How to Cook Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs

How to make perfect hard cooked eggs on the stove or in the Instant Pot - There is a secret to perfectly hard boiled eggs, and you can learn the tips and kitchen hacks here! If you follow these easy instructions, you will never have runny or rubbery hard boiled eggs again and the shells will peel right off! Great for Easter breakfast!

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It's egg season!

I love Easter. My favorite thing about Easter is Easter candy, but I haven't imbibed this year. I don't intend to imbibe, either. Easter can be great without lots of candy.

I hope.

I may have more favorite things than the average person, but Easter is definitely high on my list. I love to color eggs. (Pop over here for the easiest egg dyeing instructions!) I love to make baskets. I love to be crafty. I love to eat spring food.

Last year, I wrote quite a few Easter posts:

I hadn't previously noticed that they were all about food. So much for Easter being a religious holiday, huh?

Anyway.

Back to Easter Eggs.

My hard boiled eggs used to be terrible.

I'm not alone. A study conducted by the American Egg Board in February 2010 showed that fewer than 30% of us hard cook our eggs properly.

I color my eggs nicely, aside from the times when the dye gets spilled all over the place. But peeling them is a pain and they all end up in egg salad.

Nobody notices the hunks missing from the eggs when they're all cut up in egg salad.

In theory.

This post was not intended to confess my inadequacies. I'm supposed to be learning how helping you to make hard boiled eggs, so let's get to that.

Lest I ruin someone else's Easter eggs, I consulted the American Egg Board for help with the hard cooking.

How To Stop Screwing Up Your Hard Boiled Eggs

Hard COOKED, not hard BOILED
Apparently, I've been cooking the eggs the wrong way. While the cooking water must come to a full boil in the recommended method, the pan is immediately removed from the heat so that the eggs cook gently in the hot water. Hard-cooking produces tender eggs and minimizes cracking.
Hard-cooked eggs in the shell can be refrigerated safely for up to one week
Peeled hard-cooked eggs should be eaten the same day.
How to peel a hard-cooked egg:
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Gently tap egg on countertop until the shell is finely cracked all over. Roll egg between hands to loosen shell. Peel starting at the large end and hold the egg under cold running water to help ease the shell off.
Banish the greenish ring.
This harmless but unsightly discoloration that sometimes forms around hard-cooked yolks results from a reaction between sulfur in the egg white and iron in the yolk. It occurs when eggs have been cooked for too long or at too high a temperature.

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Very fresh eggs can be difficult to peel.
Buy and refrigerate your eggs a week to 10 days in advance of cooking them to make the peeling process easier. This brief “breather” allows the eggs time to take in air, which helps separate the membranes from the shell.
Hard-cooked eggs are easiest to peel just after cooling.
Cooling causes the egg to contract slightly in the shell.
Prepare a dozen hard-cooked eggs on Sunday so you'll have an all-natural, high-quality protein option on hand for your family during the busy week ahead, either for an on-the-go breakfast or after-school snack.

So here's the info that you've been waiting for. Get your eggs ready.

How to Make Perfect Hard Cooked Eggs on the Stovetop

Place the eggs in saucepan large enough to hold them in a single layer. Add cold water to cover eggs by 1 inch. Heat over high heat just to boiling.
Remove pan from burner; cover. Let eggs stand in hot water - about 15 minutes for large eggs, 12 minutes for medium eggs; or 18 minutes for extra large eggs.
Cool completely under cold running water or in a bowl of ice water. Peel and eat, or store unpeeled in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

a bowl of perfectly cooked hard boiled eggs

How to Make Perfect Hard Cooked Eggs in the Instant Pot

The Instant Pot makes hard boiled eggs so easy if you just remember the 5-5-5 rule.

Add the eggs and 1 cup of water to the pot. Cook the eggs on high pressure for 5 minutes.
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Allow the pressure to release naturally for 5 minutes.
Remove the eggs from the Instant Pot and place into an ice bath for 5 minutes.
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Instant Pot hard cooked eggs come out perfectly every single time, and they are always easy to peel. We used to use the stovetop method above, but since we got an IP, we use it. It's so easy and the eggs come out so well that we'll never go back to the stovetop again!