Eggs are known to give good cholesterol, which is very much essential for our body. Many people like to eat boiled eggs. Boiled eggs are most popular as a breakfast meal all over the world. But, maximum number of people are unaware about the proper preparation for hard boiled eggs. Perfect boiling of eggs is definitely an art and even though it may seem like a hard one at times, it can surely be incorporated as a skill in no time.
Eggs are normally cooked by placing them in boiling water without removing their shell. Due to over cooking, a light green color is formed around the yolk by the formation of ferrous sulfide. Eggs are hard-boiled due to cooking them for longer timings till the egg white and yolk gets solidified. If you allow the eggs to cool in hot water itself, then also they become hard-boiled.
Benefits of hard-boiled eggs are many, they can be sliced and used for sandwiches, in salads and even had by themselves. Many dishes that can be prepared by hard-boiled eggs like Cobb salad, Scotch eggs, egg salad, egg curry, etc… The great benefit of these hard-boiled eggs is that they can be stored with shells for a couple weeks.
Difficulty Level: Easy: (Even for first timers. Anyone can do it)
Time required: Less than 30 minutes
Ingredients :
- Saucepan or an empty pot with lid
- Eggs
- Stove
- Timer
Estimate Cost: Only the cost of the eggs you boil
Instructions:
- Bring some old eggs.
- Place them gently in an empty saucepan.
- Pour cold water in that saucepan until the water level reaches one inch above the eggs.
- Now place the saucepan over the stove and turn on the stove.
- Add half table spoon of salt for easy peeling of the egg shells.
- Place the lid over the saucepan and cook the eggs in a medium heat.
- Wait until the water gets boiled.
- Switch off the stove.
- Let the saucepan over the hot stove and don’t remove the lid.
- Start the timer and let the eggs soak in hot water for around ten to fifteen minutes.
- Keep an eye on the discoloration of eggs and don’t allow too much discoloration.
- Take one egg out and swivel it on a table. If it turns fast, it can be treated as hard-boiled.
- Drain out the water and put some ice cubes in the pot.
- Let the eggs completely cooled.
- Start remove the shell by taping the thick end with a spoon or on hard surface.
- You can store them without peeling in a refrigerator for later use.
FAQ’s :
1. What is the problem if I boil the eggs too much?
Ans: Too much boiling of eggs leads to discoloration of eggs and they become smelly.
2. What is the problem if I boil the eggs too less?
Ans: Insufficient boiling makes the eggs runny.
3. How to make out whether the eggs are hard-boiled or soft boiled?
Ans: It is very simple. Rotate the boiled egg on a hard flat surface such as a table and if it spins fast like a top, the egg is hard-boiled, else it is soft-boiled.
4. Why should I use old eggs for boiling instead of fresh eggs?
Ans: Fresh eggs are very difficult for peeling, whereas, old eggs can be easily peeled.
5. Why should I put some salt while boiling eggs?
Ans: Salt helps for fast sealing of the accidental cracks in the eggs by making the proteins in the white of the eggs to solidify quickly.
Quick Tips :
- Always use old eggs to facilitate easy peeling.
- Fresh eggs are less likely to be cracked but they are difficult to peel.
- While boiling white eggs, add some brown dry onion skins to give a beautiful brown color to boiled eggs for differentiating with un-boiled eggs.
- To peel the eggs easily, just tap them with spoon and roll in between your hands and then start peeling from big end.
Things to watch out for :
- Don’t boil the eggs by taking directly from refrigerator, let them to cool down to room temperature before boiling to prevent turning the egg yolks to green color.
- While soaking the eggs after boiling, keep a look on them to avoid discoloration.
- Don’t keep the eggs in multiple layers in the cooking bowl to avoid cracking due to weight.
- The eggs may blast if you try to microwave them. To avoid risk, it is better to cook them on a stove.
