Water Glassing: Egg Preservation Experiment!

[BigBlueHen53]

I've used a few more of my wg eggs and I'm finding the yolks to be very fragile. Great for baking or scrambled eggs. I have so many eggs right now, I'm feeding them to the dogs, as they are now almost a year old and I want to use them up. I'm getting no complaints from the dogs!

 

[tripletfeb]

I've used a few more of my wg eggs and I'm finding the yolks to be very fragile. Great for baking or scrambled eggs. I have so many eggs right now, I'm feeding them to the dogs, as they are now almost a year old and I want to use them up. I'm getting no complaints from the dogs!

Thanks for the update again. I have water glassed over 40 eggs now, just last week. I had one egg that broke and leaked the yolk into the water, hope that didn't ruin the whole batch. I add a couple eggs a day, the clean ones

 

[RubyLady]

Thanks for the update again. I have water glassed over 40 eggs now, just last week. I had one egg that broke and leaked the yolk into the water, hope that didn't ruin the whole batch. I add a couple eggs a day, the clean ones

I have heard you shouldn't have any broken eggs in the jar or it does ruin everything else. That said, I've never had that situation myself so I don't know from first hand experience. Maybe other people here will know more about that.

 

[RubyLady]

I've used a few more of my wg eggs and I'm finding the yolks to be very fragile. Great for baking or scrambled eggs. I have so many eggs right now, I'm feeding them to the dogs, as they are now almost a year old and I want to use them up. I'm getting no complaints from the dogs!

Mine are almost a year old and their yolks are also runny. Most of them were anyway all year. Only a few were pretty fresh looking and plump. Because they are so old, I just use them in baking, but might switch to just scrambling them for the chickens to use up the last dozen we have. The last one I used in some cornbread had just a hint of a smell - eggy, but normally my eggs don't seem to have any smell. I guess I'll know when I crack open the next ones later today.

 

[TooCheep]

Thanks for the update again. I have water glassed over 40 eggs now, just last week. I had one egg that broke and leaked the yolk into the water, hope that didn't ruin the whole batch. I add a couple eggs a day, the clean ones

I'm now in my 4th year of water glassing. I've never had an egg break that badly, but my first two years, I did have eggs what cracked and leaked egg whites into the water. I didn't find out about that until I started using the eggs and saw a mess in that area of the bucket. Although the water and some of the surrounding shells were messy, it had no effect on the usability of the other eggs.

That said, it sounds like you had a worse leak than mine. I'm not worried about it in the short-term, but it might cause problems, particularly if the egg contents are exposed to air. My recommendation for this batch: carefully pull all the eggs and rinse any that appear to have egg splattered on them. Do not rub/wash them- only rinse to avoid removing the protective bloom. Then rinse your container and restart packing.

If you are uncomfortable using these eggs for some reason, then take a couple of the worst splattered eggs and cook them- inspect them visually, by smell and taste to assure yourself that they are good. I really don't expect any problems.

My early experience (and comments from YouTube) indicate that this method commonly has about a 10% failure rate. This is mostly due to eggs that crack and let in lime water (yuck!). This last year, I'd say that I'm down to about a 5% fail rate simply due to (a) being more careful when putting eggs into the container and (b) minimizing jostling of the container.

One additional trick: You don't have to create and add all of the lime water at once. I create 1/2gal of lime water and add to the bucket. Then I start adding eggs. As the eggs start coming close to the surface, then I make another 1/2gal of lime water and add it. Repeat until the bucket is full. The benefit of this method is that you don't have to reach down so far into murky water and are less likely to drop/break an egg when placing it into the bucket.

Good luck.

 

[tripletfeb]

I'm now in my 4th year of water glassing. I've never had an egg break that badly, but my first two years, I did have eggs what cracked and leaked egg whites into the water. I didn't find out about that until I started using the eggs and saw a mess in that area of the bucket. Although the water and some of the surrounding shells were messy, it had no effect on the usability of the other eggs.

