The Best Way to Make Hard Boiled Eggs

Here’s the best way to make hard-boiled eggs! You’ll need less than 10 minutes and minimal ingredients to achieve perfectly boiled eggs every time.

Hard boiled eggs sliced in half ready to eat.

Here’s The Best Way to Make Hard Boiled Eggs

If you ask five people how to boil an egg, you are bound to get five different answers. We like using the instant pot to hard boil eggs too!) Everyone says they have the best method, the one that works perfectly every time. Some people use just a little bit of water and steamer baskets. Some say to boil the water first. Cook times can vary from seven minutes to fifteen minutes, too! Not to fret, though! This is the easiest and simplest method for perfect hard-boiled eggs every time.

We all know the feeling (and smell) of accidentally overcooking eggs. The smell of sulfur, the ugly green ring around the hard-boiled yolk. No one likes that and your egg salad definitely doesn’t like it. To perfectly hard-boil an egg, all you need is four things: a saucepan, an egg or eggs, some water, and nine minutes. That’s it! Let’s get started.

If you’re looking for more egg tutorials, check out my posts on How to Poach Eggs, How to Make Scrambled Eggs, and how How to Crack An Egg for tips.

Ingredients for Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs

Here are the simple ingredients and tools you need to make hard boiled eggs:

Eggs – You can use any size egg you like to make hard boiled eggs.
Water
Large Pot

Quick Tip

When hard boiling eggs it helps to start with room temperature eggs, or eggs that have been on the counter for at least 10 minutes to take some of the fridge’s chill off. This will help prevent the eggs from cracking during the boiling process.

How to Make Perfect Hard-Boiled Eggs Like a Pro

Follow along with my method below for cooking hard boiled eggs on the stove:

Put the eggs in a pot – Gently place eggs in a saucepan in a single layer on your stovetop. (Fresh eggs are not best here – I’d go with older eggs to make them easier to peel)
Cover the eggs with water – Fill the pot with enough cold water to cover the eggs by about an inch or so. (Some people like to add salt or baking soda to the water but I don’t think it’s necessary.)
Cook the eggs – Place the pot over high heat and bring the pot to a boil.
Have a timer ready – Make sure to have a timer set for nine minutes ready to go!
Set the timer – As soon as the water hits a rolling boil, start your nine-minute timer.
Drain the water and move the eggs to an ice bath – When the timer goes off, drain the water and carefully move your eggs to a large bowl of ice water with a slotted spoon or tongs for an ice bath.
Cool the eggs completely – Let the eggs cool completely for ten minutes or so before you start to peel them.
Peel the eggs – Once the eggs are cold, gently tap the egg on all sides to crack the shell and begin to peel away the eggshell.

Quick Tip

To make an ice bath, fill a big bowl with ice and water while the eggs boil, and have a slotted spoon ready. The ice bath will stop the eggs from cooking when you remove them from the boiling water. When the timer dings, and using the slotted spoon, immediately move the hard-cooked eggs from the boiling water to the ice bath.

Caesar salad with grilled chicken breast, hard-boiled egg, croutons, parmesan cheese, green salad lettuce and dressing.

Why This Method is the Best

There are countless methods for hard-boiling eggs out there that sometimes use extra equipment and wildly varying cook times. You can just not even bother with all of that! Starting the eggs in cold water uses the same principles as for how you cook potatoes. Starting with cold water allows the entire egg to cook more evenly and at the same speed.

The egg white and egg yolk cook at very different temperatures and times. Starting with cold water ensures that both the white and the yolk comes up to temp at the same time. Coupled with a small amount of carry-over cooking, using the 9-minutes-from-the-boil method will always ensure perfect hard-boiled eggs that are great for deviled eggs.

How to Store Hard Boiled Eggs

If you plan to cook the eggs and hold them in the fridge, it is best to not peel them and keep them in the shell. Keeping the eggs in the shell will help to prevent the eggs from absorbing any odors or off-flavors that can be present in the refrigerator. If your eggs are peeled, it’s best to use them as soon as possible for the best results or store them in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.

Serving Suggestions

Now that you have perfectly hard-boiled and peeled your eggs, what do you do? I’m glad that you asked because there are so many egg recipes you can make with hard-boiled eggs! Eggs are a delicious protein-filled snack that is delicious with a little salt and pepper, good on sandwiches, and even added to avocado toast!

Here are some delicious recipe ideas that use hard-boiled eggs:

FAQs

How long do hard boiled eggs last?

Generally speaking, hard-boiled eggs that have been cooked and cooled correctly will last anywhere from a week to ten days in the refrigerator.

How do you boil eggs so they peel easily?

Submerging eggs in an ice bath after cooking makes it much easier to peel the hard boiled eggs.

Is it better to peel hard-boiled eggs when they are hot or cold?

As noted, the colder the egg, the easier it is to peel it. You can either use an ice bath to cool eggs, place them in the fridge, or at the very least let them cool on the counter for 15 minutes before peeling.

More Ways to Make Eggs

Breakfast

Hard Boiled Eggs

Here's the best way to make hard-boiled eggs! You'll need less than 10 minutes and minimal ingredients to achieve perfectly boiled eggs every time.

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Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Author: Kasey Schwartz

Cook Time: 9

Ingredients

▢ 6-12 large eggs
▢ water

Instructions

Gently place your egg, or eggs, into a saucepan.
Fill the saucepan with enough cold water to cover the eggs by about an inch or so.
Place your saucepan of eggs and water on your stove and bring the pot to a boil over high heat.
Make sure to have a timer set for nine minutes ready to go!
As soon as the water hits a rolling boil, start your nine-minute timer.
When the timer goes off, carefully move your eggs to a bowl with a spoon or tongs and cover with ice and water for an ice bath.
Let the eggs cool completely for ten minutes or so before you start to peel them.
Once the eggs are cold, gently tap the egg on all sides to crack the shell and begin to peel away the eggshell.