Why and how does the egg white stick to its shell when cooked sous vide?

I've been cooking eggs sous vide and love the control over the consistency of the yolk; a perfectly jammy egg yolk is one reason the sous vide approach impresses me. However, there is one sticking point for me: the egg white sticks to the egg shell! I find it frustrating that whenever I cracked a sous vide egg, sometimes all that would come out was the yolk, and the egg white would be stuck to the inside of shell. Can someone explain what is going on?

Why does the egg white stick to the shell when a egg is cooked sous vide?

For what it is worth, I've found a method that helps overcomes this limitation. The traditional boiled egg approach cooks the egg from the outside in, yet relying on a watch and a pot of boiling water can yield inconsistent results and runs the risk of overcooking the yolk. After cooking an egg in the sous vide to the desired yolk consistency perform the following:

Have an iced bath and pot of boiling water prepared.
Take the eggs out of the sous vide and cool them in the ice bath for a few minutes. This will cool the egg some and mitigate the additional cooking of the egg yolk in the following step.
Take the eggs out of the ice bath and place them in a pot of boiling water. Boil the eggs for 5 minutes.
Take the eggs out of the boiling water and place them back in the ice bath.

I have found that "shocking" the eggs after cooking them sous vide helps firm up the egg white a bit and release the egg white from the shell, making them easier to peel, yet the results still aren't where I'd like them. It's almost like inverting the timed-boil approach and cooking the egg from the inside out. Can anyone explain why this approach is working, but isn't quite enough?

Best Answer

It is because the outer most layer of egg white is not firm/tough enough to survive being peeled without ripping apart.

If you do not want to ice and boil it, you can torch the outside of the egg for up to a minute. This will cause localized boiling under the shell and physically separate the egg whites from the shell wall. Also, overcooking the outermost layer of egg whites will help the egg hold its shape for the softer styles of eggs.

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Quick Answer about "Why and how does the egg white stick to its shell when cooked sous vide?"

I have found that "shocking" the eggs after cooking them sous vide helps firm up the egg white a bit and release the egg white from the shell, making them easier to peel, yet the results still aren't where I'd like them. It's almost like inverting the timed-boil approach and cooking the egg from the inside out.

How do you keep egg whites from sticking to the shell?

Start hot, finish cold This seems to make it harder for them to stick to the shell, according to Cathy Davies, PhD, a food scientist and consultant in the food industry. Plunging the eggs into an ice-water bath once they're done stops the cooking quickly, further preventing the sticky situation.

Why do eggs stick to the shell when boiled?

A fresh egg tends to stick to the shell when boiled due to its high acid content. As the egg ages, carbon dioxide and moisture inside the egg gradually leak out through the thousands of tiny pores in the shell. This lowers the acidity inside the egg and makes it less likely to stick to the shell when boiled.

Do sous vide eggs peel easier?

Whether you are using the sous vide technique or classic boiling method, older eggs are easier to peel after they are hard boiled.

At what temperature does egg white coagulate?

\u201cYou might be surprised to learn that egg white solidifies between 140\xba F and 149\xba F\u2014far below water's boiling point. Egg yolk coagulates between 149\xba F and 158\xba F, a temperature higher than egg whites because the yolk's protein structure is different and not as sensitive to heat.

Why and how does the egg white stick to its shell when cooked sous vide?

Best Answer

Pictures about "Why and how does the egg white stick to its shell when cooked sous vide?"

Quick Answer about "Why and how does the egg white stick to its shell when cooked sous vide?"

How do you keep egg whites from sticking to the shell?

Why do eggs stick to the shell when boiled?

Do sous vide eggs peel easier?

At what temperature does egg white coagulate?

Sous Vide Eggs: The Process, Discoveries, \u0026 Failures

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Why and how does the egg white stick to its shell when cooked sous vide?

Best Answer

Pictures about "Why and how does the egg white stick to its shell when cooked sous vide?"

Quick Answer about "Why and how does the egg white stick to its shell when cooked sous vide?"

How do you keep egg whites from sticking to the shell?

Why do eggs stick to the shell when boiled?

Do sous vide eggs peel easier?

At what temperature does egg white coagulate?

Sous Vide Eggs: The Process, Discoveries, \u0026 Failures

More answers regarding why and how does the egg white stick to its shell when cooked sous vide?

Answer 2

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