How do I Safely and Properly clean my Eggs?

[booker81]

There is a nifty study done long ago about the incredible, edible egg, and the fact that 1) Not washing an egg promotes longer storage times and better eggs - store eggs are washed and a fake "bloom" is then placed on to achieve the same goal, and 2) You do not need to refrigerate eggs for long storage....like months.

Here you go!
http://www.motherearthnews.com/Sustainable-Farming/1977-11-01/Fresh-Eggs.aspx

Wiping visible poo off an egg is reasonable, but if you can get your girls to roost better so they don't poo all the time in the boxes, that will help! My only currently laying hen, a Polish, won't use a box, she insists on using a corner of the coop and laying in the sawdust/stuff, so I occasionally get some poo on there. I don't worry about it.

If you want, wash your egg before use, and better, crack it on a flat surface so you don't "push" any bacteria in there. As long as you are cooking the "ingredients" soon, the risk of food-borne disease is negligible. You can also crack into a separate bowl, and use a clean spoon to get any shell out.

Vigorously cleaning eggs post hen can cause them to go bad sooner and allow the opposite of what you want - it will remove the bloom and let bacteria get into the porous shell and into the egg.

Finally, an almost failproof way of testing if an egg is "bad" is to fill a glass of water, and place the egg in it. If it sinks it's good, if it floats, it's bad.

 

[Beekissed]

I don't wash mine either....wipe gently with warm moist cloth if there are smudges. If this won't remove the smudge, that egg is a doggy diet supplement at my house.

For the record, an open forum does not mean you will not receive posts on your thread that are judgemental or not what you want to hear. This is a great forum but it has several thousand members who all have their own perspectives to share and it is hard to emote on a forum.

And sometimes you get someone who just likes to rattle cages...it happens. Just don't let it get to you!

I had the same question in my head when you mentioned bleach but I don't think that poster was trying to insult or judge you....inquiring minds just wanna know!

 

[greyhorsewoman]

To our family, eggs are an important food source and we try to use each and every one possible. All 'clean' eggs get put directly into cartons (natural bloom preserved) and stored on the kitchen counter... I sell quite a few of these (always the first ones I sell). Anything that has dirt on it gets washed gently in warm water with a sponge and let to dry briefly before being put in cartons and into the frig (since bloom has been removed) ... they are used by the family for cooking, baking and eating.

I've being doing this for YEARS and the only time we get 'bad' eggs is when we have too big an overload and simply had too many eggs. We've adjusted the size of our flock to better accommodate our needs and that has been resolved. Eggs are one of the easiest foods to 'house' ... and as another poster said, you are most likely planning on cooking them before eating anyway. Fact is, there isn't just one right way to handle your eggs. Folks do what they are most comfortable with.

 

[BarefootMom]

I don't wash my eggs because I was told by my 83 year old grandmother (that has always had chickens) not to wash them. She said that they will spoil quicker if you wash them. We are getting about a dozen eggs a day right now, and I have been trying to sell them as quick as I can. I tell my customers that I don't wash them and all of them have responded with, "That's good! I don't want them spoiling." So I assume that there is some truth in the 'wash and they will spoil' saying. I do wipe them down with a dry floursack teatowel though if they have anything on them- but usually I get them gathered rather quickly. I gather eggs 3-4 time daily.

 

[Sir Birdaholic]

Quote:

 

[JROOSTER]

 

[MuranoFarms]

I don't wash them till they're ready to leave my house. If they are eating eggs, I dip them in an oxine & water solution then wipe off any dirty spots and dab the egg dry. If they are for hatching, I may scratch off some poop with a dry paper towel or fingernail, but i don't wash them.

 

[Michigan2]

Quote:
If my canned goods came out of the rear end of a chicken then I would. If 1 out of every 5 cans of soup had a piece of chicken poop smeared on it I would. If my can of peas were laying in my coop for a few hours... We'll you get the point...

Goosechick - Warm water and a little organic dish soap is what I use on all my eggs. Dry them and get them right in the fridge. It washes the bloom off but my eggs are all eaten within a couple weeks. Probably not necessary but I feel like it decreases my chances of bringing salmonella into my kitchen/fridge/egg containers(that I reuse over and over)/hands when cooking/etc.

 

[chickbird]

Quote:
you do need to wash eggs, you would not want to boil an egg that had not been washed (you would be boiling in contaminants into the egg) nor do you want to crack a dirty egg, you can not sell an egg that has not been washed, eggs pass thru the same tract as their urine and poop and also the bloom is body fluids , all of this can harbor bacteria like e-coli, salmonella and other, i also do the rinse with a mild bleach solution after washing the eggs. the shells if you are cracking an unwashed egg has the potential to come in contact with the shell. most dept. of ags recommend egg washing. washing and mild bleach rinse does not sterlize the egg and causes no problem with shelf life.

 

[Knock Kneed Hen]

'If my canned goods came out of the rear end of a chicken then I would.'

I think I'll be washing mine. We eat 'em up fast so they won't be sitting in my fridge longer than a week anyhow. If anyone who purchases from me doesn't want me to wash them then I won't.

There are all sorts on here. You'll learn to recognize the people whose opinions you respect and skim over the ones that have a habit of being offensive. The most important thing to remember is to have fun with your chickies!!