To Boil Eggs in the Shell
Ingredients
Directions
Bring a pot of water to a boil.
Gently place the eggs in the boiling water.
Boil for 3 minutes for soft whites, 5 minutes for firm whites and runny yolks, or 8-10 minutes for hard‑boiled eggs.
Ensure the water covers the eggs completely while boiling.
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
- Eggs
- Heat sets the white and yolk proteins, so cooking time controls how firm each part becomes.
The step that matters
Boil for the time that matches the doneness you want. Heat makes egg proteins set, and the white firms before the yolk. Even a minute or two changes whether the yolk stays runny or turns firm, so the timing must match the result you want.
“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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