I'll Never Boil Another Egg

Recently a friend of mine told me about a different way to make hard cooked eggs.  I was skeptical to say the least. She said, "you have to try this!"  

I'd given up years ago on ever having hard boiled eggs that were easy to peel, not to mention having to cook 24 eggs to get 12 decent ones to make a batch of old fashioned deviled eggs.  I'd tried all the various tips like aging the eggs, baking, vinegar, flash cooling... etc.  None of them  were easy to peel and some of them resulted in eggs that were gross and ugly.

Well I'm here to tell you I'm a convert.  I will never boil another egg.  The way to get perfect hard cooked eggs that are easy to peel is to steam them.  I know, what's the difference?  I couldn't imagine that there could be any difference between boiling and steaming, but it's true - there is.  I've done this a few times myself with different eggs and even eggs that I grabbed right out from under the chicken.  It made no difference, they were all equally easy to peel and they were perfectly cooked. 

EASY TO PEEL HARD COOKED EGGS:

Washed eggs in steamer basket

Place fresh, sound, and washed eggs in a steamer basket.

Heat a couple of inches of water to a boil in a pot with a steaming lid or a lid that will hold in the steam.  The steaming lid just has a little hole in it that will let out a stream of steam as it is boiling.

When the water begins to boil, set the steaming basket in the pot and cover with the lid.  Set the timer for 20 minutes.

Eggs steaming with the lid on tight

Just before the timer goes off, fill a bowl with ice and water.  At 20 minutes plunge the steamed eggs into the ice water to stop the cooking and cool them down to touch.  

Eggs cooling in iced water

Once the eggs are cool enough to handle, peel them.  I timed my peeling of 12 eggs today at just over 6 minutes.... wow, is that a record or what?   Not one of them was marred in the process.









I  almost always do a dozen at a time because then I can refrigerate them and have them for a quick breakfast or lunch.  It doesn't really matter if you do 1 or 12, the directions are the same.  You will find the process so enjoyable that you just might want to pull out your grandmother's recipe for deviled eggs.  Well, if you don't have a recipe for Deviled Eggs, here is one that my grandmother used to make.

DEVILED EGGS

6 hard cooked eggs cut in half lengthwise
Separate the yolks into a bowl and reserve the whites for filling
Mash up the yolks with a fork and add:
3 tablespoons of mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
1-2 teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoons of sweet pickle relish (optional)

Combine the yolk mixture with a fork until well mixed.  Taste and add salt and pepper as needed.  Spoon into the egg white bases and garnish with a dusting of dill weed or paprika.

Refrigerate immediately and allow the flavors to mingle before serving,

Enjoy!