Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs are the BEST and ONLY way to make PERFECT hard-boiled eggs. Eggs are cooked to perfection EVERY SINGLE TIME!
How to Make Perfect Hard-Boiled Eggs
I will never forget my first Easter I spent away from my family.
We were living in Georgia at the time and invited friends over for an Easter Egg hunt and Ham Dinner. While the ham and scalloped potatoes were delicious, the eggs were a complete disaster.
After coloring the eggs, our guests cracked a few open for a snack to find that they were not fully cooked!
But I used the same stove-top method for cooking hard-boiled eggs that I had for years. That method worked MOST of the time, but clearly, it was not fool-proof. And frankly, I became a bit fearful to ever cook hard-boiled eggs again--well at least for company!
By cooking eggs in my Instant Pot, I no longer have to worry about embarrassing accounts of under-cooked (or over-cooked) hard-boiled eggs. Pressure cooked hard boiled eggs are FOOL-PROOF. You will have golden, set centers without green rings, and these hard-boiled eggs peel like a dream!
5-5-5 Method for Cooking Hard Boiled Eggs
The perfect technique for cooking hard boiled eggs in the pressure cooker is the 5-5-5 method.
- 5 minutes to come to pressure
- 5 minutes cook time
- 5 minutes natural release
But to really get PERFECTLY cooked hard boiled eggs that peel like a dream, I have added another step:
- 5 minutes in a water bath.
So really, the PERFECT method for hard-boiled eggs is 5-5-5-5 method!
This means in 20 minutes, you will have hard-boiled eggs that peel perfectly and are perfectly set and bright yellow (no green rings here!!)
How to Cook Hard Boiled Eggs in Instant Pot
- Place 1 cup of COLD water in the inner pot of pressure cooker (liquid is ALWAYS needed for the pressure cooker to be able to reach pressure.)
- Place eggs in egg rack or carefully on top of the rack that the Instant Pot came with.
- Seal pressure cooker.
- Set cook time to 5 minutes (5 minutes on high pressure--push the manual button and adjust the timer to 5 minutes)
- After cook time has elapsed, let the pressure release naturally for 5 minutes (I suggest setting a timer that will beep at 5 minutes so you don't lose track of time. )
- Once 5 minutes has elapsed, release any remaining pressure in Instant Pot by using a wooden spoon or kitchen towel to knock vent knob to vent position.
- Carefully, remove eggs from the pressure cooker and place it in an ice bath. Eggs are VERY hot, so use potholder if your fingers aren't made of steel!
- After eggs have been in an ice bath for 5 minutes, remove eggs from the ice bath.
- Peel and enjoy your PERFECT hard-boiled eggs.
How to Peel Hard Boiled Eggs
Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs are the easiest eggs to peel EVER!
- Once eggs have cooked and cooled in the ice bath, crack them open by rolling them on a kitchen counter.
- The peel will come right off--and will NOT take any egg white with it!
Storing Hard Boiled Eggs
- I find it is best to PEEL eggs before storing them in the refrigerator.
- Once eggs are peeled, place in a sealed container and store in the fridge for up to 3 days. If unpeeled, they can be stored for 7 days.
How Long are Hard Boiled Eggs Good For?
- Hard boiled eggs will keep for up to 3 days in the refrigerator when peeled, 7 days if unpeeled.
- Hard boiled eggs will last for up to 2 hours at room temperature. So be sure that Easter Bunny doesn't leave the eggs hidden too long!
- Hard boiled eggs do not freeze well! Cooked egg whites will become rubbery.
- You can freeze the cooked egg yolks if desired by placing cooked yolks freezer bag and freezing for up to 3 months.
Are Fresh or Old Eggs Best for Hard Boiled Eggs?
Isn't this an age-old question?! While everyone has their theory, I can tell you I have tested older eggs and farm fresh eggs in my pressure cooker and both came out perfectly and peeled with the same ease.
Instant Pot Basic Recipes
- Instant Pot Chicken Breasts (Fresh or Frozen)
- Instant Pot Yogurt
- Instant Pot Quinoa
- Instant Pot Beans
Instant Pot Hard Boiled Egg Recipe
I would love to know how you enjoy this recipe! Be sure to leave a comment and let me know. Or snap a picture and tag @amindfullmom on Instagram and hashtag it #amindfullmom
Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs
Ingredients
- 12 eggs
- water for cooking
Instructions
- Place 1 cup of COLD water in the inner pot of Instant Pot for a 6 quart instant pot and 1.5 cups COLD water for an 8-quart Instant pot.
- Add in egg or steam rack and carefully set as many eggs as desired on or in the rack.
- Place lid on the pressure cooker and set for cook time for 5 minutes on high pressure.
- Once cook time has elapsed, let the pressure release for 5 minutes. Then do a quick release and carefully remove eggs from Instant Pot and place in ice water bath.
- Let eggs sit in water bath for 5 minutes.
- Remove eggs from the water bath.
- Store in the fridge for up to 7 days unpeeled or peel and use within 3 days.
Equipment Needed
Notes
- You can use as few as 1 egg and up to 16 eggs in a 6-quart pressure cooker.
- I find it is best to peel eggs right from the water bath, the shell comes off beautifully every single time.
- To help prevent your eggs from cracking during cooking, let your eggs come to room temperature before pressure cooking.
- Be sure to use cold water, warm water or hot water will change the cooking time.
- If you live at high altitude, be sure to use Instant Pot Altitude Adjustments.
Carrie J.
