Eggs Is Eggs, But Is It Fresh?

Here's a little tip for you for today...

At the moment, I'm boiling a couple of eggs for lunch and a welcome break from my writing projects of the day (I have so much to do it's unreal!). I took two out of a new packet and put them into water. One floated and one did not. Many people would have not know which one to throw out, so I thought I'd write a post about it!

If an egg FLOATS then you should throw it out immediately because it is off and will likely give you food poisoning if you eat it. This is becuse the egg has began to produce gases that enable it to float. The gases are produced by bacteria within the egg itself and it is this bacteria that contaminates it and makes it unsafe to eat.

If an egg SINKS then it is completely fresh and wholly safe to eat.

However, some eggs do tend to sink for the most part but point upwards, meaning that the majority of the egg is submerged but a little of the top of the egg is visible above the water. These eggs are also safe to eat because it just means that a little air is within the shell. That is normal and is common of eggs that ar not produced organically or by free range methods. As long as the whole eggs does not float, it is safe.

The best way to check is by placing the egg in cool water because that will not counteract the effect of the gases. However, before you do so, you may check the bst before date on the packaging of the egg. I don't do that. I believe that a best before date for eggs is there to cover the manufacturer and is not really applicable to me purely and simply because it does not guarantee that the egg is off afterwards. As long as the eggs have been refrigerated and do not float then I will eat them. I think it's a waste to throw them out if they are still good.

Of course, that's personal choice. My husband won't touch them if they're out of date, but I will as long as it is within a reasonable timeframe. I wouldn't eat them after a year obviously, but I do believe that this is one of the areas to which common sense can be applied. You can save money and prevent food wastage at the same time.