HOW TO BRIGHTEN THE HOLIDAY COCKTAIL HOUR

HOW TO HARD COOK AN EGG:

Julia Child spent an inordinate amount of time researching the cooking of hard-boiled eggs.  I pass her technique on to you with one caveat. It comes from my late and much-missed friend Neil Hartman. Neil was the undisputed king of the Devilled Egg, which starts life as a hard-cooked egg. He recommended using eggs that you’ve had for a while. We all see those “best if used by dates” which seem to run about a month ahead of when you buy eggs. An egg that’s was around a week old is a good bet to ease out its shell in perfect condition. Back to Julia…this is the method she ascribed to the Georgia Egg Board in her amazing “The Way to Cook” book (Alfred A. Knopf, 1989).

1. Lay the eggs in the pan and add cold water to cover them by one inch. 
2. Set over high heat and bring just to a boil; remove from heat, cover the pan,  and let sit for exactly 17 minutes. When the time is up, transfer the eggs to a bowl of ice cubes and water. Chill for 2 minutes while bringing the cooking water to the boil again. (This 2-minute chilling shrinks the body of the egg from the shell.
3. Transfer the eggs (6 at a time only) to the boiling water, bring to a boil again, and let boil for 10 seconds. This expands the shell from the egg. Remove eggs, and place back into the ice water. 
4.Leave the eggs in the ice water after the last step for 15 to 20 minutes. Chilled eggs are easier to peel, as well. 
5. The peeled eggs will keep perfectly in the refrigerator, submerged in water in an uncovered container, for 2 to 3 days.

JULIA NOTES : The perfect hard boiled egg has a tender white, and a yolk properly set. There is not the faintest darkening of yolk where the white encircles it (a chemical reaction caused by too much heat in the cooking process). Eggs cooked this way can also be peeled neatly.

The system described here, developed by the Georgia Egg Board, takes a bit of fussing – but it does produce a Perfect Hard Boiled Egg!