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Easter Eggs!

Posted by in Kitchen Talk

Tasty Kitchen Blog: Kitchen Talk (Easter Eggs!)

Easter week is in full swing, and if you haven’t already boiled and dyed eggs, it’s more than likely on your agenda in the next couple of days. Dyed eggs are the centerpiece of many families’ Easter celebrations, so we want to share knowledge today about all things Easter egg. Tell us:

Do you have tips for perfect Easter eggs?

Whether it’s cooking, dyeing or using the leftover eggs in a recipe, we want to hear your tricks.

First, the cooking. We all have our favorite method for achieving the perfect hard-boiled egg. Some of us add vinegar to the water before it boils. Others skip this step. Some boil rapidly for a set period and then remove and add cold water to cool. Another method is to bring water to a boil with the eggs in the pot and then remove from heat, cover and let sit for several minutes to complete the cooking. We know folks who swear by using an ice bath to stop the cooking. How about you? What are your best hard-boiled egg tricks? Since we’ll be boiling at least a dozen eggs, we want to make sure they come out right. We’ll eventually eat these babies, after all.

Now for the dyeing. Always a fun (though sometimes messy) undertaking, we’ve seen some really fun variations on the typical approach and some clever uses of natural ingredients to dye eggs. TK Member Patricia from ButterYum shares a neat method from Le Creuset for dyeing eggs purple using grape juice. We also adore these crackled eggs from Stephanie of Girl Versus Dough. Tell us your tips for the best dyed eggs. How do you get the most vivid colors, and/or what natural ingredients have you found success with for dyeing?

After the hunt, we’ll be ready to crack open our eggs and use them for deviled eggs, a great egg salad or maybe perfect potato salad for Easter dinner. I always love a good Cobb or Nicoise salad, and both call for a hard-boiled egg or two. Then at least one or two eggs will end up in school lunches around here. I’m thinking I need to have another dozen eggs on hand! Let us know your favorite uses for your leftover Easter eggs. We’re ready for some fresh ideas!

We wish you wonderful celebrations with family and friends and hope your eggs turn out lovely and tasty!

 

11 Comments

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Sandy in Los Angeles on 4.3.2015

For shells that slip off easily, put the eggs in very cold water immediately after cooking. The cold somehow makes the egg separate from the shell. I use water that has been in the refrigerator for several hours. You can also put ice in a bowl, fill with water and let it sit for a few minutes. Works like a charm.

Patricia @ ButterYum on 4.2.2015

My tips for easy peeling hard cooked eggs are to either boil older eggs (several weeks old), or steam fresh eggs (farm or grocery store). The steaming method works beautifully. http://www.butteryum.org/blog/2014/10/30/how-to-peel-farm-fresh-eggs

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C. L. ( Cheryl ) "Cheffie Cooks" Wiser on 4.2.2015

Happy Easter to everyone!

Yvette on 4.2.2015

Anna, our family used to do that too when we were kids. Complete with a little riddle as you circled the competing egg against the chosen contender.

Anna on 4.2.2015

Our family always has an egg fight (also called egg tapping) with our Easter eggs. The losers get to eat their eggs. We usually just make a deviled egg out of it or sprinkle on salt and eat it plain. Learn more about Easter egg fights:
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egg_tapping

SVF on 4.1.2015

My tip for easy peeling is to use slightly older eggs, if you can get them a few weeks before Easter. Moisture transfers through the shell, so the air pocket between the shell and the delicate inner membrane is bigger and perhaps stronger; the egg shell slips right off. I’ve also heard this same principle can be achieved by roasting the eggs, but I’ve never tried that.

Yvette on 4.1.2015

My mother and grandmothers have always done easter eggs the way they made them in Latvia when they had nothing more than scraps to use. Eggs with small flowers/ leaves, wrapped in onion peels and then wrapped snuggly in an old piece of panty hose to keep the peels from moving off of the egg. Then just boil. Creates a beautiful gold/ brown egg with lots of color.

Patty Paulsen on 4.1.2015

Here is a great (as in IT WORKS!!!) tip for peeling eggs quickly and cleanly: Put up to 6 hard boiled eggs in a bowl with a very tight-fitting lid. Cover with water (I just re-use the cooling water), put on the lid. Make sure it is sealed. Shake vigorously for 30 seconds or so. Open the lid, and Voila! Shells will slip off the eggs! If there is a bit of resistance, just put the lid back on and shake again. THIS WORKS! I have been peeling my eggs this way all week and I am still amazed at how fast the job goes! Can you tell its the little things in life that make me smile?

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Shawna C on 4.1.2015

We bought a kit from Etsy and tried silk-dying eggs last year and they turned out really well! (just search silk dyed eggs on Pinterest to see many lovely examples)

Stellap on 4.1.2015

Have you tried baking your hard-cooked eggs? Here are the instructions (from Alton Brown); I’m going to try it this year.

http://altonbrown.com/baked-eggs/

Kelly D on 4.1.2015

I recently saw a cooking show and the chef swore by cooking the eggs in a steamer basket. I haven’t tried that, but I’m intrigued. As for coloring the eggs, my mom and grandmother always did a bunch using natural dyes like tea, beets, and onion skins.