Love those fresh eggs but hate that they’re hard to peel?
Years ago, when we got the first six hens, we had more eggs than we could use. We ate quiche, scrambled eggs, omelets, egg casseroles and hard-cooked eggs. The beautiful eggs had dark golden yolks. Little works of arts. The only drawback was that after being boiled, fresh (meaning less than three weeks old) hard-cooked eggs were almost impossible to peel. The shell stuck to the whites of the egg and would stay attached as you pulled it off. I learned that what happens to eggs as they sit, either in the refrigerator and at room temperature, is the air evaporates through the porous shell and air gets between the membrane and the shell. When the egg is boiled it causes further separation and space so the shell is easy to remove.
This problem in pealing fresh hard-cooked eggs is a topic on nearly every website I’ve seen on raising chickens. Many friends have sent me solutions but I have not found one to work like this. My sister sent me this information and it actually worked. Thanks Sis!
Michael Friedman, the chef and co-owner of The Red Hen in Washington, D.C. tells us how to cook fresh eggs:
“I take the raw egg, and at the fat end, I poke a very small hole with a pin,” Friedman told Yahoo! Food. “This punctures the thin membrane between the shell and the egg white, making the egg easier to peel once its boiled.”
It also releases the bit of air trapped inside the shell, so the egg is able to fill the entire interior of the shell. The yolk moves to the center of the egg itself, which makes for a prettier presentation if you’re making a dish like deviled eggs.
After you’ve poked a hole in the egg, place in room temperature water. Bring to a gentle boil. Boil for 5 minutes. Turn off heat and let sit in hot water for another 10 minutes. Poor off water and fill bowl with cold water with ice. Let cool. Starting at the big end of the egg, gently remove the egg-shell. The shell removed easily. Notice how the yolk is centered in the picture below.
I will certainly continue to use this method for cooking fresh eggs. It worked better for me than any other I’ve tried. Let me know how it works for you on your own eggs or those organic fresh eggs that are so wonderfully tasteful!
Four years ago I wrote this article on Backyard Hen Cam on “hard to peel” eggs. I’d tried vinegar, salt, baking soda, etc. This method worked better than any of them.
That is awesome Auntie Lee! Thank you for sharing.