How to Boil Eggs Thoroughly Without Cracking

Eggs are fragile and can be difficult to hard-boil without cracking. When it is cold, eggs are very easy to crack if exposed to hot water; They can also crack when bumping into each other or falling to the bottom of the pot. To prevent the egg from cracking, you need to be gentle, heat it slowly and pay attention to the temperature difference between the egg and the water.

Table of Contents

Prepare eggs to boil

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Let the eggs return to room temperature before boiling. If storing eggs in the refrigerator, it is important that you do not boil them while they are cold. Cracked eggs are caused by the air inside the eggshell heating up and expanding. When the pressure is too great, the air will escape by breaking the weak points in the eggshell with tiny holes. You can slow this process down by letting the eggs return to room temperature before boiling.

If you don’t want to wait for your eggs to warm up naturally, you can try dipping them in hot water for a few minutes before boiling.

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Use older eggs if possible. When the egg is fresh, the outer membrane adheres to the eggshell, while the inner membrane clings to the egg white. As the egg ages, these membranes will adhere more closely to the eggshell. ^{[1] X Research Source}

Air out the inside of the egg to reduce the risk of cracking. Before you put the egg in the water, you can use a pin or clean tape to poke the big end of the egg. This will help the air bubbles inside the eggshell – which often causes eggs to crack – to escape during the boiling process. ^{[2] X Research Source}

Select and place eggs in a pot or saucepan. Fold gently to avoid cracking the eggs. Don’t stack the eggs too tightly – you should only boil one layer at a time, and don’t squeeze the eggs together. If you keep trying to boil too many eggs at once, some of the eggs may crack because of their weight. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

Check if the eggs are fresh by dropping them in a bowl of salted water. Eggs that sink to the bottom mean they are fresh. If it floats on the water, chances are that the egg is spoiled.
Fold the cheesecloth in several layers and line the bottom of the pot to create a soft cushion that reduces the risk of egg cracking.

Boil eggs in cold water. Gently pour water into the pot to a height of at least 3 cm. Pour water close to the edge of the pot to avoid disturbing the eggs. If you can’t avoid pouring water over the eggs, you should hold them by hand to prevent them from rolling back and forth and cracking.

Add half a teaspoon of salt to the water. This will make the eggs easier to peel and also prevent cracking. Salt water makes egg whites harden faster. It also helps to seal small fistulas if the eggshell cracks during the boiling process.
Never drop an egg straight into a pot of hot water, or the shell will crack and the egg will melt (into a poached egg). When you drop a cold egg into warm or hot water, you give the egg a “shock” because of the sudden change in temperature and the formation of cracks. ^{[4] X Research Source} Furthermore, cold water will help prevent the eggs from being overcooked.

Add vinegar to the water. Use a teaspoon of vinegar for each egg and pour it directly into the water before turning on the stove. Vinegar will help the protein in the egg whites to set faster and seal the cracks that form in the eggshells. ^{[5] X Source of Research} This is a common problem, especially when eggs are very cold.

You can also wait until a cracked egg to add vinegar. When the egg cracks, you will see a white liquid seeping out. This is a time to be quick – if you add vinegar to the water as soon as you see signs of an egg cracking, the egg can still cook evenly.
If you don’t put the vinegar in in time, don’t worry. The cracked egg also ripens well, although it doesn’t look very nice. ^{[6] X Research Sources}
Just a little vinegar. If you use too much, the eggs will taste like vinegar!

Boil the egg

Boil eggs gently over medium heat. Bring the water to a boil slowly so that the eggs don’t crack because the temperature changes too quickly. Cover the swing again. The water will boil a little faster with the lid on, but you can leave the lid open if you want to observe. ^{[7] X Research Sources}

Make sure the egg doesn’t sit still on the bottom of the pot, as it will cook unevenly and crack more easily. Turn the eggs every time you see them start to sit still. Use a wooden spoon to stir, and be very gentle so as not to crack the eggs.

