How to hard boil eggs.

Try this boiling method for your fresh farm eggs

Learning how to hard boil eggs can be tricky. Especially if you have farm fresh eggs! Picture perfect hard boiled eggs elude me, but I keep trying. They are always edible and make great egg salad sandwiches but...

If you have fresh farm eggs it can be difficult to get them smooth and unbroken.

This is how I do it. Remember if you are using store purchased eggs they will be much easier to peel! Much prettier!

(but they won't be nearly as tasty as farm fresh... just sayin!)

	Make a pinhole in the large end of the egg. A safety pin works great. It is easy to push any pin through the shell.
	Place the eggs in a single layer in a saucepan. Cover with cold water just above the eggs.
	Bring to a boil. As soon as it boils remove from the heat and cover. Allow this to sit for 15 -18 minutes. longer for larger eggs shorter for smaller.
	Immediately remove eggs from the pan of hot water with a slotted spoon to a bowl of ice water for one minute. After one minute in ice water remove an egg back to the simmering water for ten seconds. The time is important here, what you are doing is heating the egg shell and not the egg. The idea is that the shell will expand and separate easier from the egg.
	After the 10 seconds remove from the simmering water and gently crack and roll the egg in your hands to loosen the shell and carefully peel. Key word being carefully. If you run water over the egg as you peel it can help wash away the small bits of shell.

How to Hard Boil Eggs - Tips from my friends!

I asked over at Simply Canning Facebook. (you really should join us!) For tips that others use to hard boil fresh eggs. Here is wisdom and advice from others.

Christina -

no kidding!!! i have the hardest time with hard boiling my fresh eggs

Marika -

From my understanding they have to age a bit or you simply can't...try letting your eggs age for a week or two in the refrigerator. Even several days might work.

Najia -

Fresh eggs don't peel well at all. They have to sit around for a couple of weeks so there is some evaporation within the egg which allows some air between the egg and the membrane. You can submerge them in ice cold water after they boil but nothing really helps like aging. (((shrug))) It is a small price to pay for farm fresh eggs!! :)

Laurie -

I agree! Hard to peel when fresh. To help, I take a mixing bowl, place a lot of ice, add cold water, and submerge the eggs as soon as they are done boiling. Let sit for 1/2 hour in cold water bath. It helps.

Lois -

try this site: Mennonite Girls Can Cook Article on how to hard boil eggs. (Sharon's note: These were store purchased eggs so it might not work as easily for farm fresh... but it is worth a try!)

Tina -

When I had chickens, my eggs looked the same way...even worse..LOL. I believe that is the only bad thing in having farm fresh eggs...I remember trying to make deviled eggs and I wasn't proud of them, hehe..=-)..So worth it though..hopefully will have more in the future.

Nancy -

I date my chicken eggs and use the oldest ones (2 weeks or more), for boiling..the older ones are easiest to peel.

Dawn -

Think about it...store bought eggs that peel easily when boiled basically have sat around on the farm, the storage units, the trucks and then the stores. They are aged. do the same for your eggs and it they should peel better.

Melissa -

Add a teaspoon of salt to the water while boiling & it makes it easier to peel them.

Sherri -

I always add a tablespoon or so of vegetable oil to my water before boiling. The shells are porous and will slip easily from the egg as you peel. Just add the oil to the water, boil as usual, quickly submerge into cold water, when cool enough to handle, but not cold peel under cold water, the eggs will peel easily and perfectly!

Terri -

Put the eggs in the pot and cover with cold water. I put about 1/3 cup of cider or white vinegar in the water..bring to a boil and boil for about 12 minutes or so...put pot in sink and dump hot water, cover with cold several times until cool to the touch. put in a bowl in the fridge till chilled...then peel. The shells NEVER EVER stick.

Tracy -

Here is what I have learned through much trial and error. First of all I have a theory that the weather plays a part in the peeling results due to repeating the same method of boiling during humid rainy weather and sunny weather and I found that humidity makes it harder to get the best out of my farm fresh eggs that I collect daily. They turn out softer and impossible to peel!!!! Sunny days brought better results all around.

Next, I prefer HARD boiled eggs that can bounce like a ball and I boil them for at least 45 min. to an hour starting with a very slow boil. I do not add salt or vinegar while boiling. I have a large bowl of ice on hand and immediately remove the eggs from the boiling water then put them in the ice and cover with cold water. Next I add a heaping tablespoon of baking soda to adjust the PH level and this prevents the thin clear outer protective layer from adhering to the egg. I let the eggs soak in this water for 30-45 min. then they peel to perfection. This was a miracle to me and I hope you get the same results. keep me posted and let me know how it worked for you.

Lynette -

I have finally learned how to hardboil fresh eggs and have them peel perfectly. Bring water to a hard boil. THEN take eggs from refrigerator and place in boiling water (I use a wire basket for this). I time pullet eggs at 10 minutes, and our large breed hen eggs for 12-13 minutes. Immediately remove eggs and place in an ice bath to cool. The abrupt temperature changes separate the shells from the eggs. Give it a try!