This really only works with old eggs, where the temperature differential can help separate the albumen from the inner shell. To quote the master: "...the best

This really only works with old eggs, where the temperature differential can help separate the albumen from the inner shell. To quote the master: "...the best guarantee of an easy peeling is to use old eggs! Difficult peeling is characteristic of fresh eggs with a relatively low albumen pH, which somehow causes the albumen to adhere to the inner shell membrane more strongly than it adheres to itself. At the pH typical of several days of refrigeration, around 9.2, the shell peels easily. If you end up with a carton of very fresh eggs and need to cook them right away, you can add a half teaspoon of baking soda to a quart of water to make the cooking water alkaline (though this intensifies the sulfury flavor)." (On Food and Cooking (2nd Ed.), p. 88)