Ever since people found out that eggs can be eaten, I believe that the human race has been eating boiled eggs, whether soft or not. I have always preferred hard boiled eggs over the soft boiled ones. Maybe because the hard boiled eggs shelf life is much longer than its counterpart. Hard boiled eggs are the main ingredients for many dishes, such as egg salad or deviled eggs. However, for me, I like eating it with just a little bit of salt. Whichever way you want to eat it, eggs that are boiled would always be a great choice for your sandwiches, salads or anything you can imagine.
Boiled eggs, which are typically chicken eggs, are cooked by immersion in boiling water with their shells unbroken. Achieving perfection has always been a big puzzle to me. I would always end up with a mushy yolk and a hard white part. Good thing that a friend of mine shared with me her secret in getting almost perfect hard boiled eggs. All you need to do is to make sure that the water is hot enough before you dunk in the egg. It usually takes four to five (4-5) minutes to get the water to a hot temperature; and, once you think that the water is hot enough, go ahead and slowly dunk in the egg. My friend also pointed out that I should just let the egg sit still in the water. She noticed that I have the tendency to get a ladle and kind of poke the egg or play around with the water surrounding the egg. I really don’t know why I do that but I guess because I am just really impatient when it comes to cooking.
Achieving an almost perfect hard boiled egg is not really a mystery. It is not as hard as preparing foie gras or preparing a lavish feast for ten (10) people. In fact, there really is no secret in making sure that your eggs are perfectly hard boiled. All you need to be certain is that you do not put a lot of eggs in the pan at one time or do not be impatient and fiddle around with the eggs. Trust me, doing that won’t speed things up.
Once you have discovered how to make perfect hard boiled eggs, the next nagging question in your mind would probably be: “How long are hard boiled eggs good for?” The hard boiled eggs shelf life would greatly depend on how well you store it. Well, always keep in mind that they last about a week if they are kept in their shells; and you should put them in the refrigerator two (2) hours after cooking it. You can extend freshness if you do not peel them and if they are prepared properly. However, if you have already peeled the eggs, then it is best to store them in the fridge right away. Also, make sure that you consume the eggs as soon as possible since peeled eggs will stay fresh for a few days only if they are stored in the fridge. It would be wise if you prepare just the right number of eggs to avoid wasting them. As they say, it is always better to have fresh ingredients. You certainly do not want an upset stomach, right?
My niece who absolutely loves eggs in general learned her lesson the hard way. She suffered from a terrible food poisoning episode when she consumed five (5) pieces of hard boiled eggs without checking if those were fresh. I guess she must have been really hungry from a long day in school. The day after she recovered, she asked her Mom on how long do hard boiled eggs last. Her Mom who isn’t a big fan of cooking did not know the answer so they called me up right away.
I explained to my niece the shelf life and proper storage of eggs that are boiled. I also printed out an article for her which clearly explains how long are hard boiled eggs good for. I am pretty sure that she took my advice; but my niece told me that the best way to make sure that she won’t get food poisoning again is to eat hard boiled eggs right after it cools down from the pot. A good advice, if I may say.
Perfect Hardboiled Eggs
Seems like it would be simple right? I most often find folks make the eggs fine but they leave off a critical step that makes the eggs easy to open. So here you go everything you need to know.
Directions:
- The first secret is the age of the eggs, if they are extreme fresh it makes them harder to peel. You are much better off using eggs that are a few days old
- Place 8 to 12 eggs in a large saucepan add enough cold water to completely cover the eggs by 1 inch. Place them on the stove top on high heat and bring a strong rolling boil. Immediately after the water is brought to a rolling boil, reduce heat to a lower medium boil and cook an additional 10 minutes for a hardboiled egg. For a soft boiled egg reduce the time by a few minutes.
- IMMEDIATELY remove them from heat and place eggs under ice cold water or in a bowl of iced water to chill quickly. This a critical step it will keep the yolks bright yellow and make the eggs shells come off easier. Let them stay in the cold water until the egg is completely cooled. If you don’t follow this step you are going to get that greenish ring around the yolk
- Crack all sides and roll between hands to loosen shell, remove shell
