Like many of you, I abandoned the dream of finding one surefire method for making consistently perfect hard boiled eggs some time ago. After trying a few too many "foolproof" tricks with spotty results, I relegated easy-peel eggs to the same category as unicorns and cheap airfare: nice to fantasize about, but if they were truly real, you'd think we'd have heard about it by now.
But that's the thing about myths—just when you've thrown your hands in the air and walked away, something new comes along to rekindle your hope. Like Fox Mulder, we want to believe.
For me, that something new was my pressure cooker and a friend's improbable suggestion that I try using it to make a batch of eggs. Just like that, the dream was alive again.
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Why the Pressure Cooker Works
I've actually been sitting on this revelation for a few months now, just because I didn't trust the evidence I saw with my own eyes: Two eggs or a dozen, fresh eggs or weeks old, white eggs or brown eggs, it didn't matter. The shells slipped easily off each time, leaving a smooth and pristine hard boiled egg.
There are a few theories for why this is. Some say that, similar to steaming eggs, the pressure cooker forces steam inside the egg's shell during cooking, causing it to separate from the egg white. Alton Brown's theory is that it's more about the rapid temperature change inside the sealed pot.
Whatever the reason, it works! Making hard-cooked eggs in the pressure cooker is the only method I've found that has worked for me every single time.
How to Cooks Eggs in the Instant Pot
I based my eggs on the popular "5-5-5" method for hard-cooked eggs in the Instant Pot. The idea is to put your eggs into a steamer basket and seal them inside your pressure cooker along with a cup or so of water. It takes about 5 minutes for the cooker to come up to high pressure, 5 minutes to cook the eggs, and then 5 minutes of natural pressure release before removing the eggs from the cooker—hence the "5-5-5" method.
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I found that this basic formula worked just fine, though it typically takes my pressure cooker closer to 10 minutes before fully pressurizing.
I also decided that I like the texture of 4-minute eggs better than 5-minute eggs. At 4 minutes, the whites are firm but soft and the yolk is cooked through but still creamy; at 5 minutes, I felt like the whites started to become rubbery and the yolk was a little chalky. Give it a try both ways and see which you prefer.
Stovetop Pressure Cooker Instructions
For those of you with stovetop pressure cookers, I recommend a quicker 3-minute cook time. Stovetop pressure cookers can reach a higher pressure than electric cookers and tend to cook food more quickly. (For reference, a friend of mine tested this recipe with her stovetop pressure cooker and her verdict was that 4-minute eggs were fine, but tasted slightly overcooked.)
One Caveat to Pressure Cooker Eggs
The only un-perfect thing about this way of hard boiling eggs is that, every so often, one of the eggs will crack its shell during cooking. When this has happened to me, it's usually been during the 5 minute "natural release" period after the eggs are already cooked, so the crack is only superficially cosmetic. Not ideal if you're planning to dye a bunch of Easter eggs, of course, but perfectly fine for deviled eggs.
If your eggs seem to be cracking more often, or are cracking before the whites are set, try cooking them at low pressure instead of high pressure. My own tests at low pressure gave inconsistent results. But every pressure cooker is a little different, and you might have better luck with yours.
The jury is still out on unicorns and affordable airfare. But easy-to-peel eggs? At least they are real.
Don't Have a Pressure Cooker?
Try our method for steaming hard boiled eggs on the stovetop.
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More Essential Instant Pot Recipes
- How to Make Chicken Stock in the Instant Pot
- Instant Pot Yogurt
- How to Cook Frozen Chicken in the Instant Pot
- How to Make Rice in the Instant Pot
- How to Make Fast, No-Soak Beans in the Instant Pot
Which Pressure Setting To Use
We cooked the eggs on high in the Instant Pot. At that setting, the internal pressure is 10.2 to 11.6 psi.
Some electric pressure cookers come with an "egg" or "steam" setting, but we're bypassing that here to keep things utterly simple. Using high pressure on the manual setting will steam your eggs perfectly, don't worry.
