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Boiled eggs are cooked by immersing eggs (typically chicken's eggs) in boiling water with their shells unbroken. (Eggs cooked in water without their shells are known as poached eggs; see Poaching (cooking).) Hard-boiled eggs are produced by boiling until both the egg yolk and the egg white are solid, while for soft-boiled eggs the yolk, and sometimes even the white, remains "runny". Boiled eggs are commonly eaten in Africa, and Europe, North America and other parts of the Western world. They are generally considered easier to cook than many other ways of preparing eggs, while hard-boiled eggs are easier to cook than soft-boiled eggs.

Contents 1 Soft-boiled eggs 1.1 Serving 2 Hard-boiled eggs 2.1 Preparation 2.2 Storage 3 In fiction 4 See also 5 References 6 External links

Soft-boiled eggs are typically cooked by placing the eggs in a pan of boiling water and then simmering for approximately three minutes.^[1]. An egg timer can be used to measure the time the egg is boiled.

Due to the undercooked yolk, soft-boiled eggs are not recommended for people who may be susceptible to salmonella, such as very young children, the elderly, and those with weakened immune systems.^[2]

In Europe and, occasionally, in the United States one or more soft-boiled eggs are sometimes taken out of their shells, broken up and put into a glass. They are then eaten from the glass. Also, in Europe, some people, such as wealthy people, bath in egg yolk.

Soft boiled eggs are commonly served in egg cups, where the top of the egg is cut off with a knife or egg scissors, using a teaspoon to scoop the egg out. Other methods include breaking the eggshell by tapping gently around the top of the shell with a spoon,^[3] and even cutting the egg lengthwise as to produce two halves making it easier to scoop the egg from its shell^{[citation needed]}. This method requires a horizontal egg cup to keep the egg from rolling around on the plate. Soft-boiled eggs can be eaten with buttered toast cut into strips, which are then dipped into the runny yolk. In Great Britain, these strips of toast are known as soldiers.

Boiled eggs are typically boiled for 10-11 minutes or until they float, depending on the size of the egg.^[4] They can be eaten warm or cold. Cold hard-boiled eggs can be cut up and put into a salad or sandwich. Hard-boiled eggs can also be eaten warm in an egg cup without removing the shell, especially for people who want the "egg cup experience" of soft-boiled eggs without risking salmonella poisoning. Most people eat a hard-boiled egg without a cup.

Hard-boiled eggs are also a popular addition to many Japanese soup dishes, such as udon and ramen. Hard-boiled eggs are mixed with butter to form Finnish Egg Butter.

Some cooks (for example, Julia Child, Alton Brown, and Martha Stewart) recommend turning off the heat as soon as the water comes to a boil leaving the tightly-covered eggs to sit for 15 minutes, after which the eggs are removed from the hot water and placed in an ice bath.^[5] The theory is that as the water cools, just enough heat will transfer to the eggs to cook them hard.

Many cooks, however, prefer to exercise more direct control over the process. A typical recipe:

• place eggs in a pot
• add water until the eggs are submerged to a depth of 1 inch
• heat to a boil
• reduce heat, maintaining boil for 4-25 minutes, depending on the desired final texture
• remove eggs from water

If the cook cools the hot eggs rapidly by running cold water over them, the egg will shrink slightly inside the shell, making it easier to remove. It also avoids a grey ring that usually forms around the yolk when sliced.

An easy way to remove the shell is to crack the entire shell and then pierce the membrane on the inside. The shell can then be removed, as the membrane holds the shell together.

Peeled hard-boiled eggs can be stored in the refrigerator in a bowl of cold water to cover for about 1 week (change the water daily) - or in a sealed container without water (cover the eggs with damp paper towels) for the same length of time.
Hard-boiled eggs in their shells can be stored in the refrigerator for 2-3 weeks.^[6]
Hard cooked eggs may be kept in the refrigerator for up to one week.^[7][8]

Yolks can be covered with cold water and refrigerated, tightly covered, for up to 3 days. Tightly covered egg whites can be refrigerated up to 4 days or frozen for 6 months.^[9]

Studies done at the American Egg Board substantiate that unopened containers of brined or pickled eggs (marinated, hard-cooked eggs) keep for several months on the shelf. After opening, keep refrigerated. ^[10]

• A notable fictional controversy involving boiled eggs is the "endian" dispute over which end of a boiled egg should be eaten first, which is the cause of the war between Lilliput and Blefuscu in Johnathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels (1726). This is also the source of the term endianness in computing, which describes the way numbers are stored in a system: with the "big" or the "little" end coming first.
• In The Screwtape Letters by C. S. Lewis, senior devil Screwtape advises apprentice devil Wormwood to seize upon the Patient's annoyance at his mother due to her repeated complaints that the boiled eggs she is given are not quite to her liking.
• Hardboiled is a type of crime fiction.
• In the film Cool Hand Luke (1967) Luke Jackson wagers that he can eat fifty hard-boiled eggs in one hour.[1]
• In the film Blade Runner, the replicant Pris grabs an egg out of boiling water to demonstrate that she isn't human.
• In the film Angel Heart Harry Angel has a discussion with character Louis Cyphre whilst the latter is methodically peeling a boiled egg.
• In The Marx Brothers' "A Night at the Opera", Driftwood (Groucho) orders dinner from the steward, including "two fried eggs, two poached eggs, two scrambled eggs, and two medium-boiled eggs" and repeated requests for hard-boiled eggs ("two hard-boiled eggs" and "make that three hard-boiled eggs").^[11]
• In the book Sharpe's Escape, by Bernard Cornwell, Colonel Lawford talks about how his father "always believed he would be met at the gates of heaven by an angel carrying two decently boiled eggs on a silver salver."

• List of egg dishes

• Fine Manners for Fine Dining
• The Kindergarten of Etiquette

1. ^ Soft Boiled Eggs. Cooks.com. Retrieved on 2006-12-19.
2. ^ Plan Under Way to Help Lessen Risks from Contaminated Eggs. FDA Consumer magazine. Retrieved on 2006-12-19.
3. ^ Fine Manners for Fine Dining. Retrieved on 2006-12-19.
4. ^ Soft-Cooked Eggs, Medium-Cooked Eggs, and Hard-Cooked Eggs. Retrieved on 2006-12-19.
5. ^ The Egg Files Transcript. Retrieved on 2007-05-20.
6. ^ About Eggs. Retrieved on 2006-12-19.
7. ^ Learn More About Eggs. Retrieved on 2006-12-19.
8. ^ Egg-ucation. Retrieved on 2006-12-19.
9. ^ Eggs. FoodNetwork.com Encyclopedia. Retrieved on 2006-12-19.
10. ^ Shell Eggs from Farm to Table. Retrieved on 2006-12-19.
11. ^ http://www.filmsite.org/night2.html A Night at the Opera (1935)

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