278668 Fri Jul 08 09:30:52 -0700 2005 11 31 Home Cooking 0 1475597 I followed a recipe recently provided on this board for making fool-proof hard boiled eggs. I think the recipe was from the food scientist Shirley Corriher. So this morning I took the hard boiled eggs out of the fridge and began to peel them. Uh,oh. The shell was totally stuck to the egg. I wound up with a rather unattractive looking specimen. Luckily, it's just my lunch. Wha happened? Fri Jul 08 09:30:52 -0700 2005 0 tyler 1 1475603 The eggs were probably very fresh. Believe it or not, the fresher the egg, the harder it is to peel after being boiled. I think it has something to do with the air pocket inside of the egg, but I'm sure someone with a better knowledge of "egg physics" will be able to explain. Fri Jul 08 09:51:28 -0700 2005 1475597 0 Ray 2 1475622 You are correct, it has everything to do with the air pocket. As an egg gets older, it dries out inside, making the air pocket bigger. Fri Jul 08 12:00:32 -0700 2005 1475603 0 JK Grence (the Cosmic Jester) 1 1475623 I'll repeat my hard-boiled egg-making advice. Take a dozen just-bought eggs and turn them upside down (in the container, please). Leave overnight on the counter. Put them in a pot of cold water with a little vinegar thrown in. Bring to a boil. When it hits a boil, cover and kill the heat. Leave 15 minutes. Put into ice water to shock. They peel as easily as bananas at that point. The science behind it: old eggs peel more easily. One day on the counter at room temperature is the equivalent of a week in the fridge in terms of aging. Turning them upside down centers the yolk in the white (important when making devilled eggs). The vinegar further breaks down the calcium carbonate shell. Bringing them up gently from cold and then killing the heat prevents that awful grey "shell" on the yolk. Shocking the eggs in cold water often causes cracks. Fri Jul 08 12:12:08 -0700 2005 1475597 0 Das Ubergeek 1 1475641 You can blame the eggs. They were too fresh (if you can imagine that as being a problem) You need older eggs. Fri Jul 08 14:02:41 -0700 2005 1475597 0 Tugboat 1 1475645 I have one thing to add, when I drain the hot water from the eggs, I swirl and shake the pan around to crack the egg shells, then cold water, and even ice if I am in a hurry. The shell always comes off cleanly. Fri Jul 08 14:11:00 -0700 2005 1475597 0 Amy G. 1 1475668 Then after all the previous replies with info, there's the website of the American Egg Board at www.aeb.org You're welcome... Fri Jul 08 16:19:26 -0700 2005 1475597 0 ChiliDude 1 1475706 Did you say you hard boiled them and then put them in the frig with the peel on? If this was the case, that may also be the reason (as well as all the other posters reasons) for them being so hard to peel. Peel them after they have cooked and cooled, then you can put them in the frig in a plastic container or bag. You can't keep them forever this way, but a few days should be just fine. Hope this helps. Fri Jul 08 20:41:51 -0700 2005 1475597 0 jackie 1 1475773 The recipe seems strange to me - the standard way to make hard boiled eggs is put eggs in cold water and bring to a boil, as soon as the water is boiling reduce to a simmer for 12 minutes and then shock in cold water. I've never had a problem with this method. Sat Jul 09 19:04:16 -0700 2005 1475597 0 KenOnDean 2 1475806 I concur! A look at the American Egg Board website for other egg recipes couldn't hurt. www.aeb.org Sun Jul 10 08:04:00 -0700 2005 1475773 0 ChiliDude 2 1475876 Shirley Corriher's method turns out eggs with no gray/green around the yolk. Sometimes the visual matters--sometimes not. Sun Jul 10 19:00:12 -0700 2005 1475773 0 Funwithfood 1 1475967 I just made egg salad (with homemade mayonaisse that I HATE - it tastes extremely oily, but I digress) yesterday, and for whatever reason, I had perfect, easy to peel eggs with perfect sunny yellow yolks. I covered the eggs in cold water with salt and a dash of vinegar, brought them to a boil, lowered the heat and simmered for about 15 minutes while I made the mayonaisse. At that point I gave them a cold water wash, but here's where my technique varied. Instead of letting them cool completely, I peeled them while still warmish. One other odd tip I've always followed is to use slightly older eggs - those that have just started to float on their end a tiny bit. I swear, I think the trick is somehow to use classic kitchen-witchery. Just BELIEVE that the stupid things will be perfect, and they will. ;-) Mon Jul 11 14:22:22 -0700 2005 1475597 0 Shan