Cooking Basics - Boiled Egg

How to boil an egg

Boiled eggs can make a great breakfast, a filling lunch or a quick snack on the go!

Taste: Simplicity: Cost:

Ingredients

• Two medium eggs (if you use large, add one minute onto the timings)
• Water
• A saucepan
• A slotted spoon

Method

1. Fill the saucepan with enough water to cover the eggs (but don’t put them in the pan yet), and bring it to a boil on the hob.

2. Once the water is boiling, gently lower your eggs into the water using the slotted spoon.

3. Turn the heat down slightly. You want a rolling boil, which is steady bubbles rather than splashing. Begin your stopwatch.

4. If you’re looking for soft-boiled eggs, remove them at 4 minutes, and they are ready to eat. For hard-boiled, take them out at 10 minutes and continue with this recipe.

5. Drain the hot water out of the pan and fill the pan with cold water. Turn your tap to a trickle over the pan for two full minutes, to allow the water to flow over the eggs. This cools them down and prevents overcooking.

6. Turn off the tap and drain the cold water out of the pan.

7. Before peeling, dry your eggs off with some kitchen roll.

8. While many people have their own methods for peeling, the best way is by tapping the eggs gently on a chopping board, then rolling them to break the shell on all sides. Then you can carefully peel off the pieces to reveal a perfect hard-boiled egg.

You can eat the eggs plain with salt, in a salad or even mash them with mayonnaise for an easy sandwich filling.