How to Wash and Store Farm Fresh Chicken Eggs
There are about as many different ways to wash a dirty egg as there are breeds of backyard chickens. I know people who eat soiled, unwashed eggs right from the coop and are just as healthy as people who sanitize everything. So take the following with a grain of salt. I will explain how I wash our dirty eggs, but more importantly, I'm going to share with you why it's important to know about certain steps, then you can decide what is safe for your own family.
Understanding the Eggshell
An eggshell is porous. It's covered in microscopic holes that allow air to pass through the surface of the egg as the chick develops inside. When the hen lays the egg, as it passes through her body, it is coated in an antimicrobial layer called the bloom. This natural protective coating is a protective layer sealing the holes in the eggshell preventing harmful bacteria from entering the egg but allowing oxygen to pass freely.
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Refrigerate or Not
When an egg is washed, the bloom layer is removed. When this natural barrier is no longer protecting the egg pores, bacteria is allowed to enter the egg more easily. Because of this, washed eggs should be refrigerated, non-washed eggs can sit out on the counter at room temperature for about a month (depending on the temperature) Even with the bloom intact, eggs stored in the sun or in warm areas will spoil faster. The shelf life of an unwashed egg is about 2 weeks to a month (depending on how hot the room is where the eggs are stored) and around 3 months in the refrigerator. Do not refrigerate unwashed eggs. This can draw bacteria from any residual chicken droppings into the shell's pores.
Salmonella
Salmonella bacteria is the thing that everyone is worried about when it comes to egg safety. Chickens are natural carriers of the disease. It can be passed by chickens by eating undercooked eggs, or undercooked chicken, by touching things in your chicken coop and then touching your mouth or mucus membranes, or by preparing or handling food without washing your hands.
European Countries VS The United States
In European countries, commercial eggs are not refrigerated, yet in the United States, they are. So what gives? In the United States eggs are shampooed, thus cleaning the eggshell of any Salmonella, this also removes the protective bloom so the eggs must be refrigerated. In Europe, the chickens are vaccinated against Salmonella so there is no washing stage in European egg production.
Float Test
If you're not sure if an egg is fresh, you can do the float test. As a non-incubated egg ages, it slowly dehydrates through the pores, losing moisture and weight. Therefore, an older egg is lighter than a freshly laid egg.
To test an egg for freshness, wash the egg (see below) and fill a bowl with cold water. If the egg sinks to the bottom, it's fresh. When one end is touching the bottom, but the other end is starting to rise, the egg is still good to eat but should be consumed quickly. If the egg floats, it should be discarded.
Tips to keep your egg boxes clean (additional post)
Clean eggs start with clean nesting boxes. This is your first line of defense in the clean egg mission. I will have a future post going into more detail about this topic, but for now:
- Mount egg boxes below roosting poles
- Refresh nest box bedding daily
- Keep your run and coop dry
- Collect eggs frequently (at least daily)
- Discourage chickens from sleeping in nest boxes
Separate Egg Washing Sponge
I do not use the same sponge to wash eggs that I use to hand wash my dishes. Scrubbing chicken poo off of an egg and then washing our dinner plates with the same sponge is just not something I can wrap my head around.
We get these packs of sponges at the dollar store, and I have a separate bowl for holding the Egg Sponge. Usually, when the dish sponge starts to look a little raged, I'll grab a new sponge for the dishes and move the dish sponge to the Egg Bowl. (As a side note, these sponges wash well in the washing machine. I'll throw them in the rag load and use them to scrub toilets, animal bowls etc. before disposing.)
Very Warm Wash Water
It's important to use very warm water when washing eggs. Not only does it clean better than cold, cold water will cause a slight contracting motion in the pores of an egg. This has been said to draw bacteria inside the egg. Where warm water expands the egg, pushing bacteria away. Water temperature should be between 90-120 degrees, or 20 degrees warmer than a freshly laid egg.
Do Not Soak Eggs
Soaking soiled eggs allows bacteria to flow freely through the eggshells. Always rinse under running warm water.
How We Wash Eggs
I like to wash a dozen or two at a time at the beginning of the week so they're ready to use when I need them. Once washed, I store them in ceramic cartons in the fridge. These cartons (or trays) work great for us because they're dishwasher-safe and reusable.
Materials:
- sponge with a scrubby side (for egg washing only)
- grease-cutting soap like Dawn
- towel
- clean egg carton/ clean container
- paper towel
We collect our eggs in this wire egg basket. When the basket is full, I lay down a piece of paper towel next to our sink and place the basket on the paper towel. This prevents chicken debris from getting on my kitchen counters. I'll also place a drying towel on the other side of my sink to set the clean eggs. Once the water is running nice and warm, I get the egg washing sponge wet and sudsy with soap.
I must have five or six different kinds of these Chicken Shaped Wire Egg Baskets around the house and just love using them to collect eggs every day.
One at a time I take each egg out of the basket and rinse under the tap scraping the larger pieces of debris with my finger.
Just firmly scrub the egg with the scrubby sponge and dawn dish soap to get any debris off.
Rinse and repeat if necessary...
and set on the towel to dry.
Repeat with all the eggs.
I rinse out my sponge and put it back in the Egg-Washing holder. When the eggs are dry on the towel, I place them in the clean ceramic cartons and put them in the fridge.
Store eggs large side up
Storing eggs large side up (pointy end down) helps to minimize the pocket of the air sack inside the egg from coming in contact with the yolk. This helps the egg stay fresher for longer.
Do you have to wash eggs that appear clean from the coop?
Again, this is a personal preference. It's probably fine. We've done it and lived to tell the tale. So use your own judgment.
The best-tasting eggs are not refrigerated.
In my opinion, eggs that have not been refrigerated taste the best! I wash in batches for convenience, but I always make sure to save some of the day's freshly collected eggs to be washed and made into breakfast that day. You'll be amazed at the difference in flavor.
If you are a small farmer who would like to sell your eggs, please visit the FSDA Website to learn about federal regulations on food safety and backyard eggs.
