Planning on hard-boiling some eggs this weekend?

There are endless methods for making hard-boiled eggs — even a simple online search will turn up countless options. All of which can make the whole exercise frustrating: Do I start with cold water or hot? How long do they cook? To shock in ice water, or to not shock in ice water? Or do I skip the water completely and bake them in the oven? In short, which method should I trust?

Years ago, when I worked for a high-end restaurant group in Los Angeles, I hard-boiled dozens of eggs a week. There was one method I used, and it’s never failed me: Place the eggs in a pot just large enough to hold them in a single layer. Add enough cool water to cover the eggs by one inch. Bring the water to a boil over high heat and cook the eggs for three minutes, then remove the pot from the heat and leave the eggs in the hot water to finish cooking. Depending on how you prefer your eggs, you might leave them in the water anywhere from five to 15 minutes before cooling them in ice water.

If you wait as little as five minutes before cooling, the yolks will be soft — with a deep golden color — and the whites will be firm but silky. Leave the eggs in the water longer, and the yolk will continue to firm up, lightening to a pale yellow.

I’ve always left the eggs in the hot water for 15 minutes, which is long enough to fully cook the yolk without leaving it chalky. Then I place the eggs in a bowl of ice water until they’re cool enough to peel

Voila.

You don’t have to worry about overcooking the eggs. Because the water slowly cools over time, you’re unlikely to find any of that awful grayish-green halo around the yolk — I’ve even left the eggs in the water for a half-hour before cooling and haven’t yet had any problems.

And you shouldn’t have to worry about exploding eggs either (when the shell cracks and egg white seeps out like molten lava). Because the eggs start in cold water, they’re less likely to crack as they boil — the trapped air has time to slowly bubble out of the porous shell while the water heats up (unlike when eggs are added to boiling water and the air needs to escape quickly, often cracking the shell).

You can find a formal recipe below.

HARD-BOILED EGGS

Total time: About 30 minutes. Makes 1 dozen eggs

1 dozen eggs

1. In a large pot, combine the eggs in a single water. Add enough water to cover the eggs by 1 inch.

2. Bring the water to a rolling boil over high heat, about 10 minutes. Cook the eggs for 3 minutes. Immediately turn off the heat, leaving the eggs in the hot water for 15 minutes. 

3. Remove the eggs from the hot water and place them in a bowl of ice water until cool enough to peel. (If you’re not using them immediately, drain the ice water, dry the eggs and refrigerate until ready to use, up to 3 days.)

4. Peel the eggs: Crack the shell evenly on all sides. I fine it easiest to begin peeling at the wide end of the shell (where there should be an air pocket), to make peeling easier. If the shell sticks to the eggs, peel the eggs under cool water.

Note: From Noelle Carter. Adapted from a method I first shared in the Los Angeles Times. For softer, more golden whites, remove the eggs from hot water after just 5 minutes rather than 15, and immediately shock in ice water until cool enough to peel. The longer you leave the eggs in the water, the firmer and lighter the yolk will become.