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Kitchen Tips

The success of meringues depends much on two factors. First, start with room temperature eggs; submerge the whole egg in warm (not hot) water for five or ten minutes before breaking.  Second, the whites must be totally fat-free.  Make sure the beater or whisk and the bowl are completely clean and dry, with no greasy residue.  Your hands must be clean and dry when you separate the yolks and whites.  Break each egg into a small cup or dish and remove the yolk.  If even a speck of yolk contaminates the white, consider using it for something else; clean the cup and go onto the next one.  If only the white remains in the cup, add to the large bowl.  This guarantees a completely clean oil free base of egg whites. 

From Fuller Brush Divisional Director Joanne Rice:  Make sure you always start your eggs in cold water.  Boil for ten minutes, drain and shake the pan really hard.  All the shell will fall off and no more peeling; eggs will be perfect every time.

Here's another method for peeling hard-boiled eggs.  To peel them easily, tap all over to crackle the eggshell.   Put them back in the water for a few minutes.  Water will seep into the cracks, and the shell will slip right off.

Do you know why some eggs are impossible to peel?  Because they're fresh!  A freshly laid egg is almost impossible to peel without losing half the egg.  When making Easter Eggs or a large batch of deviled eggs for a party or crowd, buy your eggs five or six days ahead of time, and leave them in the refrigerator to "mellow'.

Do you frequently end up with eggshell bits in your food when you crack eggs?  The classic way to crack one is to tap it on the edge of the skillet or bowl.  Tap it on a flat surface instead to crack it, and you'll rarely have to fish out bits of broken eggshell!

What does wasting money have to do with eggs?  I was visiting a friend, who was finishing some homemade soup.  He had little meat and decided to add an egg for protein.  When he broke the egg into the soup, it was obvious it was really spoiled.  He paused for a moment, looked doubtful, and went right on cooking.  The invitation to stay and eat with him was turned down!   Avoid having to throw out a bunch of ingredients;  when adding eggs, break them one by one into a small cup or dish, and add it to the bowl or pot before breaking another.  This way, if one is bad, you can discard it, wash the cup and go right on.

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