Determining Eggs Freshness in Water

[Texas Star]

I've read that if one drops an egg in a pan of water and it sinks, it's fresh enough to eat. If it floats, it's rotten. I may have that backward.

Does anyone know the correct version and if it's true?

I have a dozen eggs in the frig., but the date on the carton isn't legible. I've had them maybe three weeks, and the lady who does the shopping for home delivery orders neglected to check for clear expiration dates.

While we're on this, is it true that most eggs last 2-3 weeks beyond the date on the carton, if kept refrigerated? I've cooked some that were about 2 weeks "late" and they were okay.

Finally, I wrote in a short story on FanFiction.net that a British scientist in the 1920's had asked for eggs fried "over easy." A contentious British reader who may be a troll said in a review that Britons did/do not eat eggs that way, always having them served as what Americans call, "sunny side up."

This seems odd to me, and I think he/she was just being mean and petty..

Do any of our former Brits or others who've eaten eggs in the UK want to comment?

Ian Fleming certainly liked scrambled eggs and had James Bond order them even at supper meals. Fleming said that he could eat scrambled eggs at any meal, and even published his recipe for scrambled.

I don't recall which wine Bond ordered with scrambled eggs for dinner, but a good Riesling or Sauvignon blanc would work well.

My critic is off base, anyway, as the girl cooking that scientist's eggs was Anglo-Brazilian and they were on a remote Brazilian plateau, where the man had probably encountered over easy eggs, anyway, as the girl was intimate with an American reporter who'd probably asked for eggs that way. Some people just want to complain.

A friend in the UK this week said she'd check there, but additional info is appreciated. Those stories are read in over 60 nations, but only this one troll (?) has made such an observation.

 

[Rustyt1953]

A condensed version from several long winded sites:


"Firstly, fill a fairly deep bowl with water. The level of the water should be approximately twice the height of the egg. Then, carefully lower the egg into the bowl.

There are three things that could happen.

In the first instance, a very fresh egg will immediately sink to the bottom and lie flat on its side. This is because the air cell within the egg is very small. The egg should also feel quite heavy.

A slightly older egg of about one week old will still lie on the bottom of the bowl but at a slight angle. It will bob up and down rather than lie still.
Gradually, as the days pass, the egg will start to lose its freshness and more air enters the egg, at which point it will begin to float and stand upright. The smaller end will lie on the bottom of the bowl, whilst the broader end will point towards the surface. However, the egg will still be good enough to consume. Here, the egg is about three weeks old.

Finally, if the egg fully floats in the water and does not touch the bottom of the bowl at all, it should be discarded, as it will most likely be bad.

A bad egg will also feel extremely light in weight and give off a pungent smell."

Singed; A.L. Bumen.

 

[Texas Star]

A condensed version from several long winded sites:


"Firstly, fill a fairly deep bowl with water. The level of the water should be approximately twice the height of the egg. Then, carefully lower the egg into the bowl.

There are three things that could happen.

In the first instance, a very fresh egg will immediately sink to the bottom and lie flat on its side. This is because the air cell within the egg is very small. The egg should also feel quite heavy.

A slightly older egg of about one week old will still lie on the bottom of the bowl but at a slight angle. It will bob up and down rather than lie still.
Gradually, as the days pass, the egg will start to lose its freshness and more air enters the egg, at which point it will begin to float and stand upright. The smaller end will lie on the bottom of the bowl, whilst the broader end will point towards the surface. However, the egg will still be good enough to consume. Here, the egg is about three weeks old.

Finally, if the egg fully floats in the water and does not touch the bottom of the bowl at all, it should be discarded, as it will most likely be bad.

A bad egg will also feel extremely light in weight and give off a pungent smell."

Singed; A.L. Bumen.

Well, I never "singe" eggs, just scramble them, ha!

Seriously, Rusty, thanks. Sounds good, and is well detailed.

Now, I need to see if I have a bowl deep enough for that test.

 

[gman51]

I usually buy my eggs from a cage free local producer. Cage free eggs the yoke is usually more rounded dome and can be deeper orange color instead of yellow. Also cage free eggs can be harder to peel.
If an egg floats it is at least an older egg and maybe shouldn't be eaten.

https://food-hacks.wonderhowto.com/how-to/make-amazing-hard-boiled-eggs-are-easy-peel-0154519/
.



I was watching a game show and one question was which end comes out of the chicken first, the larger end or the tapered end. The large end is first out. Ouch I think the other way around would be easier to do. Glad I ain't a chicken.

 

[ACORN]

The large end is first out. Ouch I think the other way around would be easier to do. Glad I ain't a chicken.

That way her "lady parts" don't snap shut!

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

I the Western expansion of our country, people had no refrigeration. Eggs were considered edible at 4 week or less! They were not washed until (and if washed at all) just before using. There is a protective coating straight from the hen, washing removes this and quickens the process of ageing. For long term storage of eggs, left unwashed, they were placed in a bucket or keg, and buried in salt without touching each other. (Just like Salt Pork) This allowed eggs to last up to a year without refrigeration! The definition of "lasting" was a little different back then, they considered it a success if less than 50% had spoiled! When cooking, eggs were never added directly to each other or other ingredients before smelling! (Sometimes you didn't have to get very close to smell a rotten egg!)

All modern egg farms wash their eggs (USDA requirement) and the wash water is a major form of agricultural pollution. The Ohio EPA has had a great time fining egg farms in the Croton, Ohio area. (It was the largest egg farm in the world before the courts forced them to disband into smaller opperations.