Turn off the stove when the water has boiled. Turn off the heat as soon as the water is boiling and soak the eggs in hot water. Remember to cover the lid. The heat in the water and the warmth still on the stove is enough to cook the eggs. Soak the eggs in the pot for about 3-15 minutes, depending on how well you want the eggs to cook:

If you want the eggs to be hard-boiled, you should take them out after about 3 minutes. The egg whites will solidify, while the yolks will remain liquid and warm. Be careful when removing eggs; Use your lips to scoop each egg to avoid cracking. ^{[8] X Research Sources}
If you want the egg to cook medium, you need to remove the egg from the water after 5-7 minutes. The yolk will be soft in the center, and the white will have frozen solid. You need to be gentle with the eggs but don’t have to worry about the eggs cracking.
If you want the eggs to cook thoroughly, soak them in hot water for about 9-12 minutes. The yolk will solidify, and you don’t have to worry about the egg cracking. If you want the eggs to cook thoroughly but the yolks are still soft and bright yellow, you should soak the eggs in hot water for about 9-10 minutes. If you want firmer eggs and a lighter yellow yolk, you can soak for 11-12 minutes.

Watch the clock and don’t let the eggs overheat. After boiling for 12 minutes, the yolk will turn color and have gray or green streaks. The eggs are still edible and the bluish-gray streaks don’t affect the taste much either. However, some people find these streaks unpalatable. ^{[9] X Research Source} Consider buying an egg timer – a heat-sensitive indicator that can be added to the pot with the eggs. You can buy this tool online or at any kitchen supply store. ^{[10] X Research Source}

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Know when cracked eggs are edible. If the egg cracks in the water while it is boiling, the egg is still edible and you can still boil it normally if the crack is not too large. If the egg is already cracked before you put it in the pot, don’t use it. Bacteria may have entered the egg to infect the inside of the egg and be harmful to health. ^{[11] X Research Source}

Cool, peel and store eggs

Prepare a bowl of ice water. While the eggs are still boiling in the pot, prepare a large bowl of cold water. Add ¼ – ½ teaspoon of salt to the water, then add ice to lower the water temperature. Once the eggs are set, carefully drop them into the bowl of cold water so they don’t cook further.

Cool the eggs to stop the heating process. After the eggs have been boiled for the desired time, carefully drain the water from the pot, then drop the eggs into the bowl of ice water to stop the heating process. Use a large spoon with holes to scoop out each egg to avoid cracking the eggs. Carefully drop the eggs into the bowl of ice water to cool them down. Soak for about 2-5 minutes.

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Store eggs in the refrigerator or serve immediately. Once the eggs have cooled and can be handled, you can put them in the refrigerator for about 20-30 minutes to make them easier to peel. If you don’t care too much about how to peel eggs beautifully or if you want to eat eggs while warm, you can skip this step and peel the eggs as soon as the eggs are cool enough.

Make sure the eggs are fully cooked. You can leave the eggs on the table and test to see if the eggs are completely frozen by spinning them. If the egg turns quickly and easily, it’s done. If you see the egg wobbling, you need to boil a little more.

Peel eggs when ready to eat. Press the egg into a clean flat surface and use a rolling pin to crack the shell. Start peeling from the large end of the egg, where there is an air chamber under the shell. This will make it easier for you to peel.

Dip the eggs in cold water while peeling. This will help keep the shell fragments and membranes from sticking to the egg.
Usually eggs are easier to peel when cracked. Return the eggs to the pot and cover the pot. Shake the pot back and forth to crack the eggshells before peeling. You may need to repeat several times to crack all the eggs.

Advice

Extra-large eggs need to be boiled a little longer than medium-sized eggs. Boil for about 3 more minutes depending on the size of the egg. For example, a very large hard-boiled egg can take 15 minutes to complete.
If using eggs with white shells, you can put some onion skins in the pot (brown skins). The onion peel will stain the egg a light brown color, and you can easily tell the difference between unboiled and boiled eggs. This is useful if you store unboiled eggs with boiled eggs.

Steps

Prepare eggs to boil

Boil the egg

Cool, peel and store eggs

Advice

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