Cook once, snack all week: hard-boiled eggs with the yolk set all the way through and shells that peel off. This easy recipe is for ages 11 to 14 (grades 6th–8th), takes about 15 minutes (plus 25 minutes waiting) and serves 3. Crumb, our tiny chef, reads every step aloud with a picture, so a child can follow along, and every hot or sharp step is marked for a grown-up.
Hard-boiled eggs start in cold water, come to a boil, then sit in the hot water with the lid on and the heat off, so they cook gently and the yolk sets all the way through. An ice bath stops the cooking and helps the shells peel. A grown-up does the stove and the hot water; teens do the rest.
Ingredients
6 eggs
2 cups ice2 cups (480 ml) ice
a pinch salt
Tools
A big pot, The stove (grown-up), A mixing bowl, A big spoon, A plate.
Steps
Wash your hands with soap for twenty seconds.
Put 6 eggs in a pot, in one layer.
Wash your hands: raw eggshells can carry germs.
Cover them with cold water, about a finger's width over the tops.
Grown-up step: A grown-up brings the pot to a full boil on the stove.
Grown-up step: A grown-up turns off the heat, puts the lid on and sets a timer for 12 minutes.
While they wait, fill a bowl with cold water and 2 cups of ice.While they wait, fill a bowl with cold water and 2 cups (480 ml) of ice.
Grown-up step: A grown-up lifts the eggs into the ice water with a big spoon.
Leave them in the ice water for 5 minutes, until they're cold.
Tap an egg on the counter to crack the shell all over.
Roll it gently under your hand, then peel it, starting at the fat end.
Rinse the peeled egg under the tap, and wash your hands too.
Sprinkle on a pinch of salt and eat, or keep them in the fridge for up to a week.
Safety notes
Hot! A grown-up does this part.
Contains eggs. Tap "Allergies?" on the Kitchen's front page and the swaps fill themselves in where there is one.
Raw egg can carry germs: wash your hands after touching it, and eat eggs only once they're cooked.
Kitchen science
Heat makes the runny proteins in an egg unfold and tangle together, so the white and the yolk set from liquid to solid.
Make it your own
Have a grown-up halve one, and sprinkle on a pinch of paprika.
Mash one with a spoonful of mayonnaise for egg salad on toast.
Pack one, still in its shell, for lunch tomorrow.
Questions about hard-boiled eggs
How long do you boil eggs for hard-boiled?
Bring them to a boil in cold water, then turn off the heat, cover the pot and leave them 12 minutes for large eggs (9 for medium, 15 for extra-large). Then cool them in ice water.
Why is there a green ring around the yolk?
The egg cooked too long or cooled too slowly. Iron in the yolk and sulfur in the white meet and turn grey-green. It's safe to eat; the ice bath stops it.
How do you make hard-boiled eggs easy to peel?
Use eggs that are a week or two old, cool them in ice water, crack the shell all over and start peeling at the fat end, where there's a little air pocket.
How long do hard-boiled eggs keep?
Put them in the fridge within two hours of cooking and eat them within a week, peeled or not.