How to Make the Perfect Boiled Egg in an Instant Pot

Since I started making boiled eggs in my Instant Pot about 5 years ago, I’ve never made them any other way. There’s no standing over a boiling pot and watching the clock. I set a timer, walk away, and have perfectly cooked and easy-to-peel eggs every time, even farm-fresh.

FRESH VS STOREBOUGHT EGGS

If you’ve never tried to peel farm fresh eggs, then you probably don’t even know that it can be quite challenging. The eggs that you purchase in the grocery store are often several weeks to months old by the time they make it to your kitchen. That means that a good deal of the moisture has evaporated through the shell, making the pocket of air between the membrane and the shell larger. When these eggs are boiled, this space makes the peeling process much easier.

Farm-fresh eggs are just that, fresh. They haven’t had weeks of evaporation to create space, and the membrane is still quite intimate with the shell. This means that when you try to peel them after boiling, you often come away with huge chunks of egg still attached to the shell.

HOW TO MAKE THE PERFECT BOILED EGG IN YOUR INSTANT POT

INGREDIENTS & SUPPLIES

• Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cooker.
  • I held off on purchasing one of these for the longest time. I’ve always been limited on space, and I’m not really one for kitchen gadgets. I was finally sold when I learned that you can cook an entire chicken, from frozen! As someone who seems to always reach 3 pm and have no meat thawed for dinner, it was a game changer. I have an older model, but this one is similar. (Affiliate Link)
• Trivet rack that comes with Instant Pot.
  • This keeps the eggs off of the bottom of the pot so that they steam evenly.
• 1 cup water
• Eggs
  • I’ve cooked as many as 18 at one time, but you can definitely do less.

DIRECTIONS

1. Place the trivet in the bottom of the Instant Pot.
2. Pour the water into the pot.
3. Place your eggs on the trivet.
   • You can layer them on top of each other, they will still cook just fine.
4. Close the lid and set it for 4 minutes at high pressure.
   • It will take the cooker around 5 minutes to build to pressure and another 5 minutes to cook. I let the pressure reduce naturally for an additional 5 minutes after the cooking cycle is completed, and then do a quick pressure release.
5. Place the eggs into cool water to halt the cooking process.
   • I do this by removing the entire pot from the pressure cooker and running cold water into it continuously until the water is completely cold.  You can peel them immediately, or store them in the fridge.
     *This part is crucial! If the eggs are left to cool on their own they don’t peel nearly as well.*

NOTES

• Do Not skip the cold water bath. It makes all the difference in the world when peeling freshly boiled eggs.
• You can adjust the cooking time to your desired egg consistency. More time = harder boiled, more firm egg. Less time = softer boiled center.
• This entire process can also be achieved without an Instant Pot. You can use a large pot, a metal colander, and a lid to steam your eggs. This entire recipe really is steaming rather than boiling anyway. Just place the eggs in your colander, put the colander down into your large pot, add enough water to fill the bottom but not submerge your eggs, bring the water to a boil, add your lid, and steam for 20 minutes. Finish this process with a cold water bath to stop the cooking process.
• If you do want an Instant Pot, this model is great (affiliate link).

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