Boiling eggs. It sounds SO easy but it can be very frustrating! Either the eggs aren’t boiled long enough and/or they are impossible to peel. We’re here to help. Use these methods to get perfect boiled eggs that are easy to peel.
Hard-boiled eggs – the process itself is easy but the peeling… the peeling drove me crazy for the longest time. I’ve been boiling eggs every single week for the last eight years and have tried almost every method out there. Many times they just left me angry! Either the eggs were undercooked, overcooked, or impossible to peel.
No joke, anytime my mom came over I would have her boil eggs for me because they were so frustrating. She finally “taught” me how to do them myself and I’m sharing that with you here today. I switch up how I boil my eggs, depending on how much time I have, which kitchen item is available for me to use, or how many I am boiling. Sometimes I use this stovetop method or I will bake them or use my Instant Pot!
We make 16-18 eggs each week in bulk during our food prep (here’s our step-by-step guide to meal prep). I (Whitney) typically eat 4-5 eggs each morning consisting of 1-2 whole eggs and the rest egg whites. Boiled eggs should last up to a week in the refrigerator.
Without further ado, here’s how to boil eggs on the stovetop.
HOW TO BOIL EGGS
TIPS TO GET PERFECT HARD BOILED EGGS:
- Fresh eggs are ideal for boiling
- If you place an egg in a bowl of water and it floats – it’s too old and shouldn’t be used
- Leave them out at room temperature for 10-15 minutes before boiling
- Putting your boiled eggs in ice cold water right after boiling will allow for an easy peel
- Keep in mind that your eggs will cook more slowly at a high altitude so adjust as necessary
- The life of the animal definitely affects the quality of the egg so try to buy organic, free-range eggs when possible
HOW TO BOIL EGGS ON THE STOVETOP:
INGREDIENTS:
- Eggs
- Water
DIRECTIONS:
- Place your eggs into a pot (in one layer) and cover with approximately 1″ of water
- Turn heat on high and bring to a boil
- Once boiling, cover the pan and turn off the heat
- Let the eggs boil for 10 minutes
- Once they are finished cooking, immediately put them into a bowl full of ice water
- Peel while they are still warm
- Refrigerate boiled eggs (we use this Rubbermaid Egg Keeper)
HOW TO PEEL BOILED EGGS EASILY:
- Use the tips above (use fresh eggs, let them sit out for a few minutes) to achieve eggs that are easy to peel
- Be sure that your ice bath for the eggs is really cold (cool water won’t work!)
- Crack the eggs enough so that you can peel off a large portion of the shell to start
HELPFUL GADGETS:
- Egg Perfect Egg Timer – the best $6.15 purchase I have ever made and is perfect for making a large number of eggs.
- The egg timer goes in the pan with your eggs and as the eggs heat up so does the egg timer, changing color so you can see exactly when your eggs are done to the desired level (soft, medium, or hard boiled).
- The Egg Genie is an entirely separate unit so you wouldn’t even need to use any other method described in this post. It only holds up to 7 eggs so if you plan on making multiple in advance this might not be the best option. It does work really well though and also works as an egg poacher (holds 4 eggs).
- To use, fill the canister with a little water (there are directions and a measuring cup), poke a hole in each egg with a “tack” that is located on the machine, place your eggs in and turn it on. It is SO simple! 5 eggs took about 10 minutes. (I say this now – I was skeptical up until the point that after I submerged the eggs into cold water and peeled them – absolute perfection!)
- Rubbermaid Egg Keeper – LIFESAVER! I’ve had one of these for years and use it every single week when I make my boiled eggs in bulk. When I post pictures of food prep, I’m always asked what container I use so I figured I would share it here as a helpful gadget. It makes life so much easier and is much better than wasting Ziploc bags every week.
HOW TO EAT BOILED EGGS:
- Plain, with salt and pepper
- Salad topping (cobb salad anyone?)
- Deviled eggs (or try these protein-packed angeled eggs!)
- Egg salad (recipe coming soon!)
NUTRITION OF THE EGG:
ONE WHOLE EGG
- 71 Calories
- 5g Fat
- 2g Saturated Fat
- 221mg Cholesterol
- 70mg Sodium
- 0g Carbs/Sugars
- 6g Protein
- High in vitamins: Riboflavin, B12, Phosphorus, and Selenium
ONE EGG WHITE
- 16 Calories
- 0g Fat
- 0g Saturated Fat
- 0mg Cholesterol
- 55mg Sodium
- 0g Carbs/Sugars
- 4g Protein
- High in vitamins: Riboflavin, Selenium
If you are still interested in learning more about the egg – check out this post on the Nutrition of the Egg.
Below are some alternative ways to make boiled eggs:
Struggling with omelets or scrambled eggs? Let us show you how to do it:
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