Well, the holidays are upon us once again and its time for me to make my deviled eggs that my whole family just loves to devour before the main course....except for that one rebel who insists that they can only eat eggs in the morning because it just doesnt sit right with them if they eat it any other time....unless they are at Wallbangers for dinner scarfing the salad bar!!
First of all, here are a few tips on eggs, depending on which one you go with. My family has three different varieties to choose from: grocery store bought eggs, eggs straight from our backyard chickens, and Mallard duck eggs...also straight from our ducks!
For the past two to three years, I've used duck eggs. They come out a LOT tastier in my humble opinion...and seem to fly from the plate a lot faster than the chicken eggs. The way I hard boil my duck eggs is by using the oven method which you can link to here.
For eggs straight from the chicken, it's best to use older eggs than freshly gathered eggs. At least two weeks will do, however, about three to four weeks would be even better. The reason you want to use older eggs is because of the shell peeling process. For any egg, the older they are, the easier it will be to shell. The fresher they are, the harder it is to take the shell off without the Whit's sticking to it!! Believe me, I've tried many different methods of getting the perfect hard boiled eggs to peel easily. After much research on the internet for different techniques and trial and error, the secret lies in the age of the egg...not the method used in cooking and peeling.
So, THAT problem was figured out, but, I still had another problem with the whites of my hard boiled eggs being too thin.
Here is the other simple solution: gently stir your eggs while they are in the pot. Don't let them sit until they are ready. THAT'S IT. Just the simple extra step will ensure your yolk comes out perfectly centered.
Then prepare your deviled eggs as usual.
Here is my recipe for Deviled Eggs (I use the term "recipe" loosely, because there is really no measuring done.
Pretty much all of my cooking is done by taste test and scent).
Ingredients:
12-18 eggs (depending on how many you want to make)
paprika
salt
mayo
tabasco sauce
Directions:
Hard boil eggs as usual for about 45 minutes, no longer than that. If you are doing just a few boiled eggs, 8 minutes per egg is ideal. Let it sit for another 9 minutes in the hot water before plunging them in the coldest water you can get your faucet to run. I usually gently crack my eggs all around and slide off the shell under a slow stream of cool water, or peel it under the cool water in the pot. Slice in half and pop out the yolk in a separate bowl. Once all of the eggs are done, mash your yolks using either a fork, or a potato masher...whatever you would normally use. Once mashed up pretty good, add about two good squeezes of your mayo, just enough so that your mix turns creamy. Add a few shakes of salt and a bit more of the paprika (I usually put in a lot more paprika than anything else just until the color is more of the reddish color than plain yolk color) and a couple of shakes of tabasco and continue to mix well. Do a taste test to see if you need to add a bit more of any of those ingredients. I like mine to have a slightly apparent hint of the tabasco flavor, but not so much that the kids refuse to eat it. I also have my husband taste tests it as well to ensure we both agree on the taste. (Once he gets started on tasting, it winds up becoming a "serving").
When the filling is to your liking, start scooping just enough to fill the whites, then sprinkle a bit more paprika over the yolk just for looks.
Another way of filling the eggs would be to use those cupcake icing bags with the decorative caps for a more appealing look. I'm too lazy to make my eggs look store bought and pretty...and besides, it's one too many steps for a dish that does not last longer than 1 hour after serving with my family (there's always that one last egg that everyone wants, but feels too guilty to get).
Comments
Post a Comment