Egg Genie: Because Boiling Eggs is So Hard!
Infomercials can be so illuminating. I always thought that boiling eggs was among the easiest cooking tasks, right alongside making toast and cold breakfast cereal. But the commercial for the Egg Genie steamer informs us that boiling eggs is a monumentally difficult and grueling task forcing housewives everywhere into lives of quiet desperation.
Ridiculous Infomercial Review reader Sam Krysiak emailed the following observations about the EggGenie commercial:
1) The outcome of an easy recipe (boiling an egg) is shown to result in chance when not performed without the aid of the product.
2) A pan of water is considered to be heavy; filling the product’s reservoir with graduations of water from a small beaker will be lighter, but then the product will still have to be lifted to empty it when the eggs are done cooking (unless anyone fancies syphoning it into a drain).
3) Awful pun: “eggs-actly”. Barf.
4) While in real life no sane person would eat boiled eggs for every meal, this infomercial not only gives examples of many egg-based meals, but shows the lady biting into a whole peeled boiled egg as though it were an apple.
5) Depiction of numerous eggs being cooked at a time which, unless making the devilled eggs party favors shown in the spot (shown as an unsubtle “everyman” gambit), seems kinda excessive unless Ex-Lax is at hand.
6)”Audible signal” that sounds worse than my car alarm.
7) In spite of contradictory guidance over the health concerns from consuming eggs (notably that their dietary cholesterol content is high), magic phrases like “diet” and “low-cal” are thrown in to appease the South Beachers.
8) By adding a plastic gauze, the product is magically transformed into a vegetable steamer. For some reason.
9) BUT WAIT! An extra (and entirely unrelated) product is yours free when you order. While the implication is that it’s a great cost saving, it shows just how cheap the free item is for it to given away for free, and by extension how unsellable the main product is if they have to shoehorn another item into the package to make any sales.
Thank you Sam for those eggs-ellent insights. (Sorry, I couldn’t resist!) Here are some further observations about the Egg Genie commercial from me:
The EggGenie commercial does show as many as seven eggs being cooked at once, which seems kind of excessive unless one has a large family or is hosting some kind of party. Maybe they’re holding some kind of Cool Hand Luke egg-eating contest—but I think a big pot would be a better way to boil 50 eggs.
The “sound indicator” reminds me less of a car alarm than of a fire alarm designed to be so annoying that it forces everyone to the exits as soon as possible!
I don’t think the Bacon Wave offered as a free bonus is an “entirely unrelated” product—it’s more of a sort of related product. Bacon and eggs is a breakfast favorite, but it is usually scrambled or fried eggs (as shown in the ad) that are eaten with bacon. Boiled eggs and bacon is not a common meal.
I have never used the Egg Genie, but it strikes me as one of those types kitchen gadgets that looks very handy on TV. So you buy on an impulse. Once you get it home you try it but soon realize that—while it does work as advertised—the thing is just more hassle than it’s worth. Unsure how you feel about the product, you stick it in some kitchen drawer, where it spends the next decade before you donate it to Goodwill.
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42 Responses to “Egg Genie: Because Boiling Eggs is So Hard!”
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Comment by Mel on April 23, 2009 at 11:55 am
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We boil the whole dozen of a carton all at once to have for a couple of weeks. There’s also little evidence that dietary cholesterol from eggs affects bad serum cholesterol levels, and at 70 calories for an egg they are relatively low calorie.
Commercial is still retarded though.
Comment by David Lawrence on April 26, 2009 at 8:53 pm
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Fuck you all. Ooh, I couldn’t simply boil water in a pan.
Have you any idea how many of these plastic pieces of shit will be churned out across the third world (ie China, where I live) and poison the bejesus out of the world for the next thousand or so years?Comment by Myrtle Madness on May 3, 2009 at 5:05 am
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Oh no, let’s attack the world for a simple product a little girl developed that works. Your review was nothing more than an attack on a working product. Cook your eggs up your ass then, faggots.
Comment by Fuck You Crybabies on May 4, 2009 at 4:29 am
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Oster and Hamilton beach have made this product for 20 years. It works great, they also poach eggs, though this one does not. I used my Oster this morning, definately saves time.