Ivan

 

[Wee Hooker]

We keep chickens and never sort the eggs by date. Once they go in the fridge (which we usually do within a couple of days if not eaten), they just get mixed together. I'm sure some are weeks old at any point. We have rarely ever gotten a bad one, and when we do, it's obvious immediately.

Couple of hints for those who like hard boiled eggs.

-Older eggs peel much easier. Farm fresh, not so much and should be put aside for a bit before boiling.

-The ULTIMATE way to perfectly cook a hard boiled egg is to do it in a pressure cooker for 5 min (then let cool/vent before opening). The beauty here is the the eggs (any eggs) peal perfectly and with no effort. The shell just falls of without marring the surface of the egg. i.e PERFECT and FAST . We discovered this last trick a year or so ago when we bought a small "Instant Pot" cooker. MY wife cooks eggs in it twice a week now and calls it a Magic show!

 

[Kurusu]

I've read that if one drops an egg in a pan of water and it sinks, it's fresh enough to eat. If it floats, it's rotten. I may have that backward.

Does anyone know the correct version and if it's true?

I have a dozen eggs in the frig., but the date on the carton isn't legible. I've had them maybe three weeks, and the lady who does the shopping for home delivery orders neglected to check for clear expiration dates.

While we're on this, is it true that most eggs last 2-3 weeks beyond the date on the carton, if kept refrigerated? I've cooked some that were about 2 weeks "late" and they were okay.

Finally, I wrote in a short story on FanFiction.net that a British scientist in the 1920's had asked for eggs fried "over easy." A contentious British reader who may be a troll said in a review that Britons did/do not eat eggs that way, always having them served as what Americans call, "sunny side up."

This seems odd to me, and I think he/she was just being mean and petty..

Do any of our former Brits or others who've eaten eggs in the UK want to comment?

Ian Fleming certainly liked scrambled eggs and had James Bond order them even at supper meals. Fleming said that he could eat scrambled eggs at any meal, and even published his recipe for scrambled.

I don't recall which wine Bond ordered with scrambled eggs for dinner, but a good Riesling or Sauvignon blanc would work well.

My critic is off base, anyway, as the girl cooking that scientist's eggs was Anglo-Brazilian and they were on a remote Brazilian plateau, where the man had probably encountered over easy eggs, anyway, as the girl was intimate with an American reporter who'd probably asked for eggs that way. Some people just want to complain.

A friend in the UK this week said she'd check there, but additional info is appreciated. Those stories are read in over 60 nations, but only this one troll (?) has made such an observation.

Bond (Fleming) had a "thing" for bubbly. If I remember right, he asked for Champagne with his eggs.

I also think "bubbly" goes well with a number of dishes. I'm not one of those who drinks Champagne all by itself (God invented Bourbon for that), I always drink it as a "table" wine.

 

[Salty RI]

My father had chickens when I was a kid, he used to soak the eggs in a mixture of water glass.

Sent from my LGL52VL using Tapatalk

 

[Alpo]

In Brannigan, Duke asked for eggs over easy. The waiter looked to the British cop he was with for a translation. The cop told the waiter that meant fried lightly on both sides.


Now, I don't know if the Brits only eat their fried eggs "up", but if Brannigan can be believed, they don't use the term "over easy".


As an aside, and having nothing to do with your question in Lilys of the Field, the German nuns cooked them over easy.

 

[292]

We have 25 or 30 hens and sell eggs to help buy feed. The customers get the freshest eggs, we eat the oldest. The test we use is to break them into a bowl and if the yolk is nice and round it's good. A yolk that's flattened and saggy indicates a bad egg. Your mileage may vary.

 

[rubiranch]

 

[THE PILGRIM]

Do what 292 say.
Just crack it into a bowl and looks at it!

 

[Kurusu]

Notorious "bad egg"

 

[Texas Star]

Notorious "bad egg"

Yeah, he seems a little looney at times. I've seen the actor in TV interviews where he seemed doped.

And he and his then-wife, Amber Heard, got in a mess with Aussie authorities for trying to smuggle their little dogs in despite a ban on pets, unless maybe they pass a quarantine period.

Hey, Mario: Did you know that the Japanese ambassador who signed the Axis pact with Italy and Germany and was later an ambassador to Washington, D.C. at the time of the Pearl Harbor attack was named Kurusu? I saw, Tora, Tora, Tora again last week and noticed that.

 

[Kurusu]

Yeah, he seems a little looney at times. I've seen the actor in TV interviews where he seemed doped.

And he and his then-wife, Amber Heard, got in a mess with Aussie authorities for trying to smuggle their little dogs in despite a ban on pets, unless maybe they pass a quarantine period.

Hey, Mario: Did you know that the Japanese ambassador who signed the Axis pact with Italy and Germany and was later an ambassador to Washington, D.C. at the time of the Pearl Harbor attack was named Kurusu? I saw, Tora, Tora, Tora again last week and noticed that.

I was talking about "Jack Sparrow". Couldn't care less about the actor's private life, or opinions for that matter.

Yes. I knew that. In fact my forum name is sort of a private joke, I'm using the Japanese form of my family name(picked that up when I was studying Japanese, without much success I'm afraid). That name, in Japan, is of Portuguese/Christian origin. We "exported" Christianism (among other things) to Japan, those being baptized received Christian Names. And Cruz = Kurusu is as Christian as it gets.

 

[kwselke]

Toss the Bad Egg. I love it. A chart for selecting the best ammo for egging. Have to save this for next Halloween.

 

[gunnails]

I can eat 50 eggs!

 

[Kurusu]

I can eat 50 eggs!

In one sitting!? That's scary.

 

[gunnails]

In one sitting!? That's scary.

=====================

Actually did eat 50 eggs (scrambled) on a dare in my late 20's.

I love eggs.