Pressure Cooking Tips for Really Fresh Eggs
Very fresh eggs (such as eggs from a neighbor or the farmers market) are often harder to peel. Try leaving them on the counter for a few days, which will help make them more peelable.
How to Peel Hard Boiled Eggs
These pressure-cooked eggs tend to be easy to peel, but there are a few simple techniques that help ensure success. Once the eggs are cool enough to handle, tap them several times on the counter. Carefully work away some of the shell, peeling back the membrane underneath the shell as well. If needed, tap a few more times. You can also peel the egg in a bowl of water, which helps create space between the shell and the egg as you go.
How to Store
It's best to store hard boiled eggs in their shell. Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days, peeling just before eating.
From the Editors Of Simply Recipes
How to Make Instant Pot Easy-Peel Hard Boiled Eggs
Cook Time4 mins
Pressurizing and natural release15 mins
Total Time19 mins
Serving1to 12 servings
Check your pressure cooker manual for the minimum requirement of liquid in the pot, and add at least that amount. If no instructions are given, add 1 inch of water.
If your pressure cooker didn't come with its own steamer basket, you can use a standard metal or silicone steamer basket in its place. (If you don't have a steamer basket, you can skip it, but you may get a greater number ofcracked eggs.)
Avoid stacking eggs on top of each other since this can also lead to more cracked eggs. If you need to cook more eggs than will fit in a single layer, we suggest cooking multiple batches.
Ingredients
Large eggs, cold from the fridge—at least 1 egg or as many as will fit in a single layer in your pressure cooker
Method
Prepare the pressure cooker:
Place a steamer basket in the bottom of your Instant Pot. Add 1/2 to 1 inch of water (1 to 2 cups) to the pressure cooker (check your pressure cooker manual for minimal liquid amounts). The water level should be just below the steamer basket.
Add all the eggs:
Use cold eggs, straight from the fridge. You can cook as many eggs as you like at one time, but be careful of wedging eggs too firmly against one another or stacking eggs on top of each other since these can cause eggs to crack.
Bring the pot up to pressure:
Close the lid on the pressure cooker and make sure the steam valve is set to the "sealed" position. Set the pressure to high and set the timer for 4 minutes for electric pressure cookers (3 minutes for stovetop).
The pressure cooker will take 5 to 10 minutes to come to full pressure and then begin cooking. Cooking time begins once the cooker has come to pressure.
Let the pressure release naturally for 5 minutes:
After cooking is done, let the pressure cooker sit for 5 minutes with the lid on and the steam vent "sealed" to allow steam to begin releasing naturally. (If you're using a stovetop pressure cooker, remove it from heat.)
Quick-release the remaining pressure:
After 5 minutes of natural release, carefully flip the steam valve to "venting" and quick-release any remaining pressure.
Cool the eggs:
Transfer the eggs to a bowl of cold water to cool (add ice for more rapid cooling, but ice isn't necessarily for making easy-peel eggs). Change out the water as it warms until the eggs are cool, then refrigerate the eggs until needed.
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- Easy Breakfast
- Lunches
- Healthy Snacks and Appetizers
- Pressure Cooker
- Boiled Eggs
| Nutrition Facts (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 72 | Calories |
| 5g | Fat |
| 0g | Carbs |
| 6g | Protein |
Show Full Nutrition Label
×
| Nutrition Facts | |
|---|---|
| Servings: 1to 12 | |
| Amount per serving | |
| Calories | 72 |
| % Daily Value* | |
| Total Fat 5g | 6% |
| Saturated Fat 2g | 8% |
| Cholesterol 186mg | 62% |
| Sodium 71mg | 3% |
| Total Carbohydrate 0g | 0% |
| Dietary Fiber 0g | 0% |
| Total Sugars 0g | |
| Protein 6g | |
| Vitamin C 0mg | 0% |
| Calcium 28mg | 2% |
| Iron 1mg | 5% |
| Potassium 69mg | 1% |
| *The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice. | |
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.