Comment by bobo on May 8, 2009 at 8:35 am
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Obviously you didn’t read any instructions or read about the product.. The water boild away so you do not over cook the eggs.. You don’t cook so why should you care? Nice smug comments from someone who didn’t even know how it works. Sell to guys like you every day… Make it your idea and you’d buy a box of rocks..
Comment by George on May 9, 2009 at 4:01 pm
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One last note.
Google the name and read reviews from people that used the product before you show everyone who pays attention you put your pen in gear before engaging your brain… Idiots..
Comment by George on May 9, 2009 at 4:03 pm
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The author of this review needs to get a life.
Comment by TeaRowz on May 17, 2009 at 12:46 pm
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The folks behind comments 3 through 8 must either be proud owners of the Egg Genie or the inventor’s parents.
Comment by Drey on May 21, 2009 at 2:57 pm
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Lots of people eat boiled eggs or poached eggs often. Why they try to make this appliance appear to be something just invented and “new” is misleading. Electric egg cooker/poachers have been on the market for over 50 years except instead of being all plastic they were metal and last forever. Mines from the 50’s and still works great, simple to use, doesn’t use much electricity either. To boil or poach 6 eggs it only uses about 5 tablespoons of water, yes tablespoons, not cups or ounces. So you’re not heating up the stove and boiling cups of water to boil an egg.
Comment by Pete on May 23, 2009 at 4:40 am
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I just now used the Egg Genie for the first time. Previously, I used my mom’s method of preparing hard-boiled eggs. Just put the eggs in enough water to cover them, turn the heat on under them and when the water comes to a boil cover them and let boil for ten minutes. Then, turn off the heat and let sit. No big deal!
Comment by zui shu on June 19, 2009 at 1:07 pm
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Not sure what everyone’s problem with the Egg Genie is…. But I love mine.
I, for one, If wanted hard, soft, or poached eggs would not hassle with pulling out a pan, filling it with a gallon or 2 of water, wait for it to boil, time the eggs,…. And the hope they were cooked right.
I love hard, soft, poached eggs and now with the egg genie I make them all the time and it is very easy and no pain. Just put it on the sink. Set the eggs in, Put an ounce or two of water in. Plug it in and …. in minutes perfect eggs.
Sure I could do it the way my mom taught me. But this is definitely much easier and the results are outstanding.
Sorry I cannot agree with all you “Egg Boilin’ Purists” LOL
Comment by John on July 10, 2009 at 4:37 pm
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LOL.
Comment by LOL on July 12, 2009 at 4:24 am
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The main selling point of this product is simplicity of use. If you sanctimonious twats feel the need to bitch and moan about people choosing to use devices that make life easier: turn off your computer and go back to the typewriter or paper and pen.
Comment by CW on July 26, 2009 at 10:57 am
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You can boil a half dozen eggs in less than a quart of water… it doesn’t take a gallon, silly! Just set the timer for 12 minutes. You only need a pan and a stove.
If this thing did perfect soft-boiled eggs, I might consider it. I just can’t imagine how it could possibly make the already impossibly easy task of hard-boiling an egg any easier. My six-year-old can hard-boil an egg.
Comment by Dolores on July 31, 2009 at 10:37 pm
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From my standpoint it’s just one more kitchen device that I have to find storage for. I use Alton Brown’s advice: only multitaskers in the kitchen. A pot on the stove with water can boil eggs, pasta, rice, steam veggies, etc.
Comment by Susan on September 1, 2009 at 1:54 pm
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I bought one yesterday from Bed Bath and Beyond it worked great. Didn’t heat up my kitchen or have to watch a timer, the alarm goes off and you just unplug the appliance.
Comment by Chantell on October 1, 2009 at 10:01 am
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This device actually makes it more difficult to boil eggs, because you have extra steps involved. You must first pierce each egg (really) and then measure water precisely and add, then place each egg in its own compartment. These extra steps aren’t mentioned on the misleadingly simple-sounding instructions on the box, and can only be found in the full printed instructions inside of the box.
Comment by Randy Dunn on October 17, 2009 at 8:28 am
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no one has said one important thing: how long does the genie take to hard boil the eggs? once assembled and turned on.
