How to Test Egg Freshness - The Good, The Bad & The Ugly

Do you know whether your egg is good or bad? New Refrigerators have egg holders built into the door. It is easy to lose track of egg dates when stored in the Refrigerator's egg holder.

No matter the BRAND or quality of your Refrigerator, storing eggs in the door is a bad idea. Store bought eggs will keep up to one month in the fridge, but the inconsistent temperatures of the door make it a guessing game as to egg safety.

Do you have doubts to your eggs safety? Follow these steps to make sure you have a safe, and incredible, edible egg. Let's get cracking.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Refrigerator
• Refrigerator Thermometer
• Cold water in bowl
• Eggs
• Towel for drying

1. 
    
   Refrigerator, Icebox or Amana?

   STORAGE: Keep eggs in middle of your Amana or Frigidaire refrigerator. Keep eggs in the carton and away from meats. Eggs have porous shells and pick up bacteria and odors. Your refrigerator temperature should be at 41 degrees. Use a refrigerator thermometer to be sure. Eggs will keep for about 1 month when refrigerated properly. Keep Refrigerator clean and odor free.

2. 
    
   No cracks

   APPEARANCE: There should be no cracks in the egg. Hold up to light at arms length to check for hairline cracks. If cracked toss it. If shells are extremely thin, you should always check freshness.

3. 
    
   Undated Refrigerated eggs should be tested

   TEST 1: Take a deep narrow bowl or tall glass and fill 3/4 full with COLD water. You want a good 8 oz of water at least. Gently lower your egg into the water.

4. 
    
   Back to the fridge for these eggs

   RESULTS: If your egg sinks to the bottom then it is safe to use. If it bounces and then settles, you can use it for baking muffins or cakes. If the egg floats to the top - throw it out. If it only floats partially, throw it out!
   
   It is best to use only eggs that sink to the bottom of the bowl. Return all fresh eggs to carton and back to the refrigerator. Mark date on carton and test again before using.

5. 
    
   Refrigerated Fresh yolks

   TEST 2: Next, use older eggs for baking, use the freshest eggs for cooking on stove top. When you crack open that egg, look at its appearance. The egg yolk when fresh will "stand up", it should be firm and the white solid around it. It won't spread out over the whole pan. Enjoy your incredible, edible egg.

6. Now its time to cook up those wonderful fresh eggs and remember these steps for egg freshness: *buy freshest possible, *store at proper refrigerator temperature and finally, *test your eggs before scrambling.

Tips & Warnings

• If you are lucky enough to get fresh farm eggs they will be fresh for a day or two at room temperature. Do not try this with store bought eggs.
• you can learn to seal eggs and/or store in flour for a week or so.
• Eggs can be FROZEN for use later. Freezing egg whites separately allows for great meringues.
• Egg yolks frozen separately are great for making puddings and custards.
• Always test for freshness
• It is myth that the red spot is sign of chicken embryo. The red spot indicates freshness, disappearing as egg ages

Resources

• Egg Safety
• Egg Facts
• Egg Video
• Egg Tips
• American Egg Board for Egg Recipes
• Compare Refrigerators
• Weight Watchers Egg Recipes
• How to Cook Breakfast for a Crowd - FAST

[goodselfme]

on 9/5/2009 Good egg info.TX

[shawnee50]

on 8/14/2009 Wow thanks I had no idea how to test eggs I will be doing this from now on. Great article.5*s

[wannawrkfrmhome]

on 8/6/2009 I did NOT KNOW there was a way to test eggs for freshness! Now if I can just remember your tips the next time I'm wondering about my eggs! 5* & recommend

[karileighk]

on 6/29/2009 Yeah. Never use a cracked egg. *5

[kimarkent]

on 6/15/2009 I gave this article 5* but it's not showing up. Don't know what's up with that.