudden
shock of temperature change and ensures a
properly cooked egg. If you do use eggs right out
of the refrigerator, add a minute or two to the
cooking time.
- Simmer eggs. A roiling boil is too violent. Call
them "hard cooked" instead of "hard boiled" and
you'll remember this hint.
- Don't crowd the pan. The eggs will knock each
other and crack.
- In a saucepan, bring enough water to cover the
eggs to a boil. With a slotted spoon, lower the
eggs into the water. Quickly, bring the water back
to a boil. Lower the temperature to medium heat
and simmer exactly 10 minutes. Remove the eggs
with a slotted spoon and plunge into a bowl of
cold tap water. The cold water will stop further
cooking and create a gap between shell and egg
for easier peeling. You may put the eggs right into
a color bath now if you wish.
How to color eggs without the silly kit
In a bowl (not metal), pour in enough water and white
distilled vinegar to cover the eggs. For pastel colors
use one cup of water to 1 tablespoon of vinegar.
(Intensify the color by reducing the amount of water
used or leaving the eggs in the dye for longer periods
of time.) Using basic food coloring, mix your own
shade in the water and vinegar. Be sure the food
coloring is completely blended so there are no
"stains" on the eggs. Carefully submerge hard cooked
eggs in the color bath, rotating frequently, until of
desired intensity.
Egg coloring tricks
- For an easy tie dyed look, wrap the egg with
rubber bands before coloring.
- Take a candle or other piece of wax and draw
whatever you fancy on the egg-- the dye will not
be absorbed by the wax.
- Mix some offbeat colors. Or use a very strong
solution of dye and leave the eggs in it for a long
while-- a deeply colored egg is gorgeous.
- Fashion a ring to hold the egg at the end of a
handle out of some seizing wire (or other stiff
wire) and lower the egg very, very slowly into the
bath to create a striated effect.
- Let kids decorate the eggs. Set some eggs aside
that will not be eaten, collect odds and ends from
house and garden, provide glue sticks, and let the
little ones put Fabergé to shame.
How to peel a hard cooked egg
Cold eggs peel more easily than room temperature
eggs. Gently tap the egg shell on the counter along the
egg's 'equator.' Place the egg between hands and roll
back and forth as if you were making a hot dog out of
clay. You should feel the shell and membrane
loosening from the egg white. Peel off the shell. If the
shell is still coming off in irritating bits, peel under
running water (this is the last resort).
