Frozen Eggs

[mzrea]

How can I tell if my eggs are frozen? I check for eggs three times a day, my coop is insulated but it still gets cold. Can you tell an egg is frozen just by looking at it? Can you eat a previously frozen egg?

 

[PeeperKeeper]

We've had eggs freeze. Sometimes therewill be a fine crack in the shell. We just put them in the refridgerator and eat them first. I guess they thaw slowly in the fridge and we can't tell any difference.

 

[bearz]

Every egg I've had freeze has cracked open from the expansion. I don't eat them, as they can have bacteria in them.

 

[namreknat]

I agree with bearz. I wouldn't eat a cracked egg. I scramble them up and feed them to the chickens.

 

[Akane]

I don't think bacteria would effect a finely cracked egg while frozen. I would not put the cracked eggs in the fridge. I would eat them right away (thaw on the counter real quick and eat by the next morning) or feed them to the pets. Eggs that freeze and aren't cracked will be fine for most purposes but may not work the same for baking. They still make fine scrambled eggs in the morning though.

 

[77horses]

This has happened to us once so far; 3 out of 6 eggs had a small yet long crack down the side of the shell. They were frozen solid! So, we left them on the counter to thaw, and the crack slowly closed up and it was hard to notice it after. We just eat them and have had no problems.

 

[dancingbear]

I go ahead and wash them while frozen, let them dry and thaw, and see if they ooze. If they don't, then the membrane's still intact. I break them open from the side opposite the crack, and eat them. If they ooze, I feed them to the dogs.

If they froze all the way through, the yolks will gel, and won't scramble or run. But they're still ok hard cooked, or to feed to the dogs.