Devilled Eggs

Lower the eggs into boiling water with a spoon and cook for exactly 10 minutes.

Lift them into a bowl of iced water and leave for 10 minutes.

Crack each shell all over and peel under running water, starting at the wide end where the air pocket sits.

Halve the eggs lengthways and tip the yolks into a sieve set over a bowl.

Set the whites on a plate, cut side up.

Push the yolks through the sieve with the back of a spoon.

Beat in the mayonnaise, mustard, vinegar, cayenne, salt and pepper until completely smooth.

Taste and correct — it should be sharper and hotter than seems sensible, because the white mutes it.

Spoon the mixture into a piping bag with a star nozzle and pipe it back into the whites.

Chill for 30 minutes.

Dust with paprika and scatter the chives over just before serving.