Questions on the price of milk aside, politicians are not typically called on for their skills as home economists. So when senator Helen Polley shared an egg hack on Tiktok recently, it was received in the same way the dish is typically eaten – with a grain of salt.
Polley’s technique for hard-boiled eggs involves wrapping a raw egg in foil, submerging it in water, and then microwaving it for seven minutes, sending shockwaves through social media (though surprisingly not her Canberra office kitchen).
But there are those who prefer their eggs cooked over a stovetop – without the risk of electrostatic sparks. Boiling eggs is a foundational cooking technique. But like cooking rice or preparing a cup of tea, what starts as a basic skill is bound to turn into a food fight online. Here, a food scientist, a chef, and an egg industry expert weigh in.
The food scientist’s method: start with cold water
In the age of misinformation, the term “boiled egg” is a misnomer because the egg, really, shouldn’t be boiled. And you don’t have to worry about bringing them to room temperature either.
Dr Ken Ng, a senior lecturer in food chemistry at University of Melbourne, suggests lowering your egg into a saucepan of cold water, then bringing it to the boil. Once the water is boiling, turn off the heat, cover with a lid, and leave your egg to cook in the residual warmth – about six minutes for a soft egg, or nine for hard boiled.
He explains that the proteins in egg whites (mostly albumin and globulin) are “quite easy to denature” (that’s biochemistry for change or alter), and form a gel when heat is applied. “So [the egg white] changes colour from a translucent gluey white … to something that is hard and solid and opaque.”
“If you put it in a boiling temperature, instead of starting from a cold temperature, it denatures too fast … It will end up producing a very hard, rubbery egg white.”
When the timer’s up, drain the eggs, and plunge them in cold water to stop the cooking process.
The chef’s method: start with a large pot of boiling water
Ben Shewry is the chef-owner of Attica, a Melbourne restaurant that has been repeatedly bestowed “best restaurant” status in Australian and international awards.
Boiled chicken eggs do not typically feature on the menu, though zabaglione-filled emu eggs have made an appearance. Shewry, however, has boiled countless eggs in his career. In the early 2000s, he was the sous chef to the then New Zealand governor general Silvia Cartwright, where the kitchen would prepare egg sandwiches by the thousand to serve to diplomats, dignitaries and directors.
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“Peter Jackson came once and there was a big kerfuffle,” he says.
Shewry’s technique is to bring a large pot (this bit is crucial) of water to the boil, then using a slotted spoon, gently lower the eggs in. He returns the water to a high simmer or “controlled boil”.
“You do not want a mosh pit of eggs,” he says. “If it boils like crazy, it’ll push the eggs around and maybe break the shell.”
Pot size matters, because it helps the water maintain thermal stability. When the eggs go in, they lower the temperature of the water. If your pot is too small, or there is an insufficient ratio of water to eggs, the water will take longer to return to a boil and it becomes difficult to determine how long the eggs have been simmering at a consistent temperature.
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Timing varies depending on the weight and temperature of the eggs and individual preferences. Shewry likes his soft-boiled eggs on the firmer side. “A soft-boiled egg, to me, is around seven minutes, which is a little longer than most people,” he says. A hard-boiled egg clocks in at ten minutes.
The egg producers’ method: check the carton
At Portland Free Range Eggs near Bathurst in NSW, the chickens are Isa Brown, and the eggs are extra large. Kathrin Resma, who oversees sales and marketing, approves Shewry’s technique, but says home cooks should pay attention to the size of the egg.
Six minutes using Shewry’s method will produce “a good, soft-boiled” result for a 60g egg (brought to room temperature to prevent the shell from cracking when it enters the hot water). But there’s no need to pull out the scales, says Resma. Check whether the carton of a dozen eggs weighs 700g – the ones most widely available at supermarkets do.
The cartons from Portland, however, weigh 850g. Larger-sized eggs need “a little bit more time … six-and-a-half to seven minutes”.
How to peel an egg
Egg peeling can go one of two ways: you can break off large and satisfying chunks of shell, revealing a smooth and delicate white body underneath. Or pick at tiny flakes that – like your self-esteem in that moment – crumble away to reveal a pockmarked ovum.
According to Ng, when eggs are uncooperative it is the result of the white coagulate bonding with the inner membrane of the shell during cooking. For easy peeling, he suggests adding a dash of vinegar to the water.
“Fresh eggs have lower pH levels, which generally cause the egg white to stick firmly into the shell … The vinegar will soak inside the egg and decrease the pH level to reduce this problem.”
Some cooks swear by pricking the end of an egg with a needle, which Ng approves. This introduces water into the egg during the boiling process, and separates the membrane from the shell, making it easier to peel.
Shewry prefers to simply peel his eggs in water, either under a running tap, or submerged in a bowl with ice. It is, he says, “a million times easier”.
