How To Cook The Perfect Egg

At around 70 calories, the humble egg is one of the easiest and finest edible delights known to man.  The yolk contains a nearly perfect form of protein.  Brought nearly to culinary extinction by the insipid ignorance and stupidity of what passes for pop-culture "knowledge" in the 1970's, & '80's, the egg is enjoying a resurgence in the diets of those wise enough to understand that nature is the best selector of what's best for us to eat.  Those that know how I cook know that I only use fresh, natural, whole ingredients.  And the humble egg is a perfect accompaniment to any dietary lifestyle.

There are three general stages of a boiled (or more properly: soft, medium, or hard cooked) egg.  The delights of eating a soft-cooked egg can be found here.  An egg should never be "boiled", as this causes the whites to become rubbery and the yolk to get that nasty green ring around it.  To make the perfect soft-cooked egg, follow the instructions below.

A soft-cooked egg has a firm white and a hot and runny yolk.

A medium-cooked egg has a firm white and a slightly firm yolk.

A hard-cooked egg has a firm white and yolk.

Tips:

• Fresh eggs are more difficult to peel because the interior membrane has not matured enough to separate cleanly from the shell.  A simple immersion test in water will answer the freshness question for you.  Put your egg In a bowl of cool water.  If it lays on its side, just below the surface of the water, it is very fresh.  As an egg ages (remember, it is a living thing) the air pocket inside the egg grows larger.  This will cause the egg to float just under the surface, upright, large end up.  Should the egg float to the top, you should probably not eat it.
• For better deviled eggs, place your egg carton on its side for at least a day or so. The yolk will then center itself so you have it directly in the middle of the white. No more off centered deviled eggs.
• DO NOT add salt to the cooking water, as this will cause your water to boil at a higher temperature leading to rubbery whites and a green ring around the yolk.  Adding vinegar to the cooking water will not change the cooking times or temperatures.  The vinegar is used to "set" the whites in case one springs a leak.  If you've carefully selected your eggs, this shouldn't be necessary.

Directions:

1. Find eggs that are at least 4 or more days old.
2. Carefully inspect and select your eggs to find those without visible cracks.
3. Place selected eggs in a single layer in your cooking container.  Cover completely with cool/cold water and allow to come to room temperature.
   [NB:  Refrigerator-cold eggs will skew the cooking times to longer.  Add about 10% to your cooking times for cold eggs.]
4. Over high-heat, bring the water to a full and rapid boil--uncovered. 
5. Cover and remove from heat, and time using the chart below:

6. Pour off hot water and rinse with cold--several times if necessary to stop the cooking process.
7. Use or store as desired.

Besides simply eating them the absolute best use I know for cooked eggs is to make deviled eggs.

Enjoy!