yolk well centered and not discolored; its flavor delicate, not sulfurous Good texture and flavor are obtained by taking care not to overcook the eggs, which overcoagulates their proteins and generates too much hydrogen sulfide Any method that keeps the cooking temperature well below the boil will help avoid overcooking, as will plunging the cooked eggs into ice water Gentle cooking also takes care of most shell and yolk problems — but not all Easily Cracked and Not So Easily Peeled Shells A shell that cracks during hard cooking makes a mess and a sulfurous stink, while a shell that doesn’t peel away cleanly makes an ugly, pockmarked egg A traditional preventative measure for both problems is to poke a pinhole in the wide end of the shell, but studies have found that this doesn’t make much difference The best way to avoid cracking is to heat fresh eggs gently, without the turbulence of boiling water On the other hand, the best guarantee of easy peeling is to use old eggs! Difficult peeling is characteristic of fresh eggs with a relatively low albumen pH, which somehow causes the albumen to adhere to the inner shell membrane more strongly than it coheres to itself At the pH typical after several days of refrigeration, around 9.2, the shell peels easily If you end up with a carton of very fresh eggs and need to cook them right away, you can add a half teaspoon of baking soda to a quart of water to make the cooking water alkaline (though this intensifies the sulfury flavor) It also helps to cook fresh eggs somewhat longer to make the white more cohesive, and to allow the white to firm up in the refrigerator before peeling Off-Center Yolks and Flat-Bottomed Whites Well-centered yolks for attractive slices or stuffed halves are easiest to obtain from fresh, ... a carton of very fresh eggs and need to cook them right away, you can add a half teaspoon of baking soda to a quart of water to make the cooking water alkaline (though this intensifies the sulfury.. .the turbulence of boiling water On the other hand, the best guarantee of easy peeling is to use old eggs! Difficult peeling is characteristic of fresh eggs with a relatively... which somehow causes the albumen to adhere to the inner shell membrane more strongly than it coheres to itself At the pH typical after several days of refrigeration, around 9.2, the shell peels easily