There's a lot of mistakes people make when cracking eggs, but the good news is, there
are relatively easy ways to have a successful egg every time.
Mashed consulted several pro chefs to help you master your next egg crack.
Here's some expert tips on how.
It's pretty impressive if you can manage to achieve a single firm tap resulting in an
evenly cracked egg that splits open perfectly, before letting the yolk and the white smoothly
slip out.
And hopefully, you can do this while avoiding the shell shattering into a million pieces,
getting bits of shell in the egg, breaking the yolk, or introducing any bacteria from
the outside of the shell to the yolk or white — as might be the case for your average
amateur chef.
One pro-tip is to crack your egg on a flat surface — rather than the edge of a bowl
— to prevent the egg shell from going inwards.
As Chef Andrew Forlines of CHEF AF told Mashed:
"I usually crack an egg by knocking two eggs together.
I call this 'Warrior Eggs' and like to see how long of a winning streak an egg will go
on."
Forlines also says it's okay to use your finger to push out the last bit of egg white that
sticks to the shell.
But don't try to get fancy if you don't know what you are doing, as Forlines warned us:
"Unless you are in a hurry and will strain your eggs, don't crack them one handed.
It's better to use two hands slowly and do it well."
You do have a better chance of not disturbing the contents of a fresh egg if you avoid cracking
the shell inward.
This is because eggs are delicate, according to Chef Jennifer Booker.
"Any pressure, like pushing the crack inward to release the egg into your bowl, will result
in an exploding egg."
Chef Booker advises that once you crack the egg, you gently pull each end outward and
empty your egg into your bowl.
Another pro tip for cracking eggs is to not crack the egg into whatever you are cooking,
but rather to crack it into a separate container.
This is not only a good way to double check if the egg is spoiled, but there are other
important reasons for the technique also.
As Executive Chef Phil Kastel of The Milky Way in Los Angeles told Mashed:
"You never know when you're going to get a bad egg or a piece of shell with it, and it's
a lot easier to fish out a shell fragment in a small bowl than in cake batter, for example."
But there are other reasons for this trick as well: Every now and then, the eggs we buy
could have a spot of blood in the yolk, which is usually a result of vessels in a hen's
ovaries.
Cracking your eggs into their own smaller bowl, one at a time, keeps you from adding
this problem to your recipe.
If you do get a bloody egg, you can throw it out.
It seems that chefs on television love to show their expertise by casually cracking
an egg with one hand while doing something else with the other, all without breaking
a sweat.
Could it really be that easy?
Well, with practice and some technique – it can be!
"You are so lost you don't even know what kind of eggs you like!"
According to Egg Shop Kitchen Manager Davinda Sahadeo, if you use one hand and give a quick
tap on a flat surface, you will get an even crack with no shells every time.
Use your thumb to pull the egg shell apart, and you're done.
But whatever your egg cracking maneuver, it's going to take some practice.
As celebrity chef Jennifer Booker explained to Mashed, mastering one-handed egg cracking
is really about finding a comfortable fit.
"Try cracking the egg with one tap on the counter top and pulling opposite ends of the
shell with your thumb and index/middle fingers-at the same time."
Separating the eggs is a skill that some chefs take years to master, so it's understandable
if it takes the rest of us a while to get the hang of.
Here's a pro tip from celebrity chef Jennifer Booker: It's impossible to separate a broken
yolk, so crack eggs individually in separate bowls to keep your whites clear as you go
along.
As Booker explained to Mashed:
"I have found the best way to keep your yolk whole when cracking an egg, is to open it
facing up.
Using the other empty end of the shell to catch the yolk, gently pour it into the empty
shell while allowing the egg whites to fall into your bowl."
Another trick you can try is gently bouncing your hand while allowing the egg to hover
above a mixing bowl to let the whites fall down.
If cracking an egg without shell pieces landing in the bowl seems difficult, you should know
it's even a struggle for professionals.
As Chef Laura Pauli of Cucina Testa Rossa told Mashed:
"I thought I knew how to crack an egg but my very strict French chefs gleefully told
me I was wrong."
Like other chefs we spoke to, Pauli recommends cracking your eggs on a hard, flat surface
rather than the edge of a bowl, which can force small pieces of shell up into your egg.
This is especially important if you're separating eggs, as Pauli explained that even a single
drop of broken yolk in your whites can ruin fluffy meringues.
That said, if you do happen to drop a little bit of shell, there is a solution, according
Chef Jennifer Booker:
"A clean index finger is the best tool to use when fishing them out."
If you don't want to stick your fingers in your eggs, you can use an empty egg shell
to scoop them out, according to Chef Phil Kastel.
And if you've got a little time, those shell bits will eventually settle to the bottom
of the eggs, and you can just pour the eggs off, leaving the fragments behind.
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