Wayne Boatwright wrote:

> On Thu 19 Jan 2006 06:36:07a, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it P.Aitken?
>
>
>>
>>scott123 wrote:
>>
>>
>>>Eggs begin with a very tiny air pocket that grows over time. They crack
>>>because this air pocket expands when heated. The fresher the egg, the
>>>smaller the air pocket, the less tendency toward cracking. At the same
>>>time, though, the fresher the egg, the harder they are to peel.
>>>
>>
>>This is not completely accurate. Egg shells are permeable to air, so as
>>the air exmands it passes thru the shell - this is why you see bubbles
>>rising from eggs in the hot water. The main reason eggs crack while
>>being boiled is that they are already cracked - small hairline cracks
>>that are not visible initially. Knocking around in too-rapidly boiling
>>water is another reason. Temperature shock is not involved. I remember
>>seeing Julia Child take eggs from an ice water bath directly to boiling
>>water with no cracking.
>
>
> Curious... What would be the point of taking eggs from an ice water bath
> and putting them in boiling water, besides the obvious, cooking them? I
> mean, why ice beforehand?
>

To demonstrate that the temperature shock does not cause cracking,
that's all.

Peter