Shelling boiled eggs without tearing the flesh
Getting perfectly shelled eggs, i.e. no pock marks where the flesh has pulled away with the shell, is easier if you plunge freshly boiled eggs directly into ice cold water after cooking. This causes the air pocket at the bottom to shrink pulling away the membrane of the egg from its shell. When completely cool, crack the bottom (the wide end) with a spoon and peel from there. Doing this under running cold water also helps to keep the egg clear of stubborn shell pieces trying to cling on after you've peeled them. This is a particularly useful tip with quail eggs, which can be even more tricky than chicken eggs.