Boiled Eggs
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Bring a saucepan of water to a boil.
Gently place the eggs in the boiling water using a spoon, ensuring the spoon touches the bottom to prevent cracking.
Cook and finish
For lightly boiled eggs, cook for 3 minutes.
For medium eggs, cook for 3¾ to 4 minutes.
For hard-boiled eggs, cook for 6 to 7 minutes.
If using large eggs, add an extra 30 seconds to the cooking time.
For salad eggs, boil for 10 to 15 minutes, then transfer to a basin of cold water for a few minutes.
Roll the eggs on the table with your hand to make peeling easier.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Fresh eggs
- Egg white and yolk set with heat, giving the cooked egg its firm texture.
- Boiling water
- Transfers heat evenly to the eggs, cooking them through.
The step that matters
Timing the cook for the desired doneness. Egg proteins set progressively with heat, so a few seconds changes the yolk from runny to fully firm. Egg size also alters heat penetration, so large eggs need slightly longer. Checking the time for the chosen style prevents overcooking.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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