Comment by louis j bianco on October 26, 2009 at 12:56 am
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As someone who has used a Sunbeam egg cooker/poacher for the last twenty years or so (mine died and I now use my Mom’s which she never used). I will probably order this as my hubby likes potatoe salad with about the amount of eggs that this will cook – some mixed in and some sliced on top. Also we like to have a few H/B eggs hanging around for a sandwich. We used to have trouble with the “grey ring” when cooking in a pot, but not so with an egg cooker. I also like the steamer factor, but it’s now really important – nor are the the other “free” items. I just know that the one I am currently using will eventually die and I want to be ready.
Comment by Dianne on October 31, 2009 at 8:19 pm
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Most of the commenters here don’t know jack about the Egg Genie or hardboiling eggs. The Genie is great! It also poaches eggs and steams vegetables. This ought to be an especially welcome appliance for a single person.
As to boiling eggs the old-timey pot ‘n’ wood stove way (which is about the equivalent of what most are doing) you won’t get eggs anywhere near as easily or as perfect as from the Genie.
I tried all the techniques I could find on the web including lacing the water with salt, with vinegar, with Molly’s old socks and none of them were anything but a pain in the keyster.
I got mine at Walgreens so I could take it back if need be. They couldn’t get it away from me now.
All you geniuses still cookin’ like Granny did are just hardboiled — in the head.
Comment by Pops McPops on November 23, 2009 at 2:25 pm
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My dad brought home an Egg Genie and we all thought it was a joke.. at firt. Now I use the thing all the time. I make dvilled eggs all the time for partys or just for the family as a treat. Our egg genie also came with a poaching tray so we make eggs benedict for breafast now which we never had before. I think the thing is great. Using a pot is fine for hard boiled, but soft arn’t as easy to do. Plus since this method steams the eggs instead of boiling then the water is gone by the end so there is no lifting of a heavy pot.
Comment by Jess on December 30, 2009 at 8:48 am
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I got mine for work, where it is a hassle to goto lunch room find a clean pot and watch the eggs boil. Now hopefully I can set up shop in control room beside the microwave and have a proper breakfast every shift.
Comment by Moe on January 3, 2010 at 3:02 pm
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Well I too love my Egg Genie. It does make the perfect soft, medium or hard boiled egg and yes much faster than waiting for water to boil and timing it. And as far as eating a boiled egg like an apple all I can say is yummy. Just because you may not like it does not mean there are those that don’t. The person who wrote this says they have never tried it. Have you not ever heard don’t judge a book by its cover. You have no idea how it works and no authority to evaluate something that you have not even tried.
Comment by Patty on January 20, 2010 at 12:24 pm
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I have an Oster Egg Cooker.. similar to the egg genie but doesn’t require an external measuring cup…
anyhoot, I love my egg cooker. It’s super fast, just boiling a tiny amount of water, and my eggs are done. Anyone who uses an eletric kettle to boil water knows they will never go back to boiling water on a stove.. same thing is true with the egg cooker. Its a no brainer.
Comment by ben nguyen on February 10, 2010 at 6:39 pm
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I just got one last week and I love it. It’s a cheap piece of equipment and the indicator light doesn’t even work (no switch, when it’s plugged in, it’s on).
I make deviled eggs almost every day now (2 at a time, they are one of my favorite foods). They are so good when the yolks are still warm.
Boiling eggs is not hard. Boiling them so they are not overdone (you’ll know by the sulfur farts) and they peel so easy is impossible for me. That’s why I love my egg genie.
Usually they tell you not to use fresher eggs for boiling, but after my older eggs were gone I got some fresh eggs and I have never seen eggs that peeled so easy. They peeled even easier than the older eggs cooked in the egg genie.
When the timer buzzes you unplug the cooker. Then wait maybe five minutes for the eggs to cool a bit. Then run them under cold water while cracking the shell as much as possible on the side of the sink or bowl. I swear, sometimes the shell starts coming off just from that.
The thing I hate most about boiled eggs is when you peel the shell and chunks of the whites come off too. And that is why I love my egg genie.
I don’t know which brand is best, but they’re all about $20 bucks and well worth it if you really like hard boiled eggs. If you have too many kitchen gadgets, throw one or two that you don’t use away.Comment by anonymous on March 16, 2010 at 9:05 pm
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The egg genie works as advertised. For everyone that said it’s not difficult to hard boil an egg – you’re right. But, what about a soft boiled, or even medium boiled egg? That’s where it’s a little trickier, and the egg genie does it perfect. I have not boiled an egg on the stove since I got mine, and I have had it over a year. When it breaks, I will buy another. It is nice to see that something that was advertised on an infomercial actually works. My boss purchased one for our office and loves it.
