The Egg holds a dear place in the gastronomy of France. They are the base of many of France’s favorite recipes – from flan to omelettes, to les oeufs dur. When found in a boulangerie for lunch, hard boiled eggs are easily sliced and lined up on a baguette alone, or with slices of roasted chicken breast, or tuna, or tomato. They are easily taken on a picnic. Easy to make for a small lunch with a green salad when guests are invited over. They can be eaten alone or with small little toppings like a dash of fleur de sel, and/or pepper, or a dab of aioli.
How To Make A Perfect Hard Boiled Egg:
Put eggs in a saucepan
Cover the eggs with cold water
Set over a medium heat. You don’t want the eggs to boil too fast otherwise the shells might crack.
Once the water starts to boil, turn off the flame.
Cover the pot with a lid and let the eggs sit for twenty minutes.
After twenty minutes, I’ve done either one of two things:
a. Set the pan in the sink and run cold water into it until the hot water has been replaced by cold.
b. Drain the water off the eggs using a colander or just take the eggs out of the hot water and set them on a plate.
Peel the eggs soon after making them by tapping them on a blunt surface, like the rounded edge of the sink, the edge of a cutting board or on the counter, and start picking the peel away. Rinse with cold water if their are tiny pieces of shell stuck to the egg. If you let the eggs get cold in their shells, then they will be almost impossible to peel.
Clue Cards:
The trick to making Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs is to cook them slowly. Don’t make them if you are in a hurry, and don’t toss them into the frigo without peeling them first.
Do not add salt to the water. This makes the egg whites rubbery.
If you have a green tinge to the yolk of the egg, it is because it is overcooked. Next time take them out of the hot water a little sooner.
Trivia:
Eggs in France taste different from eggs in The States, more like chicken than like the eggs we know.
In France, I have never seen Egg Salad.
For another beautiful take on Hard Boiled Eggs check out La Tartine Gourmande.
Kimberly Kradel
Staff Writer