Frozen Eggs: are they safe to eat?

[ChocolateMouse]

Cracked frozen eggs that are fairly clean across the cracks can be used in baking cakes, quickbreads like zucchini and banana breads, or other baking scenarios of at least 20 minutes, within 24 hours of collection. As long as it's being heated to a high enough temperature they are safe.
If they are just frozen and not cracked the texture will be different but should be safe. I wouldn't use them for whipped dishes or anything with a loose yolk... It'll probably be safe but strange tasting.

 

[rottlady]

I’m in nh and it’s been damn cold
Two weeks it did not even get above 10f and was -15 to -20 at night

I eat all frozen eggs and even splits as long as inner membrane is intact and egg clean

Frozen eggs sit on counter til thawed then they go in fridge
Split eggs close up as they thaw

If I ever had a split inner membrane I’d toss in the woods but so far I’ve only ever had one of those

 

[Beer can]

Lol I eat them all! Clean eggs, they freeze and crack...still clean..
Frozen eggs are a little odd, stiff when cooking. Taste the same. I'll cook up every one. Only time the dogs and chickens get the eggs is when there is a surplus (most the yr...) but never during winter, they're ours!!!

 

[sunflour]

If an egg is not cracked & you want to know if it's frozen... just spin it. An normal raw egg sloshes around inside. (The spin has a slow wobble to it because of the liquid contents.) If it's frozen solid, then that egg will spin fast & smooth.

LOL
Maybe this will help:

Thanks for the posts - never thought I'd have frozen egg concerns in central GA - but recently had extreme cold and likely the eggs those days were frozen. Marked them and placed in fridge, was wondering how to know if they froze or not. Wish I had known to try the spin.

 

[Deano603]

During the snap when it was -20s and didn't get above 0 here in NH, I personally thawed out our visibly cracked eggs and cooked them with some left over veggies, let them cool and gave them back to the chickens. I couldn't let them out when it was that cold, so it gave them something to snack on. Any others in question I placed in the fridge and cooked up and ate myself without my issue.

 

[ScottKelly1974]

I don't waste them. I will collect them every day, sometimes even after the hen leave the nest. But if they do get frozen, they still go into the fridge. Even if the egg is cracked, cooking it well done eliminates the risk, and I will use a cracked eggs first. It is only if the egg is still runny from the frying pan do people take risks.

 

[rottlady]

My birds are also state tested annually but honestly I can’t even picture tossing a frozen cracked clean egg if inner lining is intact

 

[PirateGirl]

In the end, after lots of input a month or so ago, my personal decision is as follows.

If frozen and the egg appears in tact, I will cook and eat it within 24 hours. (It might have cracks I can't see or may have been compromised).

If the egg is frozen and split open, I will boil it until cooked through then crush it shell and all to feed it back to the chickens. I figure if it's cold enough to do that to the eggs, it's cold enough that the chickens would appreciate the warm snack/protein boost.

Honestly I'm not sure how much bacteria is growing in the eggs if it's so cold that they freeze, however once warmed up in the house the bacteria certainly has an easy path into a cracked egg.

 

[MilburnCreek]

I won't eat them if the shell's cracked. Not worth the risk. I thaw them and give them back to the birds.

That's a risky practice. You dont want to give your ladies a taste for eggs, or they may start breaking into them before you collect them

 

[Faraday40]

That's a risky practice. You dont want to give your ladies a taste for eggs, or they may start breaking into them before you collect them

As long as you change the form, so they cannot identify it's an egg, you're OK. Don't give them a raw smashed egg. You can feed scrambled, hard-boiled, and also grind up the shells for calcium. We collect the cracked shells in a container in the kitchen. When it's full, we crunch up the dried shells as a calcium supplement for the hens. They prefer it over oyster shell.

Scrambled eggs with shells & layer feed. YUM!