Perfect Boiled Eggs: From Soft to Hard-Boiled, a Foolproof Recipe for Beginners
Save Gas! How to Boil Perfect Soft and Hard-Boiled Eggs with the Golden Ratio
Stop struggling with boiling eggs! With this recipe, you can achieve your desired level of doneness every time without fail. Instead of just boiling, this method uses residual heat after turning off the stove, which also helps save on gas costs. Enjoy perfectly cooked soft and hard-boiled eggs with five different textures right at home!
Ingredients
- 5 fresh eggs
- 2 Tbsp vinegar (helps firm up the egg whites)
- 1 Tbsp salt (aids in peeling)
- Water (enough to cover the eggs)
Cooking Instructions
Step 1
Today, we’re preparing 5 fresh eggs to make delicious boiled eggs. We’ll start with eggs straight from the refrigerator. This method allows you to easily make eggs with five different levels of doneness, from soft-boiled to hard-boiled.
Step 2
In a pot, first add 2 tablespoons of vinegar and 1 tablespoon of salt. The vinegar’s role is to help coagulate the egg whites, making them firmer, which is especially helpful for soft-boiled eggs to prevent the whites from becoming runny. Salt also assists in making the shells easier to peel.
Step 3
Now, pour in enough water to completely cover the eggs. Place the lid on the pot and bring it to a boil over high heat.
Step 4
Once the water reaches a rolling boil, let it boil for exactly 30 more seconds before turning off the heat. This short period is crucial for bringing the internal temperature of the eggs to the right point.
Step 5
After turning off the heat, keep the pot lid firmly closed. Do not move the pot or open the lid; it must remain as is. Although the heat is off, the eggs will gently cook using the residual heat and steam from the hot water inside. From this point on, we will accurately time based on your desired doneness.
Step 6
Exactly 4 minutes after turning off the heat, carefully remove one egg and immediately place it in a prepared bowl of cold water. This stops the cooking process and cools the egg, which will help the shell peel more easily later.
Step 7
After removing one egg, close the pot lid tightly again. It’s important to maintain the environment for the remaining eggs to cook with the residual heat.
Step 8
One minute after removing the first egg, which is a total of 5 minutes after turning off the heat, remove another egg and place it in cold water. Again, close the lid. Continue this process, taking out one egg every minute and placing it in cold water. The last egg will be removed and placed in cold water 2 minutes after the second-to-last egg was removed. (Tip: Think of it as removing eggs at 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 minutes after turning off the heat. Based on the description in step 7, taking out eggs at 1-minute intervals and the last egg after 2 minutes means the eggs were removed at the 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8-minute marks respectively.)
Step 9
Now, immerse all 5 eggs in cold water to cool them completely. Soaking them in cold water for about 20 minutes allows the eggs to cool down thoroughly. This creates a slight gap between the shell and the white, making the shells much easier to peel.
Step 10
Here’s a summary of the times I removed each egg. (4 min, 5 min, 6 min, 7 min, 8 min marks)
Step 11
When peeling the eggs, gently tap them against each other or on a hard surface to create cracks all over the shell. This helps the shell to break into larger pieces and peel off smoothly.
Step 12
Carefully peel away the cracked shell, starting from the edges. You’ll see how cleanly it comes off! Even very fresh eggs, which tend to be difficult to peel, will come apart easily with this method.
Step 13
I have now peeled all 5 eggs. As you can see, they’ve come off very cleanly!
Step 14
The first egg removed, after 4 minutes, has a very soft white, as you can see. Peeling these very soft-boiled eggs requires extra care to avoid breaking them.
Step 15
Let’s cut the eggs, removed at different time intervals, in half to check their doneness. I’m excited to see how they turned out!
Step 16
The egg removed after 4 minutes is indeed a perfectly runny, gooey soft-boiled egg. You can see the slight differences in the yolk’s doneness for the eggs removed at 5, 6, 7, and 8 minutes. If you prefer a fully hard-boiled egg, you might want to leave them in the residual heat for about 12 minutes after turning off the stove. For a more detailed visual guide, please refer to the accompanying video, which will make the process even easier to understand!
