How to Hard Boil Farm Fresh Eggs

My family lives on hard boiled eggs, and we snack on them all week long. I found out very quickly that farm fresh eggs boil differently from store bought eggs. Eggs that are sold at grocery stores are 30-60 days old and they have been rinsed with chlorine bleach prior to being put inside the egg cartons. Farm fresh eggs are laid everyday, and if not washed, they age on the counter with all the things that came out of the chicken including their natural preservative called the "bloom", specks of pine shavings, some include the infamous Vegas feather (wink. wink), and occasionally some poop smeared on the side.

Store bought eggs can be perfectly hardboiled the same day they are bought from the store. Farm fresh eggs have a much different story.

My rule of thumb when deciding if my eggs can be hardboiled is the amount of time they have been sitting on my kitchen counter. If the eggs are one to two weeks old, they can be hardboiled. Anything younger than that will leave the egg white with a gummy-like texture which makes peeling the shell away from the egg super difficult.

How to Hard Boil Farm Fresh Eggs:

1. Select eggs that are 1-2 weeks old.

2. Put eggs in a pot and add cold water. The eggs should completely be underwater. Do not put a lid on the pot.

3. Most Important Step: Add a pinch of baking soda to the water. This helps with peeling the shell from the eggs and sterilizing the eggs. Farm fresh eggs are extremely difficult to peel without this step!!!

4. Turn the stovetop on high for 25 minutes.

5. After 25 minutes, run cold water over the cooked eggs until the water in the pot turns cold.

6. Crack the eggs to eat or put them in the frig.

How to Hard Boil Grocery Store Eggs:

1. Put eggs in a pot and add cold water. The eggs should completely be underwater. Do not put a lid on the pot.

2. Add a pinch of baking soda to the water. This greatly helps with removing the eggshell, not as important to do as with farm fresh eggs, but I still recommend it.

3. Cook the eggs for 25 minutes on high.

4. After 25 minutes, run cold water over the cooked eggs until the water in the pot turns cold.

5. Crack the eggs to eat or put them in the frig.

As you can tell, the directions are similar for both cooking instructions, but the difference is all about the age of the egg. I was curious why the egg's age matters when hard boiling so I Googled the answer. I discovered that there are three reasons Google gave to explain why an older egg is easier to peel than a fresher egg:

Reason #1: A membrane attaches the egg to the shell, just like a human baby egg is attached to the lining of the uterus in a woman's body. This helps the baby chick to grow while inside a warm incubator or underneath a hen's wing. As the egg ages in an area that isn't 99.5 degrees Fahrenheit, an air bubble grows within the shell detaching the membrane from the shell.

Reason #2: The ph of the egg becomes more alkaline, weakening the attachment of the membrane and the egg white.

Reason #3: As the egg ages, the moisture inside gets less and less which also helps to release the bond between the egg and the shell.

One surprise I've had when peeling my farm fresh eggs....the colored shells have two different colors, the outside color of the egg is different from the inside color...how cool is that!

If you have any questions about hard boiling eggs, just email me or leave a comment.

I'm already starting to plan for next week's post, how fast does it take for 70 chickens to eat an entire watermelon...my hens can't wait for this speed contest!

Thank you for reading my Country Squawk,

Kelly