I wrote this recipe down for my friend Cindy as she so much enjoyed the boiled eggs I brought to our picnic one perfect day when she took me for a big driveabout in the Darling Ranges and Swan Valley.

Sometimes I cook boiled eggs without a timer. Just kind of ‘tuning in’ to what I’m doing and I usually get it pretty spot on. But this apparent simplicity is not fool proof. I sometimes stuff it up, especially when I just don’t need an exploded egg in my life. So for Cindy, and for myself in my less-present moments, here it is.

How to cook perfect boiled eggs — reliably.

You have to get good eggs. Eggs from happy chooks make happy eating.

This is what good eggs look like raw: the lovely orange yolks indicate that the chickens have had access to lots of green feed and the penumbra around the yolk shows it is nice and fresh. These eggs are pastured with less than 30 hens per hectare so I figure they have a nice high Omega 3 levels, if you like to concern yourself with that sort of thing.

I often boil up half a dozen and store them in the fridge in case I need a snack or something to put in a lunch box.

(These directions are for a 70 to 80 gram egg and will give a moist but not too runny egg. If you want to dip soldiers or have the egg spill its contents over a dish as a dressing then reduce the cooking time to 3 ½ minutes.

Bring a decent sized pot of water to a rolling boil.

1. This helps to give the eggs plenty of room so they don’t knock against each other. It also allows you to lower the eggs smoothly and gently into the water so they receive the initial heat of the water evenly. This is especially important if your eggs haven’t quite returned to room temperature after being refrigerated as the rapid expansion of the shell can cause cracking.

2. Watch the pot till the water returns to the boil, then turn down the heat to a simmer.

3. Allow to simmer for 4 minutes.

4. Remove eggs from the water and give them a sharp tap with a spoon to make a small break in the shell. This will stop them cooking any further.

5. Plunge eggs into cold or even iced water.
   This can make it easier to detach the membrane around the egg from its contents as you peel it.

6. Roll the egg gently between your palms until the shell is all cracked and starting to loosen.

Peel being very careful, especially at the beginning, to get under the membrane.

Eat and enjoy.