Taylor Egg Timer: A Hard-Boiled Review
Egg timers take many shapes and forms. In today’s review, we’re looking at the Taylor Egg Timer
The Premise of the Taylor Egg Timer
You include the Taylor Egg Timer in your pan of water from the start with the eggs. As the water boils and the eggs cook, the timer changes color to reflect what level of doneness the eggs have. The bottom section of the egg timer starts out all yellow. It changes to white with rings indicating Soft, Medium, and Hard boiled.
The Instructions
- Fill the pot with room temperature water, place eggs and timer into the pot.
- Turn on heat and bring water to a slow boil for best color change results.
- Watch for desired color change to Soft, Medium or Hard. The color will change at the outside of the egg timer first.
- When done, remove eggs from heat and cool immediately in ice water for about 15 seconds to stop the cooking process. *The hot egg timer could be damaged in cold water – do not cool with eggs.
- Eat eggs immediately for warm centers or chill completely in the refrigerator for future use.
A few things stand out about these instructions. First, that they indicate TWICE not to put the timer into cold water – once in the numbered instructions and then again in the notes below. Second, that they say to use the freshest eggs possible. There is some debate about using fresh eggs for better flavor versus older eggs for easier peeling. Third, that they include the obligatory warning that something just in boiling water will be hot… because, you know, everyone’s an idiot. And finally, that they include a specific instruction to eat the eggs. We were honestly a little surprised that they didn’t include a step for peeling the shells off.
The Process
Following the instructions, we used four large, store-bought eggs. Nothing fancy. We also included a little bit of vinegar and salt in the water to help get the shells off more easily afterwards.
The instructions recommended a slow boil so we used medium heat on the electric stovetop.
As the water heated, the Taylor egg timer did change color. It went from a deep, vibrant yellow to a softer yellow. It did not quite get to full white. The photo above shows the timer mid-boil (looks like around the soft boil stage).
However, as the water got to a more rolling boil, it became significantly more difficult to see the timer. The eggs seemed to cluster around the timer and all of the bubbles were where the eggs were. This is what was most commonly seen from above.
After about 23 minutes total on the stove at medium, it looked like the timer had fully turned white. That includes both the time for the water to reach a boil and then the time of the eggs boiling alongside the Taylor egg timer.
The timer does still look yellowy though not nearly as dark as it started out. Sort of a very pale yellow. The color was clearer to see once it was out of the water.
The Criteria
For this test, we were going for a full hard boil. That means a firm, consistently-textured yolk. Given that we are using store-bought eggs, the yolk will likely be light yellow in color. There should be no green ring between the yolk and the white.
The Results
After the ice bath, we peeled two of the eggs and checked for doneness.
The first egg shows a mostly consistent yolk with no green ring. However, there is a little spot of moisture in the very center. This is shown in the half on the left in the photo. The yolk was flaky in texture and light yellow.
The second egg had properly set whites but the yolk was inconsistent. The outer part of the yolk (towards the whites) is light yellow. Then there is a visible color change towards the middle. The very center is a much darker yellow and not as crumbly.
The Verdict
| Ease of Use: |  |
| Necessity: | |
| Results: | |
| Overall: | |
For ease of use, we give the Taylor egg timer three out of five eggs. It was very clear that you have to already have a sense for how long it takes to boil eggs or the patience of a saint. In order to know when the eggs are done, you need to stand there staring at the timer. For over twenty minutes. There is no audible cue for if (read: when) you wander off in that time.
Some of the Amazon reviews
When it comes to necessity, this gets two out of five eggs. We have timers on microwaves, ovens, cell phones… you name it. If you already know roughly how long it takes eggs to boil, as detailed above, then you likely have a better way to achieve the same results.
Speaking of results, we give the Taylor egg timer four out of five eggs for the outcome. It came very close to timing boiled eggs properly. Our hard boiled test got the yolks mostly set but would have required a little more time for full consistency. One thing we noted was that the large eggs used are a bit bigger than the timer itself. It could be that this timer works best for medium sized eggs, which would be closer to the timer’s size. Clearly, more experimentation is needed. Delicious, delicious experimentation!
Overall, that gives the Taylor egg timer three out of five eggs. Not bad for the few dollars spent but maybe not the first tool to reach for when looking for the perfect boiled egg.
If you’ve tried the Taylor egg timer or another product like it, please comment below. We’d love to hear about your eggs-perience.
Looking for more egg-related products? Check out our other reviews for egg-cellent products.
Bought this funny apparatus recently in the US. Cool thing and works quite well. Indeed not a necessity, but I like different nifty stuff than the regular ordinary. I recognise the shortage in ‘reading under boiling water’, although the instructions say it should read better once in the water (???).
The timing is similar to what I normally would do with a clock timer, but the eggs sofar boiled were more well-done than with a clock. This is probably due to me using quite small eggs recently…
Overall; for me this is a stayer. Nicely made, gives you that old-fashioned 50’s feeling when boiling eggs in the weekend 🙂