Ta-Da!! The Perfect Hard-boiled Egg

Undeniably perfect!!

While my immediate family members may scoff, managing to consistently boil the perfect egg, pristine in its bright white & yellow purity counts as quite an achievement in my book, especially after decades of trials and tribulations in the hard boiled egg department. Any egg boiler, experienced professional or neophyte knows the signs of a badly boiled egg- the bumpy exterior from challenges while peeling and the dull lemon colored yolk with a dark grey-green shadow rim, both of which make an egg unacceptable for stuffing and beg to be chopped for egg salad with a smidgen of curry as a color brightener.

May I speak of egg boiling disasters? The worst in my personal experience took place in my early catering days, three dozen of the ugliest stuffed eggs I've ever seen, two frantic cooks, and one very dissatisfied customer. A bomb all around that put me off hard-boiled eggs for years. (And my husband, less than enamored of stuffed eggs, wishes that the attitude had been permanent!) Then there are the Passover seders with bowls of peeled eggs in salted water, naked and looking like they had been birthed through barbed wire. Double yuck.

And do what or whom do I owe my new found success? None other than the goddess of compulsive cooks everywhere, Mme. Julia Child, whose instructions I had passed over for many a year because they included suggestions like pricking each egg before boiling (sure to crack open for me), boiling them a 2nd time for precisely 10 seconds, and chilling them in ice twice- first for 2 minutes and then again for 20 minutes. Sounds like way too much work for me! But, I finally caught on to her basic cooking method, and that, plus another truc, are the secrets to my success-

Brown eggs! they always speak to me of Old MacDonald and all things fresh and wholesome,
no matter how long they have been in the refrigerator.

#1- Sorry to say it, but you cannot in my experience successfully boil fresh eggs. According to internet experts(?) they must be at least two weeks old to avoid peeling problems. Another reason to always have a dozen extra eggs stashed in the back of the refrigerator!

#2- My official recipe
Place your eggs in a saucepan and cover them with 1" of cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat. As soon as the water is at a rolling boil, cover the pan and pull it off the heat. Let the eggs sit covered for exactly 17 minutes (better set your timer!) After the 17 minutes is up, immediately drain off the hot water and run cold water over the eggs for several minutes. You can even drop a few ice cubes into the pan as well. While the cold water is running, crack the eggs in several places, which allows the water to somewhat permeate the infamous "inner membrane," source of many an egg peeling woe. After about 10 minutes in ice water, peel and use your eggs. If you need to store them for later use, cover them in cold water and refrigerate, peeled or unpeeled.

Now that you have these perfectly delightful hard-boiled eggs, it's time to do something with them. My choice is always a creamy salad with crunchy veggies, some mayo and yogurt, and a bit of tang. Tang? Where do you get the tang? How about a batch of Smitten kitchen's pickled celery (no cooking required) and some pickled carrots, courtesy of David Lebovitz.

Pickled Celery
This is my new secret weapon to perk up any and all of the various kitchen sink salads I concoct for the odd lunch or dinner from whatever is festering in the fridge.

1/2 cup white wine vinegar
1/2 cup water
4 teaspoons Kosher salt (you can go up to 1 tablespoon if using the lighter weight Diamond brand; here’s why)
1 Tb teaspoons granulated sugar
4 stalks celery, trimmed, diced tiny

Combine the vinegar, water, Kosher salt and sugar in a jar and shake it until the salt and sugar dissolve. Add the diced celery to the jar, cover it and place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes, ideally one hour and up to one week.
Makes about one cup.

Pickled Carrots 
Makes one pint

1 pound (450 g) carrots, peeled
1 1/4 cups (310 ml) water
1 cup (280 ml) cider vinegar
1/4 cup (50 g) sugar
2 garlic cloves, lightly-crushed
1 1/2 teaspoons fennel, dill, or anise seeds
1 1/2 tablespoons coarse salt
2 bay leaves

Cut the carrots into sticks approximately the size of your fourth finger. Bring a medium-sized pot of lightly-salted water to a boil. (Use a non-reactive pot.)

When the water boils, drop the carrots in and simmer for one minute. Pour into a colander and rinse under cold water. Drain thoroughly.

In the same pot, heat the remaining ingredients. Once it begins to boil, reduce the heat and simmer for two minutes.

Remove from heat and add the carrot sticks. Cool until room temperature, then put into jars and chill.

Carrot sticks should be made at least one day in advance, and will keep for up to four weeks in the refrigerator.

Delicious Egg Salad

Egg salad on toast with pickled carrots. What a lunch!

4 large eggs
1 heaped teaspoon Dijon
2 teaspoons minced shallot, scallion or red onion
2 Tb pickled celery (or more, to taste)
2 tablespoons mayonnaise or  plain yogurt
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Optional additions: Chopped parsley, minced olives, 1/2 tsp. curry powder, fresh chopped celery

Peel the eggs, chop them, and place in a medium bowl. Add the pickled celery, Dijon mustard, shallot, mayo or yogurt, salt and pepper, and any of the optional additions. Mix gently.  Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve on toasted whole grain bread, if you have it.

Pickled celery and eggs also make excellent additions to potato salad, whether of the American or French variety. Here are two of my favorite recipes-

Family Potato Salad
This recipe is from my Great Aunt Margaret, graduate of UCSF Medical School Class of 1924. My mother lived Aunt Margaret and Uncle Maurice Zeff, while she went to school at UC Berkeley during WWII. Aunt Margaret taught her to marinate the potatoes while they were still warm. (That’s the secret to the recipe!)

5 lbs. boiling potatoes
olive oil to taste
wine vinegar to taste
1 red onion, minced (or 1 bunch scallions)
4 stalks celery, diced
8 eggs, hardboiled, peeled & diced
1/4 c. parsley, minced
2 Tb Dijon mustard
1 c. mayonnaise (Best Foods)
salt & pepper to taste

Boil the potatoes until tender. Let cool slightly and peel, if desired. Roughly slice or cube into a large bowl. Sprinkle generously with olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Toss gently to distribute seasonings. Cool completely

Add the remaining ingredients and toss to mix. Correct the seasoning and add more mayonnaise if desired.
Refrigerate before serving.  Serves 12-16.

A Salade Nicoise with sugar snap peas. I know, you're asking
"Where did she get those tomatoes so early in the season?" Oh, the joys of living in California!

French Potato Salad
5 lbs. boiling potatoes
olive oil to taste
wine vinegar to taste
salt & pepper
1 bunch scallions, minced
1/2 c. chopped parsley

Mustard Vinaigrette
2 Tb Dijon mustard
1 t. salt
1/3 c. lemon juice
1 1/2 c. olive oil

Boil the potatoes until tender. Let cool slightly and peel, if desired. Roughly slice or cube into a large bowl. Sprinkle generously with olive oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper.
Toss gently to distribute seasonings. Cool completely

Make the vinaigrette: Whisk mustard, salt, and lemon juice together; then gradually whisk in the olive oil, until thoroughly combined.

Gently mix the parsley and chopped scallions with the potatoes, then drizzle on the vinaigrette and gently mix again with a spatula. Correct the seasoning.

Use this potato salad as the base for Salade Niçoise: arrange it on a lettuce-lined platter with steamed green beans, tomatoes, hardboiled eggs, olives, tuna, and, if you like, capers and anchovies.
From The Way to Cook by Julia Child