The Great Hard-Cooked Egg Experiment...

Part 2!

As I posted last week, I’m on a quest to find a way to hard-cook fresh eggs, of any size or color, which leaves them easy to peel and perfectly cooked.  I’m a bit OCD, and it drives me crazy that so much egg white comes off with the shell.  I miss the days of easy-to-peel hard-cooked eggs, and I’m beginning to think they are simply a figment of my imagination.

We have pet chickens, so farm-fresh eggs are fairly abundant.  Now, if you're like me, you are well-aware of the philosophy that fresh eggs won't work -- you have to boil older eggs to be able to cleanly peel them (while leaving the egg white intact).  I'm out to find a way to hard-cook my fresh eggs and have enough egg white (and sanity) intact to make beautiful deviled eggs.

Misty's PERFECT eggs! 

Boiling Water Method

This week, I tried a method recommended by my friend and fellow chicken-raiser & chicken-lover, Misty. She described her method to me, which I also found on several websites.  Basically, you bring the water to a boil before adding the eggs to the water, boil for 15 minutes, then immerse in an ice bath.  After the eggs are cool, crack all over and peel.  She posted a picture of her lovely eggs -- of which I'm quite jealous -- and I'm out to duplicate her results.



If you're looking for a website for the method, here are two:

http://www.instructables.com/id/Making-hard-boiled-eggs-with-FRESH-eggs/?ALLSTEPS
http://www.goodstuffnw.com/2013/06/my-new-superpower-hard-boiling-fresh.html


As I did last week, I started with 9 super-fresh eggs, laid over the past two days.  I was using the perfectly-sized pan to cook dinner, so I used a larger pan than I normally would.  I put enough water in it to cover the eggs I would add, then put the pan on the stove and brought the water to a boil.  I added the eggs, and set the timer for 15 minutes.

I fished the eggs out of the hot water using a slotted spoon, and put them into an icewater bath.

Nine eggs, all different sizes.  Some small, medium and large (and all quite lovely, if I don't say so myself).

My Results

Egg #1: Perfect! (This egg had a small crack in the shell)

Egg #2: Also perfect!

Egg #3:  Another perfect egg!  Could it be?

Egg #4:  Rats! Well, you can't win them all, right?

Egg #5: I'm getting very hopeful right now!

Egg #6: I love these blue eggs!

Egg #7: There's a water droplet on my lens in for the first shot.

Egg #8: Seriously, only one bad one out of...

Egg #9: Well, TWO bad eggs out of 9.  Still, waaaaaay better than last week!

So, in a nutshell, out of nine eggs, only two came out questionable.  The first "error," was the fattest egg I boiled.  Maybe that had something to do with it, or maybe not.  As for the last one, I didn't crack the egg very well, and it may be why it didn't come off cleanly.  

The verdict?

I'll probably try this method again, but I might add a couple of minutes to the timer, because the smaller eggs all came out beautifully.  Perhaps the largest eggs needed a little more time? At any rate, they turned out better than my average, so it's at the top of my list...

... for now...  (maniacal laughter ensues...)