This is the 5-5-5 method for Instant Pot hard boiled eggs and the secret to easy peel shells every single time. Eggs cooked in a pressure cooker with the perfect yolk serve as a high protein breakfast or deviled style.
Today I’m sharing our secret to making the best hard boiled eggs in our 6-quart Instant Pot AND how to make them perfect every time! I love my fancy pressure cooker & share all of my easy Instant Pot recipes here, this was just the beginning of our journey….
Maybe you haven’t tried these because you’re not sure how to make them without the eggs rolling around in the pot. There’s an answer to that and these are great for all sorts of things. Yes they’re great with salt for breakfast but diced inside a pasta salad, you can make Instant pot poached eggs, pressure cooker egg bites, or our Ninja Foodi breakfast with the same things.
What is the 5 5 5 method?
If you have heard this in groups you might be wondering what the heck is 5-5-5 anyway?? That means you need 5 minutes to cook, 5 min natural release timing for steam to release and 5 minutes submerged in a bowl of ice water.
Ninja Foodi Hard Boiled Eggs
You can use this pot, Crockpot Express or a Ninja Foodi, either one works. The only difference with the latter is that you need to remember to use the lid that is not attached. That one is used for high pressure cooking and will get this one done nicely.
There are two items to choose from in order to make this a lot easier. The two tier egg rack you see above is one of them we love, or use this vegetable steamer.
Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs with Egg Rack
Yes you could kinda’ stack them on the trivet that came with your pot if you didn’t want to buy anything else. Honestly if you are planning to make these often it is just worth it to spend the couple of dollars for one of the two linked above. Make pressure cooked hard boiled eggs (directions below). Once perfectly cooked, transfer the eggs into a bowl with cold water and lots of ice cubes.
Can you pressure cook hard boiled eggs without a rack?
If you don’t have a metal apparatus that will keep them out of the water you can make something that will achieve the same thing with aluminum foil. You can wad up a piece that is about 3 layers thick and mold it into a tray of sorts where eggs can be set on top and the water will sit below. It isn’t as effective as there is not any steam rising up from underneath them but is a good alternative if need be.
How long to hard boil eggs in Instant Pot
If you use this method for perfect hard boiled eggs it will be a total of about 20 minutes total. It takes approximately 10 minutes for an electric pressure to come to pressure. At this time the 5 minute cook time will begin. Then you’ll wait the 5 minutes for it to naturally release some steam. They will be hard boiled now, but you’ll want to cool them before peeling. This may take 10 minutes or so.
Can you soft boil eggs?
Now, you could make the yolks as well by decreasing the cook time to 4 minutes on high pressure instead of 5. This will be subjective of course depending on just how soft you want them. Try this and see if you want them even softer. If so 3 minutes may be the perfect soft boiled egg recipe for you. We go over Instant Pot poached eggs (that are even more loose) here too.
FAQ
It is best to use white eggs that are close to their sell by date so they are easiest to peel. Reason for this is that the membrane is thinner and the egg won’t stick as firmly to the inside of the shell with white vs. brown.
Besides peeling it and cutting it in half you can tell it is a fully cooked egg if you spin it on the counter. If cooked all the way thru it will spin smoothly and quickly, while an undercooked one is slower and wobbles due to the undercooked liquid inside.
You want to cool them down quickly and immediately when they are done, that is the key. To do this have a bowl of cool water filled halfway with ice cubes so when they are cooked you can transfer them carefully to this bowl for about 15 minutes. Then remove one at a time, crack all the way around the center and the shell will peel right off!
Hard boiled eggs can be safely kept in the refrigerator for up to 1 week (or 7 days). This applies whether they’re still in the shell or already peeled, though in the shell tend to stay fresher longer. Store them in a covered container to prevent odors from seeping in, and keep them at a consistent fridge temperature of 40°F. If a peeled egg develops a slimy texture, off smell, or unusual appearance, it’s best to discard it.
If you want to make hard boiled eggs with them; once your filling is made spoon it into a pastry bag or pint size freezer bag. Put that bag full of filling inside the refrigerator for at least an hour before squeezing it into your halved egg whites to make crack chicken deviled eggs.
Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs Recipe
Equipment
- 1 egg rack or use trivet / steamer basket
Ingredients
- 14 large eggs, white works best
- 1.5 cup water
Instructions
- Pour your water into the Instant Pot or pressure cooker.
- Place the bottom tier of your egg steamer rack into the pot and fill the slots with 1 egg each until full. (or stack on trivet or vegetable steamer)
- Put the second tier on top until it is securely set on the sides.
- Fill that tier with eggs and close your lid and steam valve.
- Set Instant Pot to pressure, high, for 5 minutes.
- Do a natural release for 5 minutes, then release rest of steam. Open lid and carefully lift top tier out, then the bottom tier and put eggs in a bowl with COLD water + ice cubes. They will only take a few min. to cool down.
- This will make the shells REALLY easy to come off. Peel them and follow instructions above recipe card to make great deviled eggs.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
What to Make with a Lot of Eggs
I mean we do love a great bread pudding to make but below are a few savory favorites we love too. If you’re a huge hard boiled egg fan like we are you’ll love this egg salad recipe too! Air fryer breakfast stuffed peppers are great. We use this method to make eggs for our Instant Pot potato salad you see here!
We’ve even made air fryer hard boiled eggs before. Your choice but I prefer my pressure cooker if I had to choose one over the other.
You may know how to boil eggs in the oven but this is much faster! Whether you want to make a few or more than a dozen we have tips for success here!
I loved making hard boiled eggs this way but have to say I still prefer my egg cooker. However, if I had to choose just one kitchen appliance to work with I would def opt for the instant pot. You did such a great job with instructions on cooking as well as whipping up some deliciously mouthwatering deviled eggs. Thanks!
The BEST way to make hard boiled eggs! I will never go back to do making them any other way!
Worked well. How do I stop the eggs from cracking..
Let them set on
The counter for about 30 minutes before putting them into the pressure pot will help. The rapid temp change can cause some cracking
I did a dozen yesterday in my 6 quart IP and didn’t use the 2 tier rack. I just put them all on the trivet that came with it and all 12 fit then put 1 cup of water and high pressure for 5 mins and 5 mins NPR. Worked perfectly. Will have to get the 2 tier rack and see if it works out any differently.
Didn’t work for me. Did the 6 minutes, quick release and ice water and the eggs were not cooked all the way through. I also have tried the 4/4/4 method and eggs still are not cooked. I guess I will have to keep experimenting.
Dawn, did you let it natural release for 5 minutes too?