I tried this recipe and followed all steps in your directions. My IP took around 9 minutes plus to get to the high pressure. So it didn’t follow your 5-5-5-5 from the start. Do you have any ideas/suggestions to help me alter the timing to have success? I had about a third of my egg shells crack. I was going to use these to dye for Easter. I’d appreciate any thoughts you have. Thank you.
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Carrie. Well, don't worry if it takes longer for your pressure cooker to come to pressure, that CAN vary and should not effect your end product. One thing that will help is to make sure your eggs are room temperature before pressure cooking. And older eggs seem less likely to crack in my experience.i suggest putting eggs in lukewarm water for 10-15 minutes before pressure cooking to help with cracking. Happy Easter and Happy Egg Coloring.
Erin
Omg!!!!! My egg problems are solved!!!! iP to the rescue! I just made a dozen boiled eggs using this method. I used my egg rack. 2 eggs did crack during cooking. 1 of them turned out fine. The other one was hard to peel because the skin refused to release from the egg. The other 10 eggs practically fell out of their shells!!! Whaaaaat?!!! This is fantastic! Boiled, peeled eggs in less than 30 minutes! Just wow! Had given up on deviled eggs and egg salad. Just too daunting. Not anymore! 5-5-5 method for deviled eggs and egg loaf for egg salad! Thank you so much for giving me back my beloved hard boiled eggs!!!! 😋❤️😊
Kristen Chidsey
I can relate Erin, making hard boiled eggs could not be easier and the results are perfect every time. So glad you found the same success. 😊
Janice
Perfect. I made these in my new IP Ultra. They came out perfect. It surprised me because so many people had complained that they could not do it without the eggs bursting or some other mishap. It made me a little hesitant to try it, but it worked. Thanks for sharing your method.
Kristen Chidsey
I love this method too!! So glad you had such great success.
This Looks Tasty
I just made 24 PERFECT hard boiled eggs (two batches of 12 each) with this recipe.
I followed all the suggestions and the eggs turned out with easy-to-peel shells and beautiful yellow centers. LOVE IT!
Kristen Chidsey
Yay!! It is amazing to me how perfect the eggs always are with this method. Happy Easter!
Laura
I followed your directions exactly and 2 of the eggs were cracked and one of the eggs actually came half way out of the shell. any idea what the problem could be? they were cold right out of the fridge. going to bring to room temp and try again. thanks for any other thoughts.
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Laura, occassionally that can happen, as it will depend on the age of your eggs. Bringing eggs to room temperature will help reduce that risk, as the temperature change won't be as extreme. You can place your eggs in a bowl of lukewarm water for 10-15 minutes before cooking as well.
Kari Simmons
My Instant Pot takes longer than 5 minutes to build up pressure (more like 10 minutes). Would that change the cook or sit time?
Kristen Chidsey
Hi Kari--no that will not change the timing for you 🙂
Tisha
A recipe that actually was as easy as it said it would be! Thank you so much for this <3
Kristen Chidsey
You are welcome!
Britt
I just received an instapot a few weeks ago and I tried your hard boiled egg receipe. They were awesome! Absolutely perfect!! Thank you so much!
Kristen Chidsey
YAY!! I am so glad!
Laurie
Thank you for this recipe! I have used Julia Child’s method for hard boiling eggs in a stove top pressure cooker, and wondered why it was not better known. The eggs peel so easily! Anyway, I was hoping to modify her method for the Instant Pot, but you have given me the solution!
Kristen Chidsey
YAY!!! I am so glad you I saved you the work and you found this recipe 🙂
Jody
Came out absolutely perfect!! Thank you for the awesome recipe:)
Kristen Chidsey
You are so welcome!
Elaine Poff
Came out perfect using this recipe! Easy peeling which sometimes presented an issue in the past. So easy to use the instant pot.
Kristen Chidsey
I am so glad you had great success Elaine!
Jenn
Amazing! Spot on. Will never boil eggs on the stove ever again! I will never again be embarrassed by poor peeling whites for deviled eggs.
Kristen Chidsey
Isn't it fabulous!! I used to get so embarrassed of my egg skills 😉
Bill
I have tried every boil method for hard boiled eggs from salt to vinegar, boil vs. set aside, 5 minutes ice vs. 30 minutes, etc. First time with your recipe and they literally came out perfect. I was dreading the peeling (the part that was never good) and after the first couple, I was smiling. Such a simple joy in a perfect hard boiled egg. Whatever has been done to eggs over the years (I don’t remember my mother ever having the trouble I have with hard boiled eggs) this method is tops now and has beat the genetic modifications. Maybe a bit much but thanks.
Kristen Chidsey
I am right there with you Bill--I hated making hard boiled eggs before this method. I am so glad you had success as well. And thank you for taking the time to thank me. 🙂
Caroline Ryan
I'm so confused at what it is I'm doing wrong. My first batch of eggs I did for 5 minutes and released the pressure immediately. The eggs still came out really well cooked in the center. So my second batch was last night and I did four minutes and released pressure again. The eggs came out better but the center is not soft in any way. I prefer a slightly soft egg yolk. Any tips?
Kristen Chidsey
You will probably like my recipe for Soft Boiled Eggs 🙂
Craig
Crazy easy and it works!! Best and easiest peeling eggs ever!
Thank you
Kristen Chidsey
You are so welcome!
Lynn
Perfectly cooked - just as described. Thank you!
Kristen Chidsey
YAY!! I am so glad to hear that!