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According to a survey from the
American Egg Board, 84 percent of moms rate their knowledge of
hard-cooking eggs as excellent or good, yet more than 7 out of
10 moms do not know how to properly prepare hard-cooked eggs.(1)
Howard Helmer, eggspert and Guinness World Record holder for
omelet-making, shares the following tips on how to properly hard-cook
(not boil) eggs.
How to properly hard-cook eggs:
- Place eggs in saucepan large
enough to hold them in a single layer. Add cold water to cover
eggs by 1 inch. Heat over high heat just to boiling.
- Remove from burner. Cover pan.
Let eggs stand in hot water about 15 minutes for Large eggs (12
minutes for Medium eggs; 18 or Extra Large).
- Cool completely under cold running
water or in a bowl of ice water. Peel and eat eggs or refrigerate
to enjoy them later.
The "hard" facts:
 While the cooking water must come to
a full boil in this method, the pan is immediately removed from
the heat so that the eggs cook gently in the hot water. Hard-cooking
produces tender eggs and minimizes cracking.
- Hard-cooked eggs in the shell
can be refrigerated safely for up to one week. Peeled hard-cooked
eggs should be eaten that day.
- Peel a hard-cooked egg. Gently
tap egg on countertop until the shell is finely cracked all over.
Roll egg between hands to loosen shell. Peel starting at the
large end and hold the egg under cold running water to help ease
the shell off.
- Banish the greenish ring. This
harmless but unsightly discoloration that sometimes forms around
hard-cooked yolks results from a reaction between sulfur in the
egg white and iron in the yolk. It occurs when eggs have been
cooked for too long or at too high a temperature.
- Very fresh eggs can be difficult
to peel. Buy and refrigerate your eggs a week to 10 days in advance
of cooking them, to make the peeling process easier. This brief
"breather" allows the eggs time to take in air, which
helps separate the membranes from the shell.
- Hard-cooked eggs are easiest
to peel right after cooling. Cooling causes the egg to contract
slightly in the shell.
- Prepare a dozen hard-cooked
eggs on Sunday so you’ll have an all-natural, high-quality
protein option on hand for your family during the busy week ahead,
either for an on-the-go breakfast or after-school snack.
1. Impulse Research for American
Egg Board. Survey conducted online with random sample of 1,022
mothers aged 18 and older. Research was conducted in February
2009. Overall sampling error for survey is +/- 3% at the 95%
level of confidence.
About the American Egg Board
(AEB):
AEB is the U.S. egg producer's link to the consumer in communicating
the value of The incredible edible egg™ and is funded from
a national legislative checkoff on all egg production from companies
with greater than 75,000 layers, in the continental United States.
The board consists of 18 members and 18 alternates from all regions
of the country who are appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture.
The AEB staff carries out the programs under the board direction.
AEB is located in Park Ridge, Ill. Visit www.incredibleegg.org
for more information.
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