Perfect Hard-Boiled Eggs

Eggs are a staple breakfast in most households and they can be cooked in a number of ways. They are usually scrambled, poached, boiled, made into omelets. Boiled eggs can be either soft- or hard-boiled. Many people have trouble cooking hard-boiled eggs and end up over cooking or under cooking them.

Over cooked hard-boiled eggs are the vilest thing to eat and in most cases are simply not palatable. There is a trick in cooking the perfect hard-boiled egg. Here we are going to discuss the best way in which you can make hard-boiled eggs that are a treat to eat.

The first thing that you have to do, is choose eggs that are a couple of days old. Old eggs are easier to peel once they have been cooked. Remove the eggs from the refrigerator and allow it to come down to room temperature. Next put the eggs in a single layer in a saucepan and pour water over it.

Make sure that the level of water is at least 2 inches. Place the saucepan with the eggs and water on the gas stove and heat it. Add about half a tablespoon of salt to the water so that the eggs don't crack and the white portion does not run out. When the eggs come to a boil, reduce the heat of the stove and let it simmer for one to two minutes.

After about two minutes, you can switch off the burner and remove the saucepan from heat.

Cover the saucepan with a lid and allow it to stand for about 8-10 minutes. This will allow the residual heat to cook the eggs perfectly. Next carefully pick each egg out of the saucepan with a slotted spoon and place them in a bowl of ice-cold water. This will not only make it easy to peel hard-boiled eggs but will also stop the eggs from over cooking.

Once the eggs are sufficiently cool to handle, crack the egg with a tapping a spoon over it. Now peel the eggs and eat them as it is or use them in salads or deviled eggs recipe.

The size of the vessel that you boil the eggs in makes a big difference in how your hard-boiled eggs turn up. If you stuff too many eggs in a small vessel, all the eggs will not cook evenly. On the other hand, if you place just two or three eggs in a large saucepan, the eggs will bump against the sides of the saucepan while cooking. This might make the eggs crack and the whites of the eggs might run out.

It is a good idea to use a timer while cooking eggs so that you do not over cook them. You can also add a tablespoon of white vinegar while boiling eggs so that the eggs are not discolored and they do not crack.