Comment by Patti on July 27, 2010 at 8:46 pm
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It’s amazing how ignorant this whole topic is. It hinges completely on the false assumption that someone would buy an Egg Genie just to make HARD boiled eggs. Of course that’s easy, just boil it for five or more minutes and you can’t go wrong. The hard part is making SOFT boild eggs. Because the egg rests on hot metal in a pot it doesn’t cook evenly and it’s very hard to get the timing consistent. The Egg Genie provides that consistency and even buzzes to alert you when it’s done. Trying to get soft boiled eggs to come out right in a pot of boiling water was so hit and miss that it was tedious. The only bad thing is the company’s Customer Service is non-existent.
Comment by John Smith on September 1, 2010 at 8:24 am
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The reason why I have an Egg Genie (and I love it, by the way) is because I love poached eggs. Why can’t I just make them in the microwave or something easier like that? Because I live at a very high altitude, and when you try to poach eggs in the microwave they explode all over and make a huge mess. The Egg Genie is the perfect remedy to that!
Comment by leash809 on September 5, 2010 at 9:13 am
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In response to:
Comment 9: Yes I AM the PROUD OWNER of an EGG GENIE.
Comment 15: It takes LESS THAN 4 TBSP of water to PERFECTLY PREPARE 7 Hard Boiled Eggs EVERY TIME.
Comment 18: 4 TBSP of water is HARDLY Precise Measuring. Also you simply place the egg on a hole in the cooking ring, not in separate compartments.
Comment 19: It takes approcximately 12 – 14 minutes to hard cook 7 Extra Large or Jumbo Eggs
Comment 21: To be perfectly honest, Poached Eggs and Steamed Veggies don’t come out very well I am afraid.
All Comments that state that Hardboiling Eggs in a pan is as easy as falling off a log, etc, etc:
Except that more than 50% of the time they come out rubbery and difficult to peel without tearing them up. This has NEVER happened to me using my Egg Genie. I have been using it regularly for over a year. Not ONE rubbery or torn up egg in over a year…Comment by J A Harrell on October 3, 2010 at 1:12 pm
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I LOVE my Egg Genie! I got it at Ross for $4.xx and figured “What can I lose?” We raise chickens and have lots of eggs. We make sure to have them on hand for quick breakfasts and school lunches (protein), deviled eggs for get-togethers, egg salad, etc. I used to HATE to boil eggs. With the Egg Genie, it only takes a few minutes, they cook perfectly, and they PEEL easily every time!!! It is the best $4 I’ve ever spent, and I would have been happy to have paid more!
Comment by Laurel on November 25, 2010 at 9:59 pm
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Anyone who boo-hoo’s the Egg Genie would probably complain if someone handed them a $20 bill! I’ve been cooking for nearly 30 yrs and love kitchen products that are practical and actually work. The Egg Genie is great! I’ve had it for a year now and love it’s compact size and ease of use. I never have to worry about over or under cooking my eggs. Just recently steamed fresh greenbeans in it, using a full measuring cup of water, and they turned out perfect. Going to pick one up for my Mom who cooks for one. Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it! Also, I pour a TBSP of white vinegar into the basin after each use and let it sit for about 15 mins. Any residue wipes right out.
Comment by Laurie on March 25, 2011 at 6:25 pm
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Follow-up to my first post for those who asked…there is a small measuring cup that is included which clearly shows how much water to use for the type of egg you want (soft, med, hard boiled) and the total eggs you are cooking (holds 7 eggs). When the water evaporates, your eggs are done and Egg Genie sends out a very loud alarm sound that can’t be missed!
Comment by Laurie on March 25, 2011 at 6:37 pm
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Have had my Egg Genie for about 2 years, love love love it. When I boiled eggs before, because we did not have a gas stove, it took too long to bring the water to boil, and even then, I did not want to wait around for the `12 minutes – as for piercing the eggshell on this product, I had always done that anyway, so no extra steps there.
It sometimes an egg would crack while boiling, that is always icky.
