Ask Gina

How to boil an egg.

Posted by Gina on Feb 23, 2008

Maybe I’m an idiot for asking this. It seems like a simple task to most. I would like to know how to boil an egg. I always look this up on the internet to get the timing right but then I always forget what I did the next time I do it. Maybe if you had a little rhyme or something to help me remember that would be great. - Brian

This question is totally legit. There are so many ways to boil an egg that it’s hard to remember which method to use. I used to switch back and forth between three or four methods and I would often jumble them up resulting in over cooked eggs.

First, I want to define what a perfectly cooked egg means to me. The perfect boiled egg is all about the yolk. It should be a deep golden yellow with a creamy consistency. When an egg is boiled for too long the yolk becomes dry and crumbly and the color is pale yellow with a gray-greenish tinge around the edge, eww!

To achieve this wonderful boiled egg I speak of I suggest using the following method:

-place eggs in pan and cover with cold H2O

-add a pinch of salt (this is optional)

-bring eggs to a boil and allow to boil for 3 minutes (don’t start the timer until the water has come to a full boil)

-remove eggs from the water-allow eggs to cool down to room temperature (about 20 minutes)

-peel eggs under a small stream of running water (this helps the shell come off)

I have chosen this method because the 3 minute cooking time is short enough to keep my attention and the results are very good. Now, if you like your eggs a little harder in the center, let it cook for an additional minute or two, no biggie.

As for a rhyme… well, this is what I came up with:

just boil for 3

and rest 20