Do you refrigerate your eggs or not?

[Happy Chooks]

I do not wash my eggs, it removes the bloom that protects the eggs. My most current 2 dozen sit on my counter - I bake and eggs at room temperature are better for baking. Older eggs, assuming they last that long, get refrigerated. Right now, I'm getting a dozen eggs a day, so by day 3, they are in the fridge.

 

[chicksurreal]

I had no idea!

Thanks for the information! We don't have fresh eggs yet, but it will be soon, my sweet little chickens are starting to show signs...

 

[YlwBrchHobbyFrm]

I wrote an article a little while back that gives all kinds of useful {and useless- but fun!} information about eggs, if interested:

http://yellowbirchhobbyfarm.blogspot.com/2013/12/eggs-everything-you-ever-wanted-to-know.html

As far as leaving your eggs out- you can certainly do this, but they age faster when left out at room temperature than they do in the fridge. It sounds like you use them pretty frequently so of course you're just fine . {As a side note, the ideal temperature for egg storage is 35-40 degrees at 70-80% humidity}. That aside, people have been leaving out their eggs for years and years- and most European markets sell their eggs on the shelf, not in the refrigerator section.

 

[YlwBrchHobbyFrm]

I do not wash my eggs, it removes the bloom that protects the eggs. My most current 2 dozen sit on my counter - I bake and eggs at room temperature are better for baking. Older eggs, assuming they last that long, get refrigerated. Right now, I'm getting a dozen eggs a day, so by day 3, they are in the fridge.

Yep, my mom taught me this years ago. I always leave out eggs and butter at room temperature before baking

 

[enola]

The bloom protects them from bacteria. If you wash them they must be refrigerated because you are taking the protective layer off. Some people prefer to wash then coat with mineral oil to replace the bloom. If you leave them unwashed (or only wash when using) on the counter they will store for up to a year (from the studies preformed, didn't test after a year) as long as you don't have extreme heat. They don't taste as fresh at a year but they are still edible.

Are you saying that eggs can sit on your counter for a year (365 days) and still be edible ?????

 

[CSWolffe]

When you think about it, evolution designed eggs to last for up to a month in nature, waiting for the hen to start brooding. Makes sense that they would last at least that long on the counter.
We don't refrigerate ours, just put them on display in a nice little basket on the counter for all to see. I'm rather proud of my layers, I have brown, dark brown, green, and blue. Those eggs rarely last longer than a few days, so it's not really an issue.
I also don't like the idea of introducing salmonella into my fridge.

 

[YlwBrchHobbyFrm]

When you think about it, evolution designed eggs to last for up to a month in nature, waiting for the hen to start brooding. Makes sense that they would last at least that long on the counter.
We don't refrigerate ours, just put them on display in a nice little basket on the counter for all to see. I'm rather proud of my layers, I have brown, dark brown, green, and blue. Those eggs rarely last longer than a few days, so it's not really an issue.
I also don't like the idea of introducing salmonella into my fridge.

I too love to show off the beauty of farm fresh eggs !

But if we're talking salmonella {and if your eggs are contaminated with salmonella}, salmonella flourishes at temps between 40 F and 140 F {room temperature range}, but cannot grow at temps below 40 F {your refrigerator}. So if salmonella is present in your eggs, refrigerating them would prevent the salmonella from growing whereas room temp would allow those numbers to multiply greatly.

Let's just hope your eggs don't have salmonella . Though this is a very real risk- my son contracted salmonella from a batch of hatchery baby chicks when he was 10 months old. What a nightmare!

 

[CSWolffe]

I was referring to salmonella on the outside of the eggs, vs inside. I don't want to introduce salmonella into my fridge from the outside of eggs, as it can spread even in low temp environments. If my eggs are contaminated INSIDE then I'm in trouble. Salmonella is, as I understand, naturally found on the outside of most eggs(consider that eggs and poop come out of the same orifice), but the BLOOM is a natural and efficient protector against bacteria. This is why I don't wash my eggs, and why I DO refrigerate store bought eggs(that have had the bloom washed off).