How long to boil eggs? It seems simple enough but most people overcook their eggs. Here’s how to make perfect hard-boiled eggs or soft-boiled eggs.
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Perfect Boiled Eggs
Are you tired of overcooked green or grey egg yolks, rubbery whites, or discovering an oozing yolk when you need a firm one for your Chicken Cobb Salad? Do you tend to overcook your eggs just to be sure they are done? This tutorial is for you!
Learn how to make hard-boiled eggs with our tried and true (easy-peel) method. Boiled eggs are such a versatile ingredient and every cook should have this skill down. You will be a pro in no time, enjoying all of your favorite Boiled Egg Recipes, and let’s not forget Easter Eggs.
Hard-Boiled Eggs Video
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Everyone needs a go-to method for perfectly cooked eggs every time for making Deviled Eggs and Egg Salad. This method is really easy – all you need is a saucepan and water.
What are the Best Eggs for Boiling?
Eggs come in different sizes (small to jumbo) and varieties (natural, free-range, organic, omega-3, etc). The primary things to consider for boiled eggs are:
- Egg Freshness – Older store-bought eggs are easier to peel. Farm fresh eggs (from backyard chickens) should be cooked under high pressure in the instant pot or they can be very difficult to peel.
- Size Matters – We use Large Grade AA eggs. Large eggs (2 ounces each) are the standard size in most recipes so we stick with those. Medium eggs will cook faster and Extra Large or Jumbo eggs will take a little longer.
Tips for Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs:
- Use the same pan every time for consistent results. We use a large 3-quart stainless steel saucepan. Different types of pans such as cast iron can take longer to come to a boil which may need less cooking time once eggs are at a boil.
- Don’t cover with the lid or you won’t be able to see when the water starts boiling.
- Set a timer as soon as the water is at a boil (keep watch for the start of the boil so you aren’t guessing at your timings).
- Have a bowl of ice water ready so you can lower your eggs into there as soon as the timer is done. This stops the cooking process and makes them easier to peel.
How to Boil Eggs
- Place cold eggs in a large stainless steel pot and cover with cold water, filling 1″ over the surface of the eggs. Bring to a rolling boil over high heat uncovered.
- Once at a boil, reduce heat to keep a medium boil then set a timer for your desired doneness (see chart below).
- Prepare your ice water bath and as soon as the timer is done, transfer eggs into ice water.
How Long to Boil Eggs Chart
As soon as the water comes to a boil, set your timer and follow this time chart for soft boiled to hard-boiled eggs. Tip: You can pull them out at different times and set up different bowls with ice water to make a variety of eggs all in one pot.
- Boil for 2 minutes: soft boiled with a liquid center
- 3 minutes: soft-boiled with a creamy center
- 4-5 minutes: medium-boiled with a moist, soft center
- 6-7 minutes: hard-boiled eggs with a soft center
- 8-9 minutes – fully hard-boiled eggs with firm, dry center
A perfect hard-boiled egg should have fully set (but not rubbery) whites, have a bright yellow center, and should never have a green tinge around the yolk which signifies overcooking. Soft-boiled eggs have fully set whites and a creamy liquid center.
Do I need to add salt or vinegar for Boiled Eggs?
It is thought that adding vinegar to the water helps with easier peeling of eggs, but the difference is minimal so it’s optional. Adding salt to the water is also optional but it can help if you have a cracked egg to reduce the amount of egg white that leaks into the water. It can help form a small seal on small cracks.
Helpful Reader Review
“Great method. I have a terrible habit of overcooking eggs and this is a super helpful chart. I had a thought about the salt, though. I learned in my college cooking courses that salt in the water will stop cracked eggs from leaking egg into the water. Sometimes eggs will crack a little bit when the water really gets roiling and the salt helps keep the egg inside the shell.” – Betsy ★★★★★
What is the best way to peel eggs?
Start peeling at the thick end of the egg where the air bubble is located to get under the membrane for easy shell removal. Also, peeling eggs under running cold water forces water under the membrane for easier shell removal.
How to Store Hard-Boiled Eggs
According to the USDA, boiled eggs should be refrigerated within 2 hours of cooking. The length of time you can store them depends on if they are hard-boiled versus soft-boiled:
- Hard-boiled eggs will keep well in the fridge for up to 7 days. Keep them unpeeled to prevent order absorption and drying out. If peeled, store them in an airtight container.
