How to peel boiled eggs easily

The secret ingredient is already in your pantry.

Peel eggs easily

As much as I love a boiled egg, I’ll usually choose fried instead, simply because I hate peeling the shell. I either seem to get tiny little fragments of shell, one millimetre at a time, or a huge chunk that takes half the egg white with it. 

I was at my Mum’s house for breakfast when I noticed she added something to the water when boiling an egg. She soon revealed her secret: she adds a teaspoon of baking soda or vinegar (depending what she has in the pantry) to the water… and claims this makes the egg easier to peel. 

She learnt the technique from her Mum, and swears by it. I’m always looking out for hacks that will save me time in the morning – especially if it means I can get an extra minute of sleep – so I immediately put her egg-peeling hack to the test. 

How to peel eggs easily

Because baking soda is alkaline, adding it to the water increases the pH level, which weakens the bond between the egg’s inner membrane and the white, making the eggs easier to peel, according to Food Republic.

On the other hand, vinegar is acidic, which lowers the PH level. The acidity helps to break down the shell, making it easier to peel off. Both methods make scientific sense, so they sound promising… Keep in mind that both the cooking technique and freshness of the eggs may impact how well these methods work. 

Perfect boiled eggs

I boiled three eggs in three different pots of water: one with a dash of vinegar, one with a teaspoon of baking soda and one with plain water. And the results really did surprise me. 

Egg boiled with vinegar

Egg boiled with baking soda

When peeling, the shells of the eggs with vinegar and baking soda just slid off in big, satisfying pieces. The egg with nothing added was much harder to peel, coming off in tiny fragments. Compared to the other two, its shell felt much more firmly attached. I could really tell that the shells of the eggs boiled with baking soda and vinegar didn’t cling to the egg white and came off really easily, practically sliding off. I am sold!

It’s also clear that the vinegar dissolves the pigments of the egg shell, so don’t be alarmed if it looks a little speckled. Most importantly, I can confirm I couldn’t taste any trace of baking soda or vinegar in the eggs. 

In conclusion, I will definitely be doing this every time I boil eggs from now on. It seems Mums are always right…

Ever wondered what the difference between baking soda and bicarb is?

Find out here.

Over boiling? Here’s how to air fry eggs!

Originally published as How to peel boiled eggs easily