Having a hard time eating the eggs...

[CK Chickadilly]

When I get really dirty ones, which isn't to often, usually when it is sloppy out, I will leave the eggs in the egg collecting basket & use the dirty ones first.

I do wash them when I use them. As far as the clean eggs go, they go into the clean egg basket on the counter. When I do use them, I rinse them & gently pat them dry with a paper towel & then cook/bake with them.

I also use the eggs found on the floor, which they don't lay on the floor to often.

 

[glowworm]

Cooking to 165 F will kill bacteria.

If you are concerned, I would do the following:
- Cook eggs completely: no runny yolks or whites
- don't eat raw cookie dough, batter, etc. that has raw eggs
- crack the egg on something besides the bowl you are mixing in. The bacteria is on the outside of the shell, not the inside.
- Wash your hands after handling the shells.

I personally break these rules all the time, but I know this is what you are supposed to do. The people that actually need to worry about this stuff are immune comprised: infants, eldery, & sick in a way that wipes out the immune system (ie HIV).

I would say that if you raised your chickens from chicks, your eggs are more likely to be pathogen free than eggs from large commerical operations.

 

[silkiechicken]

If you are worried, like the rest, just cook them all the way though. I'm sure a pile of poo in your coop that is washed off the shell is much less likly to cause bacteria to enter the shell than the processing done commercially.

If the shell isn't broken, the insides should be sterile! Most contamination is from the outer shell after cracking it on a pan.

 

[onebuggirl]

Quote:
DOes your mom know what happens to most of her food before she eats it? I would trust my eggs over store bought...I would trust food I have raised way before eating anything made in China now a days...read your labels you will see that a lot of our food comes from China too!!

 

[chickenpiedpiper]

And a little bit more on the shock dept... if you hadnt thought about it, the egg and the poop you are worried about come out of the same place on the chicken! Commercial eggs come from the same place! They simply have been graded, and washed. I wash all my eggs before they go in the fridge, cause I dont want to eat it either! lol.

If you ever want to see something interesting, break open a store bought egg, and then one of your fresh ones. compare the yolkes as they sit in a plate. Your fresh yolk will stand twice as high, and be bright orange! Store one? flat and yellow. ewww

give em a warm soapy anti bacterial bath, cant hurt!

Good luck!

 

[chickenannie]

I agree with most of the above posts. It's hard being a germ-aphobe, and it's mostly a psychological thing that needs to be gotten over. Just try one, and then may yummy stuff with it, and you'll get over it soon enough.

Honestly, we've been duped into thinking that if we kill all the germs in the world we'll be "healthy." But for example, our gut (intestines) actually need to have a large, diverse bacteria inside or we can't digest our food properly. And anyone who gardens, or farms, comes into contact constantly with dirt, germs, bacteria, and those kids are some of the healthiest around. Farm kids don't even get allergies as much, studies have shown.

 

[glowworm]

Quote:
True. Studies have also found that first born children are sicker later in life than subsequence children. That is because parents are more careful with their first baby. If the pacifier falls on the ground, they wash it. A couple children down the line, they are busy and don't care anymore. That pacifer falls on the ground, and it gets popped right back into that baby's mouth. We need exposure to germs in order for our bodies to build immunity.

 

[digitS']

Here's what Coop Ex advices for safe handling.

This one at Virginia Tech says, "Wash eggs with water 10 degrees warmer than the egg." Others say 20 degrees warmer. I just make sure that it is warmer.

And then, use your hen eggs in your favorite recipes. Don't think, "Well, I don't like hard-boiled eggs but maybe I'll like these." That's not fair . . . Use the eggs for what you like best and see if they aren't the BEST!

Oh, and it is sometimes hard to use them really fresh since you've got an egg factory in your backyard. But, be sure to use the 1st ones soon. If you are like most people, you have probably never eaten a really fresh egg. Treat yourself!

Steve

 

[FunnyFarmer]

digitS' :

Oh, and it is sometimes hard to use them really fresh since you've got an egg factory in your backyard. But, be sure to use the 1st ones soon. If you are like most people, you have probably never eaten a really fresh egg. Treat yourself!

I've really enjoyed selling eggs (or sometimes giving them) to people who've never had fresh, free-range eggs before. They really gush over them. Love it.

My hubby thinks poopy eggs are pretty gross too, but he'll eat them after they've been washed. I don't boil any that might be stained.

Erika​

 

[patpark]

I put the clean ones in the fridge but wash off the poopy ones. There's something about having chicken poop in my fridge.

We have 9 hens and only two or three are laying now so we eat the eggs about as fast as I gather them.