Peeling eggs and egg salad

I love egg salad.  On the menu for Bruce Bakery and Bistro, we have two different kinds, one savory, and one creamy and sweeter.  Typically when I make egg salad, I make a lot of it.  And that means peeling a lot of eggs.

Recently I boiled 3 dozen eggs to make a big batch.  And peeling all those eggs takes a lot of time.  But the real issue with peeling eggs is not time.  It's getting all the peel off without damaging any of the egg.

It seems that so many people all have their tips and tricks for doing this.  But I have yet to see one of these "tried and true" methods work every time unless one keeps in mind a very important thing, and that is that fresh eggs are harder to peel than those which have aged a bit.  And this is all because of the membrane between the egg and the shell.

You can read all about the "why" here:  https://www.scienceofcooking.com/eggs/boiled_eggs.htm

The idea of not using fresh eggs if I want boiled eggs is something I learned over time through trial and error and careful observation.  (It was only later that I examined the science behind it.)   And this means that I find it good to plan ahead.  If I'm thinking of making egg salad sometime in the near future, I should get the eggs very early and let them sit in the fridge for a period of days.  And then when they are boiled, they are much easier to peel.

However, as careful as I am at planning and organizing, sometimes I fail to do that.  And that was the case recently when I boiled 3 dozen eggs.  Consequently, it was a real chore trying to peel them.  Getting the shells off eggs that are too fresh is close to impossible without damaging some of the egg.  If I'm making egg salad, it's not as big a deal as it is when I'm making deviled eggs.  It takes a lot of time and I lose some of the egg material in trying to take the peels completely off, but at least they don't have to look pretty since they are going to be chopped up.

But when I'm making deviled eggs and I've failed to plan ahead well enough, it's no fun.  Deviled eggs should be beautiful and smooth on the outside.  And by failing to plan ahead and have aged eggs ready for boiling, one is left with the certainty that at least some of the eggs are not going to be beautiful and smooth.

I'm in the mood for making deviled eggs soon,  Perhaps you'll see them on the weekly menu in the coming weeks.  So I'd better plan ahead and pick up a few dozen now.