Water Glassing: Egg Preservation Experiment!

[Sally PB]

I'm curious why people sometimes end up with cracked eggs when waterglassing. Do the eggs crack when placed in the jar? Or are these microscopic cracks, enough to let water in but not big enough to see with a naked eye?

I had an egg crack and break. I think it was a weak shell. My Bielefelders' eggshells tend to be weaker.

I think they overload their containers,, using large ones.
Smaller containers will have less eggs to top heavy.

That could have been what happened in my case. If I do another container, I'll do half gallon containers. I will keep this in mind for next year; the hens are definitely slowing down and getting ready to molt.

 

[fat brown hen]

I've never figured this out. I've been water glassing for 6+ years and can count on ~10% loss rate. The cracks on the bad eggs are visible, but may be easy to miss when you are cracking them open for cooking.

Dang, 10% is a lot. When the eggs crack, do they rot on the inside? Or does the calcium hydroxide prevent bacterial growth? Could I theoretically use the cracked eggs to make a Mexican omelette smothered in jalapenos to hide the taste of calcium?

 

[cavemanrich]

Could I theoretically use the cracked eggs to make a Mexican omelette smothered in jalapenos to hide the taste of calcium?

I suggest experiment, with just one cracked egg at a time. Then judge the results.
Just another thought, to safely crack eggs. Crack each , and place into a small dish. If looks good, add to your cooking bowl. Then do same with next egg. This way you don't contaminate your whole quantity with a bad egg dropping in.

 

[TooCheep]

Dang, 10% is a lot. When the eggs crack, do they rot on the inside? Or does the calcium hydroxide prevent bacterial growth? Could I theoretically use the cracked eggs to make a Mexican omelette smothered in jalapenos to hide the taste of calcium?

Every form of egg preservation is a trade-off. There is no perfect solution. Freeze drying is very expensive up front. Freezing requires freezer space and costs energy, etc. Water glassing is cheap, low tech (worked before electricity) and effective but has that ~10% loss rate.

Regardless of the method used, I highly value preserving eggs because I want my high quality eggs rather than buy factory farmed eggs in the winter.

The lime creates a high pH and kills bacteria, so I'm not worried about that. The problem is that it makes the egg taste "off". I don't know about the Mexican omelette. The lime is edible in smallish quantities since it is used for pickles. I'd recommend trying it when you run into a cracked egg and report back here to let us know how it works- good or bad.

 

[Iluveggers]

Regardless of the method used, I highly value preserving eggs because I want my high quality eggs rather than buy factory farmed eggs in the winter.

Next year may be the first year we have to try. We’ve been slowly adding a new group of chicks each year who start laying in fall/winter when our older hens take their break. We are at max capacity of 30 chickens now, so we won’t be adding any new chicks for next years winter. I may try a few jars, we should get a few eggs a week from the younger girls hitting their second winter, but with a teenage boy in the house a few eggs a week won’t cut it! Luckily he lies scrambled eggs and not fried, and I can use them in pancakes and breads.

 

[TooCheep]

Next year may be the first year we have to try.

I recommend a small batch this year. Even a dozen or so. Everyone is unsure the first time they do it- both with the setup and eating months-old eggs. That will get you over those first-time jitters and possible mistakes so you can scale up next year. Mrs. Wages pickling lime (generally near the mason jars in the store) is a good, small package to work with.

Then in the spring when they do maximum laying, you'll be able to capture the excess and save them for the winter.

We’ve been slowly adding a new group of chicks each year who start laying in fall/winter when our older hens take their break.

Good strategy.

 

[Iluveggers]

I recommend a small batch this year. Even a dozen or so. Everyone is unsure the first time they do it- both with the setup and eating months-old eggs. That will get you over those first-time jitters and possible mistakes so you can scale up next year. Mrs. Wages pickling lime (generally near the mason jars in the store) is a good, small package to work with.

Then in the spring when they do maximum laying, you'll be able to capture the excess and save them for the winter.

Thanks. That sounds like a good plan! I am a bit nervous about it.

 

[Sally PB]

Dang, 10% is a lot. When the eggs crack, do they rot on the inside? Or does the calcium hydroxide prevent bacterial growth? Could I theoretically use the cracked eggs to make a Mexican omelette smothered in jalapenos to hide the taste of calcium?

I have read that if one of the eggs goes bad, the safe thing to do is dump the whole container, so that is what I did. How I found out that one had broken was the smell. It smelled like rotting meat. No way was I going to use any of those eggs.

I buried the mess out in the field. Flies were ALL OVER the eggs before I could get them covered with dirt.

 

[TooCheep]

I have read that if one of the eggs goes bad, the safe thing to do is dump the whole container, so that is what I did. How I found out that one had broken was the smell. It smelled like rotting meat. No way was I going to use any of those eggs.

I buried the mess out in the field. Flies were ALL OVER the eggs before I could get them covered with dirt.

If an egg smells rotten, it is rotten. Humans have a highly refined tool to detect bad food: our noses. You were smelling bacterial growth.

Not sure what went wrong in your case, but with the most common problem: cracked egg with lime water infiltration, there is no problem using the other eggs.

 

[fat brown hen]

The lime creates a high pH and kills bacteria, so I'm not worried about that. The problem is that it makes the egg taste "off". I don't know about the Mexican omelette. The lime is edible in smallish quantities since it is used for pickles. I'd recommend trying it when you run into a cracked egg and report back here to let us know how it works- good or bad.

Okay, I did two experiments. First, I took a swig of calcium hydroxide water. A little bitter, but not something that can't be masked in a chocolate cake. Mouth felt soapy afterwards.

Second, I put a mildly cracked egg in calcium hydroxide. I'll let it sit for a few days and then cook it into something and report back here. Man, the things I do for science.