- Soft-boiled eggs can be kept refrigerated for up to 3 days, peeled, or unpeeled in an airtight container.
How to Use Hard-Boiled Eggs
Hard-cooked eggs are so versatile and good for you. Here are our favorite ways to use boiled eggs:
- Egg Salad – simple and excellent
- Guacamole Stuffed Eggs – amazing flavor
- Chicken Avocado Salad – our #1 salad
- Easter Egg Chicks – so adorable!
- Salmon Cobb Salad – with the best dressing
- Potato Salad – with creamy dressing
How to Make Hard Boiled Eggs Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 large eggs, (can use 6-12 eggs), cold from the fridge
- 8 cups cold water, (for a 3 qt saucepan)
Instructions
- Place cold eggs in a large 3-quart stainless steel saucepan and cover with cold water so water is 1" above the surface of the eggs. With the lid off, bring to a rolling boil over high heat.
- Once at a boil, reduce heat to keep at a medium boil and set a timer for your desired doneness (see chart below).
- Prepare your ice water bath, and as soon as the timer is done, transfer the eggs into ice water so they are fully submerged. Once the eggs have cooled, you can refrigerate hard-boiled eggs for up to 7 days or soft-boiled eggs for up to 3 days. Peel when ready to use.
Notes
- Boil 2 min: soft boiled with a liquid center
- Boil 3 min: soft-boiled with a creamy center
- Boil 4-5 min: medium-boiled with a moist, soft center
- Boil 6-7 min: hard-boiled eggs with a soft center
- Boil 8-9 min: hard-boiled eggs with firm dry center
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
The photos of boiled eggs with the required number of minutes is so helpful. Boiling eggs had always been a mystery to me until I read this post today. Now I can perfectly time my eggs.
Thank you! Great post.
I’m so glad that was helpful, Manish! Thank you so much for sharing that with me!
Cooking times were good for desired yolk consistency, but this cooking method resulted in the most difficult peeling experience I’ve ever had. I followed the instructions to a tee, but it resulted in a lot of water underneath the shells and they did not peel off. I lost a lot of egg white in the peeling process. Going back to my tried and true Betty Crocker method. The outer yolk might turn out dark that way, but peeling is a breeze and I don’t lose any egg.
Hi Kim, that is most likely due to using fresher eggs. Farm fresh eggs or just fresher expiration dates, in general, are more difficult to peel with regular methods. For fresh eggs, I highly recommend making instant pot boiled eggs .cooking them under pressure will help with easier peeling.
To make perfect hard boiled eggs I make sure the eggs are submerged in water and bring the pot to a rolling boil. Then turn the stove off, put the lid on the pot and set the timer for 20 minutes and you have perfect hard boiled eggs. You can run them under cold water and then peeI. I agree they are harder to peel if using fresh eggs.
I would like to say, I have been using this blog for a long time as a go-to for recipes. I made my very first Thanksgiving turkey with a recipe from here, I’ve made desserts, sides, you name it. The one thing I hadn’t thought to try is hard boiled eggs. I SUCK at hard boiled eggs. It’s hard to imagine because it’s just eggs and water, but omg I could NOT get them hard boiled enough to make deviled eggs. I finally had a lightbulb moment and found this recipe on this blog I’ve relied on and FIRST TRY it was perfectly done. I didn’t have to waste a single egg!!! I’m still super happy about it and super impressed with how easy it actually is 😅 so thanks for this recipe and thanks for all the other recipes because they’re all incredible!!!!
Aww! Thank you, Sam. This makes me happy. I’m so glad I was able to help. Thank you for sharing.
I tried this, but it didn’t work very well. How would you adapt the recipe for someone who lives higher elevation (above sea level)?
Hi Lucy, that could be the culprit, but I have no way of testing it through. You may just need to do some testing to see what timings work in your specific elevation.
Hi. Same problem mile high & above, where water boils at a lower temp than sea level. I’m at 6000 ft elevation, and found high altitude hints here: (Best luck!) https://mountainmamacooks.com/how-to-cook-hard-boiled-eggs-at-high-altitude/
I have found that adding eggs to boiling water has made them easier to peel. I set them out on the counter for a bit, not directly out of the frig. I’ve had a couple crack, but they were still very usable! And I’ve read that it doesn’t matter where eggs are older or fresher. I’ve mixed both together & they all peeled better starting with boiling water.
Thank you so much for sharing that with me, Terri!
