Who has tried to peel a boiled egg he knows that the shell often breaks into irregular pieces and part of the egg white remains attached. The method shown by Vincenzo Schettinia physics teacher with a huge following on social media, tries to solve the problem in a simple way, applying a physical principle.
The procedure is this: you lightly hit the two ends of the egg (the top and bottom) on a hard surface, such as the edge of a bowl. You don’t need to break the whole shell, just create two small openings. From there a small piece of the shell is removed, just to leave a passage for the air.
At this point you take the egg in your hands and yes blows decisively from one of the ends. The air exerts a internal pressure which causes the shell to separate from the albumen. The result is that the egg comes out almost by itself, clean and without breaks.
Pressure and deformability: why Schettini’s trick works according to physics
The trick works because it uses a basic principle: the pressure exerted by the air. When you blow from either opening, air enters the space between the shell and the egg white. This creates a force that pushes the shell outward, detaching it.
The egg, that is elastic and slightly deformablethus manages to slip away intactwithout having to peel it piece by piece. The advantage is obvious: the process is quicker, less time is wasted and you avoid ruining the egg white.
View this post on Instagram
