Let’s face it: The basics are important. No matter how you’ve landed here, don’t worry. No one is judging you for wondering how to boil eggs! It is a staple skill and we all need to know how to boil a great egg. Boiled eggs can be used for a variety of meals! You can eat them as they are for a snack or make more complex dishes such as deviled eggs or egg salad. No matter what your intent, here are four easy steps to boiling some eggs!

Put your eggs in a pot, then pour cold water over them

You want to place the eggs in first, then cover with water. This will avoid any eggs breaking or cracking as they fall to the bottom.

Pro Tip: Week old eggs will peel easier than the freshest of the bunch. Choose older eggs for boiling to make your life easier in the next few steps

Turn up the heat! Get the water in your pot to a rolling boil, then remove the pot from heat and place a cover on top

The water should begin to boil, but it does not need to boil long. If the eggs receive too much heat, the yolks can turn green. Ironic that the key to boiling eggs is barely boiling them at all!

Let sit for 12-15 minutes

How long to let the eggs sit can vary. For small eggs, let them sit for 12-14 minutes. For extra large eggs, you may want them to sit for 15-17 minutes.

Drain the water and transfer eggs to ice water

This is an important step. The ice water helps shock the eggs to stop the cooking process preventing overcooking. You can even make the peeling process easier by cracking the cooked eggs before shocking them in the ice bath. Let them sit in the ice bath for an hour or so, then happy peeling!

And that is it! You’ve successfully boiled some eggs. Now get to chopping, mixing, or whatever else you have planned for these eggs…

And as always:

Stay Fresh & Happy Cooking!