With the Egg Genie, it is truly a “set it and forget it” product – I can run downstairs to do some laundry, go out side with the dogs and do some training, or anything else, and I love it I can hear the buzzer for when the eggs are done *anywhere* in the yard or house, lol.
Once I unplug it, I wipe the cooking plate and get out stuff needed to make whatever is on the menu, while waiting the few minutes for them to cool, wash my hands, and peel them very quickly, and a task I used to dread because I had to stay somewhat tethered to the kitchen area is over before you know it.
Hate this product if it makes you feel better, works great for me and I have given several as gifts and they love it : )
Comment by Carla on April 29, 2011 at 9:52 am
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Why does the Egg Genie require more water for fewer eggs? We love ours, but can’t quite figure that one out.
Comment by Dunsel on May 28, 2011 at 9:51 pm
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The water doubles as a timing device. When it all boils away, the buzzer goes off. More eggs displace more water. They also contribute a little water via the whole you poke.
Comment by Karen on July 13, 2011 at 8:55 am
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the eggs are a great ,measurable protein, and they do not effect the cholesterol the way they told us at first. 25 mg is fine sure a lot better for you than all the sugared(GM-(genetically modified) beet sugar that is the common sugar these days) Cereal that folks feed the kids theses days. and getting a soft boiled egg perfectly cooked each time is hard for anyone.try it !
I would say this is a good product for anyone.
Comment by Linda Arlene Parks on July 17, 2011 at 3:10 pm
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Having actually used an egg genie for quite some time, I can say that a) it works, b)it’s very easy, and c) it gives consistent results every time. My favorite breakfast is a couple of soft-boiled eggs, and they come out perfect every time. And I don’t have to time anything, which means I can drink my coffee and be ‘lost in space’ until the buzzer goes off.
What the heck is NOT to like about any of that? I think it’s clear that the nay-sayers haven’t actually used the product, and a few of them clearly don’t even understand how it works.
Someone asked in Comment 35 why it takes more water to make fewer eggs. That had me puzzled as well, but I finally figured it out:
When you make seven eggs, all the steam must make its way out of the bottom by going through the vents around the eggs. In other words, ALL of the steam that is generated goes into heating an egg.
If you only make one egg, a lot of the steam escapes through the six empty egg openings and doesn’t directly heat the lone egg. Therefore, you need more water to get the correct amount of heat transfer to to cook the one egg.
Comment by Lee E. Brown on December 21, 2011 at 12:53 pm
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Wow. The number of shills that came out of the woodwork to defend this product is astounding. Face it, people — it’s an overpriced, cheaply-made machine that has better quality analogues available at reputable stores.
Comment by Jordan on January 10, 2012 at 11:12 pm
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That always seems to happen whenever he reviews infomercials for products that end up unused by 99% of the people that buy it.
Comment by BOTR on January 20, 2012 at 8:51 pm
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I actually make 14 hard boiled eggs every week…so this isn’t too crazy to me. I make red beat eggs. My husband loves them. They are eggs that taste like red beats. So call it crazy, but I know my egg cooker is going to get a lot of use.
Comment by Wendy on April 3, 2012 at 9:59 am
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I get so much flack from friends (especially guys)about my Egg Genie. And it came with The Baconator LOL i gave that away to a gfriend who loves bacon (turns out the whole world loves bacon-flavored anything haha)
My Genie critic friends (; “Let me tell you how hard it is to make hard boiled eggs: put them in a pot of boiling water for ten minutes. Done.”
WHATEVERrrr i tell them (: ! Egg Genie has made the perfect hardboiled eggs every time, no green ring around the outside, all parts cooked evenly. The only requirement of me is to drop each egg into an ice bath afterwards.
I’m a stay-at-home mom with tons of projects started and going at once. this way i can prick the eggs, plug in the machine and whenever it beeps i take them out a few minutes later. It takes out watching the pot, timing it at just the right time. It makes sure my eggies will be POIFECT every time. (: It’s one of the only “gadgets” i have, actually, besides an herb chopper. I like my GENIE.
Comment by mishnik on June 4, 2012 at 8:18 am
My father hard-boils 6 eggs at a time for the proceeding lunches for the week, so cooking multiple eggs at once isn’t that rare.