Perfect Steam-Boiled Eggs The New York Times J. Keaji Lopez-Alt Yield: As many as a dozen eggs Find a lidded saucepan large enough to allow your eggs to comfortably fit on the bottom in a single layer. Add 1 inch of water, cover and bring to a boil Gently lower eggs into the saucepan using a slotted spoon or a steamer basket. (It's OK if the eggs are partly submerged on the bottom of the pot, or elevated on a steamer rack and not submerged at all.) Cover pan and cook eggs, adjusting the burner to maintain a vigorous boil, 6 minutes for a warm liquid yolk and firm whites, 8½ minutes for a translucent, fudgy yolk, or 11 minutes for a yolk that is just barely firm all the way through. Drain the eggs, then peel and eat immediately, or transfer them to a plate and allow them to cool naturally before storing in the refrigerator for up to a week directly in their shell. (A small dot made with a permanent marker on the top of each cooked egg will ensure you don't mix them up with the raw eggs.) Do not shock them in an ice bath after cooking; this makes them more difficult to peel. Notes: This method for making hard-boiled eggs comes from scientific tests done with more than 90 testers and more than 700 boiled eggs (technincally steamed). They should be cooked straight from the refrigerator; reduce cooking times by 1 minute if using room-temperature eggs. You can cook as many as eggs as will fit in a single layer in your pot, up to a dozen. If you have trouble with eggs cracking during cooking, use a pushpin to poke a small hole through the shell on the fat end of the eggs.

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