I’ve tried multiple ways to boil an egg and then place them in ice water to get them to peel . I’ve even tried to poke a small hole in top of egg before boiling. I was always told never to place raw eggs in boiling water because they will crack. I do believe fresh eggs are harder to work with. Hit and miss even with the same carton of eggs. Running under cold water while you peel does seem to help. My advice would be to boil a couple more eggs than you need for the recipe and snack on the ones that are messed up😀🤣
Yeah, it is sometimes a miss or fail but this method really works well for me!
Sometimes I feel like these are tricky to get down but this makes it simple! Turns out great every time.
It really does work perfectly every single time. 🙂
Seriously, these come out perfect every time. The only way to make hard boiled eggs!
They really do, every single time! Hasn’t failed.
This detailed guide for how to cook boiled eggs is so helpful! I can never get my boiled eggs cooked right, with this post I can now make perfect boiled eggs every time!
It works like a charm, every single time! Thank you for sharing. 🙂
Eggs in pot of water. Heat to boiling. Turn off heat. Wait 10 minutes. Cool eggs under faucet of cold water and peel. Done.
Hi Alvin, thanks for sharing your method
What about fresh eggs from my own chickens….i still have trouble getting them to peel
Hi Holly, for fresh eggs, our favorite method for easy peeling is Instant Pot Boiled eggs.
Try using 1/2 tsp baking soda to your water. Or 1 tsp salt.
Do you know if this method is accurate for an induction cook top?
Hi Judy, I imagine so, but I don’t have experience with an induction cup to advise.
Thank you! I want those yolks to BOUNCE out 😂👍🏼
I hope these tips are helpful!
How long do the eggs have to sit in the ice bath?
Hi Karen, just until they are chilled – even 5 minutes would stop the cooking process.
Thanks for the tips you really helped me so much. Keep up the great work.
You’re welcome, Jennifer!
Thankyou for sharing that with us…..Natasha…and the best thing we love about you is that you reply to everyone….Maryam
Aww, you’re so nice! These comments inspire me!! Thank you, Maryam!
I like the minute-by-minute comparisons. Me, I got tired of perfectly done but near impossible to peel eggs, so now I use my instant pot.
Place eggs on the rack – as many as you want – I’ve done up to 18 at once so far: Room temp. eggs, 2c water, 4 minutes cook, 3 minutes natural release, then quick release, plunge into ice water – a breeze to peel. Remember how an egg peels is really up to the egg.
I’m so glad that was helpful, Dave! Thank you for sharing that with us!
i have found very fresh are impossible to peel, by that i mean those you buy directly from a roadstand or a street seller i get mine from a home that has chicken’s
Love your recipes. However, my NO FAIL method for hard boiled eggs: water over eggs. Rapid boil. Cover. Turn stove OFF. About 30–45 min. Later, empty H20; replace with just a small amount of cool H20 – with cover on, shake vigorously. Open- voila – eggs are either all peeled or close to it.
Thanks for your input, Gail. We appreciate you sharing that with us!
I use a method similar to your old method on my electric stove but I let them boil one minute and take them off the heat keeping them covered for 13-14 minutes. I then put run cold water over them for a bit.
Mine always look similar to your 6-8 minute eggs. I cook them in the same pot which is a non-stick heavy 3-quart pot.
I guess I never have had a hard time peeling them as I keep them in the shell in the fridge and only use them on top of ramen mostly or on a piece of toast. It is amazing how long they last in the fridge if you keep the shell on.
Thanks for sharing your process with us, Rhonda. I should also try that next time!
Hello again surprised you haven’t tried easy peal method I sent a while back ???? one the vinegar does good if an egg has a crack it will coagulate the whites that seep out !!!! And most important is adding a couple table spoons of OIL ,corn OIL is fine , we Italians use OLIVE. ,,, lotta water extra OIL. the oil penetrates the shells which are poreous but not the thin skin between whites and shell. I PROMISE THIS WILL MAKE SHELLS COME ,crack large end. first you see CRACK AND PEEL DEM EGGS
Thank you, Joseph!
I learned how to cook so many things before leaning how to boil an egg. I’ve tried several methods and always overcooked them. I tried your method for the first time over the weekend and I must say, they were the most perfectly cooked boiled eggs I’ve ever had!! Because of your recipe, my mom doesn’t make fun of me anymore! Haha! Thank you!!
Haha that’s the best! I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe. Sounds like you found a new favorite!