Can you cook an egg with just hot water? (5 Tips)

In this brief guide, we will answer the question, can you cook an egg with just hot water? We will look at some ways to cook an egg with just hot water without exposing the egg to a flame. We will also discuss some scientific tips to get the desired consistency of a boiled egg. 

Can you cook an egg with just hot water?

You can cook an egg with just hot water, you need to bring water to a boil and add your raw egg in. Cover the pan of hot water to retain the heat and let the egg sit for 30 minutes. 

The length of time it takes for the egg to cook could be more or less than 30 minutes or more, depending on the ambient temperature and pressure.

Eggs should be cooked thoroughly because they carry the Salmonella bacteria, a food-borne bacteria that can cause food poisoning and subsequent health deterioration.

Cooking an egg in hot water rather than a direct flame is a good idea because a low temperature works better to produce tender eggs. In contrast, using high heat and boiling temperatures makes the egg susceptible to hard, rubbery whites and green yolk. 

To make the method work, you need to ensure that the temperature reaches the boiling water and stays adequately hot before you immerse your egg in. 

Let us look at the directions to let you cook an egg with just hot water:

Heat 2 cups of water, if you are using a small pan, and intend to cook just one or two eggs. The thumb rule would be to make sure that the eggs are completely submerged in water, otherwise, you risk that the eggs be partially cooked. 

Carefully introduce the egg into the pot of boiling water. Be cautious when handling the hot water to avoid getting hurt. Moreover, be gentle and slow as you use a spoon or your hand to add the egg, an impact could break the shell. 

Instead of using a conventional stove, a method that works better is an electric kettle that shuts itself off, saving you the trouble of keeping track of the egg being cooked. 

Another way to boil the egg would be to replace the water after it cools down. If you have access to a hot water supply instead of a stove, then use a pan or a ceramic bowl to fill it with hot water, put your egg in, and cover it to let the heat stay in. When you feel that the water has cooled, you could replace the water with another hot batch. 

After you remove the egg from the water that you cooked in, the temperature would be safe enough for you to remove the egg and peel it without letting it cool down. If not, then run cold water to make the egg cool. However, washing eggs while peeling them is a good way to make sure that all the residues and skin of the egg are removed. 

What are some useful pieces of advice to make a good boiled egg?

To make the shell come off easy from a hard or soft-boiled egg, use old eggs. 

Fresh eggs have a low pH that makes the shell adhere strongly to the egg albumin. The acidic environment is due to the presence of carbon dioxide gas, which makes the Keratin proteins attach to the eggshell when you apply heat to it.

Subsequently, as the gas escapes the pH of the egg decreases and the shell no longer would stick to the albumin as the egg ages. 

If you desire a soft-boiled egg, then you need only 4 minutes to let the egg cook.

 If you like hard and dried boiled eggs, then let the eggs cook for 15 minutes. 

If you cook the eggs for less than five minutes, your eggs will be runny and soft. After you exceed the five-minute benchmark, the white will be firm and the yolk starts to set. 

After 10 minutes, the egg yolk starts to set but remains soft until you cook for 15 minutes, which is when the yolk becomes crumbly and dry.

After you boil the egg, put them in cold water to shock them. When you do so, it makes it easier for you to remove the shell.

Boiled eggs are enjoyed on their own with a hint of pepper and salt or as part of a recipe. Some recipes to try are sandwiches, pasta, casseroles, submerged, and grain bowls. 

In this brief guide, we answered the question, can you cook an egg with just hot water? We looked at some ways to cook an egg with just hot water without exposing the egg to a flame. We also discussed some scientific tips to get the desired consistency of a boiled egg. 

Citations

https://slate.com/culture/2012/09/peeling-hardboiled-eggs-why-are-some-eggs-easier-to-peel-than-others-blame-carbon-dioxide.html
https://www.epicurious.com/ingredients/whats-the-best-way-to-boil-an-egg-article#:~:text=A%20note%20on%20hot%20water,start%20by%20boiling%20your%20water.
https://www.chowhound.com/post/boiled-eggs-hot-water-mug-plate-703478
https://www.seriouseats.com/the-secrets-to-peeling-hard-boiled-eggs

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