The 38-Letter-Long Kitchen Tool You Can't Pronounce But Your Eggs Will Love

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What's better than a buttery soft-boiled egg for breakfast? One that's cracked absolutely perfectly, so you get as much egg as possible and no mess. You may have found your preferred method for cracking eggs, one that works pretty well for the most part. Still, every now and then, something goes wrong — it's like an unwritten rule with eggs. But not in Germany. There, they've developed a better way to crack eggs for flawless results every time. That way is a tool, called an eierschalensollbruchstellenverursacher. Yes, that's a 38-letter word; and yes, it's fine if you just refer to it as "the egg-cracking thingamajig." But if you like eggs, you'll want one of these.

To break it down, "eierschale" means "eggshell." "Sollbruchstelle" refers to a predetermined breaking point, while the "verursacher" ending translates to "cause." This makes sense when you see the tool in action. It's a stainless steel rod with a conical sort of egg cap at the end, which you place over the top of your egg like a birthday party hat. There's a ball-shaped weight on the rod, too, which you lift and let drop onto the cap. This cracks a perfect circle into the top of the shell without damaging the egg. Remove the tool, remove the now pre-sliced shell piece, and get ready to dip some toast. 

Created by a German company called Take2, the eierschalensollbruchstellenverursacher debuted in 1999 with a name exponentially easier to say: "Clack." This, of course, speaks to the satisfying sound the tool makes in action. If you think the Clack is clever but unnecessary, consider all the hacks for neater, easier egg-cracking many of us seemingly struggle with forever. What if you could add one kitchen tool to your collection that does the trick every time? Soft-boiled eggs are part of some of the tastiest German egg dishes, and a simple treat on their own.

It's also undeniable that the eierschalensollbruchstellenverursacher is just fun. It will get the whole family in on breakfast prep — and Take2 has developed Clacks with playful toppers from bumblebees to soccer balls. According to Reddit threads about the tool, German egg-eaters really do use the Clack, though they often refer to it as an "eierköpfer" (egg and "topper") or an "eierknacker" ("egg cracker").

If you want to see these tools in action, you'll find plenty of YouTube videos, too, by searching "eierschalensollbruchstellenverursacher." If the ease and speed of the "Clack" or "eierknacker" wins you over, you don't need to fly to Germany to get one. You can find a genuine German-engineered Clack Egg Opener on Amazon in the U.S.