Monday, June 8, 2009

Techniques of Boiling Eggs

By Bengare Kasba

Before commencing to boil an egg, certain rules require to be taken into consideration. They include never boiling refrigerated eggs due to their temperature being excessively low, hence high chances of cracking after coming in contact with hot water. A kitchen timer should always be used rather than rely on memory and simple guesswork. When eggs are over-boiled, they gain a rubbery texture and the yolk attains a blackish color. When boiling eggs that are very fresh, 30 seconds extra should be permitted when timing.

A saucepan should always be used when boiling eggs to avoid eggs careering around because this may lead to cracking. Eggs generally require gently simmering water and not fast boiling water. This is due to the fact that eggs contain a pocket at the wide end and since air collects here while boiling, buildup of pressure during boiling may lead to cracking. This is easily dealt with by making a pinprick at the shells rounded end to enable the escape of steam. Eggs can either be hard-boiled or soft-boiled depending on someones preference.

When soft-boiling eggs, one requires a saucepan with simmering water and this should be adequate enough to cover the eggs by not less than " inch. The eggs should be lowered into the water gently with the use of a tablespoon. One should then proceed to set the timer and the eggs allowed a minute of simmering. The next step requires minimizing the heat and resetting the timer before increasing the heat. Six minutes setting produces a wobbly white and a soft yolk, while seven minutes setting produces an entirely set white with a firmer and creamier yolk.

Peeling eggs that are hard-boiled is a sensitive and tricky process and this is more so when they are boiled while very fresh. The eggs to be used require to have lasted at least five days old before they were last packed. The saucepan where the eggs require to be placed should contain sufficient cold water which should cover the eggs by at least " inch.

After the water is brought to a point of simmering, the timer should be set to either six or seven minutes depending on whether they are required completely cooked. Running cold water should be used to rapidly cool the eggs and this process should take relatively one minute. They should be left in cold water for around two minutes.

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