That said, it sounds like you had a worse leak than mine. I'm not worried about it in the short-term, but it might cause problems, particularly if the egg contents are exposed to air. My recommendation for this batch: carefully pull all the eggs and rinse any that appear to have egg splattered on them. Do not rub/wash them- only rinse to avoid removing the protective bloom. Then rinse your container and restart packing.

If you are uncomfortable using these eggs for some reason, then take a couple of the worst splattered eggs and cook them- inspect them visually, by smell and taste to assure yourself that they are good. I really don't expect any problems.

My early experience (and comments from YouTube) indicate that this method commonly has about a 10% failure rate. This is mostly due to eggs that crack and let in lime water (yuck!). This last year, I'd say that I'm down to about a 5% fail rate simply due to (a) being more careful when putting eggs into the container and (b) minimizing jostling of the container.

One additional trick: You don't have to create and add all of the lime water at once. I create 1/2gal of lime water and add to the bucket. Then I start adding eggs. As the eggs start coming close to the surface, then I make another 1/2gal of lime water and add it. Repeat until the bucket is full. The benefit of this method is that you don't have to reach down so far into murky water and are less likely to drop/break an egg when placing it into the bucket.

Good luck.

Thanks. I removed the broken egg right away and there doesn't seem to be a mess on the other eggs. And when I put the eggs in the container, I use a slotted spoon. There is also a lid on the container, I used a very large glass jar I purchased at Walmart. I will have another look at my eggs and if they seem messy, will do as you suggested. Thanks again!

 

[TooCheep]

Personally, I prefer to use my bare hand or a rubber glove. Since this is a moderately delicate process, you can't beat using your sense of touch when placing eggs into the container to avoid those cracked eggs. Just part of going from 10% --> 5% loss rate.

As far as one bad egg spoiling the rest, I certainly haven't experienced it despite a couple of leaks and have a hard time believing it. The lime water is exceptionally basic and any bacteria that might cause problems are unlikely to survive. That's why I was more worried about any egg on the water surface.

Also- Glass is a very good choice, though I use a plastic bucket. No reaction to water and additional visibility from the sides.

 

[tripletfeb]

Personally, I prefer to use my bare hand or a rubber glove. Since this is a moderately delicate process, you can't beat using your sense of touch when placing eggs into the container to avoid those cracked eggs. Just part of going from 10% --> 5% loss rate.

As far as one bad egg spoiling the rest, I certainly haven't experienced it despite a couple of leaks and have a hard time believing it. The lime water is exceptionally basic and any bacteria that might cause problems are unlikely to survive. That's why I was more worried about any egg on the water surface.

Also- Glass is a very good choice, though I use a plastic bucket. No reaction to water and additional visibility from the sides.

I have very sensitive skin and can't touch the lime water, even with gloves on. Since my container is glass, I can see where I'm putting the eggs so that helps. And I'm glad to hear that leaks have not ruined your eggs, hoping for the same here

 

[BigBlueHen53]

you don't have to reach down so far into murky water and are less likely to drop/break an egg when placing it into the bucket.

I don't put my hand(s) in the lime water either. I use a tool called a "spider," something sort of along the lines of a slotted spoon, to put eggs in and take them out of the lime water.

 

[TooCheep]

I have very sensitive skin and can't touch the lime water, even with gloves on. Since my container is glass, I can see where I'm putting the eggs so that helps. And I'm glad to hear that leaks have not ruined your eggs, hoping for the same here

I don't put my hand(s) in the lime water either. I use a tool called a "spider," something sort of along the lines of a slotted spoon, to put eggs in and take them out of the lime water.

I certainly wouldn't criticize using such tools, particularly if you've experienced any sensitivity to the lime water. In my case, I use a nylon glove most of the time and sometimes go bare-handed and wash immediately afterwards without ill effect.

My reasoning is that the 10% loss rate bothered me and hand packing has reduced that problem.