January 7, 2009
How to prepare the perfect boiled egg
Where t = tempurature and c = the circumference of the egg. Martin Lersch points out:
As is evident from the formula, the boiling time depends on the size of the egg. For a larger egg, a longer cooking time is needed. The circumference of the egg is easily measured around the thick end using a piece of string which, after marking of the circumference of the egg, can be measured using a ruler. I have prepared a piece of string which I keep in the kitchen with three knots at 13, 14 and 15 cm respectively to make it even simpler.
The boiling time also depends on the starting temperature of the egg, T0. This also makes sense as it will take longer to heat up a cold than a warm egg to the desired temperature. In fact, the temperature difference between a room tempered and a refridgerated egg amount to a difference in boiling time of 30 seconds.
Martin Lersch is an organometallic chemist in Oslo, Norway and his site, khymos, is an invaluable resource for those interested in molecular gastronomy.
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