292788 Mon May 12 12:55:14 -0700 2003 9 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 1599256 Why does the shell come off some eggs easily and not others? Any advice? Mon May 12 12:55:14 -0700 2003 0 david kaplan 1 1599258 There is a great article in cook's illustrated about this. Do a search and you can find out the whole story, but from what I gathered, you have to hit the egg on the bottom part where a little pocket of air is trapped, and this will give you some leverage to get those nice long strips of shell. Also, shocking them from hot water to an ice bath will help separate the shell from the white. Mon May 12 13:02:17 -0700 2003 1599256 0 alex 2 1599266 When you plunge the hot eggs into the cold bath, give them a good knock to crack the shell. Then the cold water will seep in between the egg and the shell, possibly making your task a bit easier. Mon May 12 13:42:44 -0700 2003 1599258 0 Erica Marcus 3 1599283 I have laying hens, and I know from sad experience that I need to hold eggs for boiling for at least 2 weeks, and 3 is better. Fresh eggs don't peel. Also, if you open the carton and let the eggs sit on the counter overnight before you boil them, they will peel easier. Store bought eggs are usually not a problem--I used to work for USDA in an egg packing plant, and some of those eggs sit in cold storage for a month before they are packed in cartons and dated. Peeling under a running tap often helps, too. Mon May 12 15:29:56 -0700 2003 1599266 0 sparrowgrass 1 1599261 If the eggs are very fresh they are difficult, nearly impossible, to peel. There is no air pocket developed so that you can get between the skin under the shell and the egg. Fresh eggs are perfect for poaching, though. Once the eggs are less fresh, that air pocket starts to develop. You can tell how fresh they are by immersing them in water. If the egg sinks, it is fresh. If it stands on its point it is less fresh, and if it floats it is really past it. Mon May 12 13:22:22 -0700 2003 1599256 0 Deb Van D 1 1599308 Pierce the raw egg with a pin on the rounder side before boiling. That lets the air out and the water in very slowly while it's cooking. I also add a bit of salt to the water. I eat boiled eggs almost every day and it seems that these two measures are effective because I never have a peeling problem. Mon May 12 19:32:20 -0700 2003 1599256 0 christina z 1 1599316 Forget the pins, forget the air pockets, forget old eggs, forget cracking the egg on either end. I take eggs from the store directly into the hard boiled process. When you crack an egg say to make scrambled eggs, you crack the egg on a flat surface in the middle of the egg. The reason being you don't want the ity bitty pieces from the ends to fall into the dish. Hard boiled is the same. The best bang for your buck (bigger pieces) is in the middle not the ends. If you meet any resistance at any point in deshelling go to another place.. don't force the deshelling. Also wet your hands before you start deshelling. Put eggs in pan with cold water and bring to a rolling boil. Turn heat off, cover and let sit for 17 minutes (this timing is for large eggs which is all I use. Remove eggs and run under cold water or shock in ice water for a minute. Return to the pan which you have in the meantime cranked the heat back up and let sit for about 30 seconds then return to the ice water. Dry and put in frig. Couldn't be any easier. Eggs are perfect. Mon May 12 20:53:33 -0700 2003 1599256 0 T.Davis 2 1599332 this method has been fool proof for me (and mom) as well. I had not made hard cooked eggs in years until last year when I had a craving for deviled eggs- ruined a dozen or more eggs following a newspapers instuctions- the eggs were not done or would not peel. Called my mom- she said bring eggs and cold water to a roiling boil- turn off the heat, cover, let sit 16 17 minutes- perfect eggs- just did it this weekend- perfect again. Tue May 13 09:29:15 -0700 2003 1599316 0 cocoagirl 1 1599337 My mother's method (which works for me)is after the eggs are boiled, crack them all over the surface by rolling them around on a table or something, then set them in a dish of water. The water gets under the crack and makes the shell come off easily (all the little pieces that you have cracked it into peel off in one sheet). Tue May 13 09:58:16 -0700 2003 1599256 0 MiriamTeresa 1 1599498 The short answer is because of changes in the acidity of the albumen related to carbon dioxide escaping from through the shell. Check out the article at the URL attached. Dave Link: http://kitchensavvy.typepad.com/journal/2005/03/peeling_hardboi.html Thu Sep 29 17:55:57 -0700 2005 1599256 0 Dave