# Question on preserving eggs



## animalmom (Feb 16, 2019)

We are looking at non-electric ways to preserve eggs for when the ladies are not laying.

The method we are focusing on is using hydrated lime (1 ounce by weight of hydrated lime to 1 quart of water, place eggs pointed end down).

Anyone doing this?  No matter how much we stir when mixing the lime and water there is a lot of settling at the bottom.  Is this normal?  I have not found anything on the net that addresses a settling issue.


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## Rammy (Feb 16, 2019)

I saw on a show Doomsday Preppers this lady would use mineral oil to coat the eggs. She said it put the bloom back on them and you could keep them for months in a cool dry place. You might want to double check that but Im pretty sure thats what she did.


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## Finnie (Feb 16, 2019)

I don't know if you can find your answer in this Mother Earth News article, but it's about a test they did back in the 70s to see how well different preservation methods worked. We were talking about this recently on BYC. Some of the information might be pertinent. 

https://www.motherearthnews.com/real-food/how-to-store-fresh-eggs-zmaz77ndzgoe


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## animalmom (Feb 17, 2019)

Thanks @Finnie, you are right that the article didn't answer my settlement question, but the month-by-month data was interesting.

Well, we took a big leap of faith and started preserving the eggs, settlement or no settlement and I'll update when we start using the eggs.

We are using 1 ounce by weight of hydrated lime to 1 quart of water as the mixture and using a huge crock to store the eggs/mixture.  We put it in our root cellar as that seems to keep the interior temperature between 50 and 60 F.  We'll see how it does during our Texas summer.


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## animalmom (Feb 17, 2019)

Thanks @Finnie, you are right that the article didn't answer my settlement question, but the month-by-month data was interesting.

Well, we took a big leap of faith and started preserving the eggs, settlement or no settlement and I'll update when we start using the eggs.

We are using 1 ounce by weight of hydrated lime to 1 quart of water as the mixture and using a huge crock to store the eggs/mixture.  We put it in our root cellar as that seems to keep the interior temperature between 50 and 60 F.  We'll see how it does during our Texas summer.


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## Baymule (Feb 17, 2019)

Interesting on the egg storage. I want to know how it does for you!


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## Sheepshape (Feb 17, 2019)

Interesting. My old mother used to tell me about preserving eggs in solution during WW2......apparently they kept for up to a couple of years.

These old methods worked.....they were relied on utterly during times of shortage. I'm sure yours will, too, animalmom.

Newly laid eggs are OK to use for a few months even out of the 'fridge (Over here eggs are sold unrefrigerated, but we all store them in fridges......think about that ....British logic). If I find  clutch of eggs laid somewhere about the place I just put them into water and reject the 'floaters'. The 'suspenders'.....ones which are under the surface the water lengthwise, but don't sit on the bottom get fed to the dog. We eat the 'sinkers' (though I do crack each separately and give them the 'nose' test).

Let us know how they taste.


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## misfitmorgan (Feb 18, 2019)

We have repeatedly and many times kept eggs without washing them on our counter top in our kitchen for up to 3 months and then kept them in the fridge unwashed for another 4 months. Never had a problem. Make sure the eggs are not cracked and have no weak shells. The bloom protects them from going bad.

I have found bad eggs they are easy to tell. The yolk will look marbled, aside from that you're good. We also crack each egg in its own bowl, in case there is a bad egg or a surprise(we had roosters). I will say the eggs will get lighter the longer they sit in open air as they loose moisture, but that certainly doesnt make them bad. Our oldest eggs i normally use for baking or scrambled eggs.

I have seen many use oil to preserve eggs. Our half acre homestead on youtube did a video on preserving eggs in lime(which i now can't find), you might check those if you havnt seen them. She also did oiled eggs(those last up to 6-9 months without being refrigerated, after being washed) and she did dehydrated raw eggs.

She preserves all kinds of stuff even dehydrating/canning cheese, making your own lunch meat, making sweetened condensed milk, etc.











One Important note..... If eggs are refrigerated they must stay refrigerated. I don't know why but I do know if i take our eggs out of the fridge and leave them on the counter top they go bad in about a month. These are our own eggs from our chickens. My only thought is they absorb moisture in the fridge and possibly bacteria and that shortens their life span, i have no proof of this though.

There is also waterglassing which uses sodium silicate, i know many people refer to waterglassing as using lime but it's actually not.

You can also use pickling lime or slacked instead of hydrated lime for the solution(really its the same thing by different names). Be careful using the lime water method, i have seen several people on youtube try it out and end up with bad eggs, cracked eggs, or scrambled in shell looking eggs. I also noticed most everyone had seperation where the lime lays on the bottom of the water, i dont think that really makes a difference.


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## Finnie (Feb 18, 2019)

misfitmorgan said:


> I don't know why but I do know if i take our eggs out of the fridge



I've read that this has to do with the pores in the shell and membrane, and when there is a temperature difference, it induces the bacteria to move from outside the membrane to inside the membrane as the egg warms up. Condensation was also mentioned as part of it. I think the assumption is that there will always be some amount of bacteria present on the outside of the shell, and you don't want to make it move inwards. But gosh, I can't remember where I read that, whether it was just a discussion on BYC, or if it was an article on line.


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## misfitmorgan (Feb 18, 2019)

Finnie said:


> I've read that this has to do with the pores in the shell and membrane, and when there is a temperature difference, it induces the bacteria to move from outside the membrane to inside the membrane as the egg warms up. Condensation was also mentioned as part of it. I think the assumption is that there will always be some amount of bacteria present on the outside of the shell, and you don't want to make it move inwards. But gosh, I can't remember where I read that, whether it was just a discussion on BYC, or if it was an article on line.



Now that your mentioning I remember reading something about that for when washing eggs. Using warm water vs cold water. I know it is something to do with going from cold to warm....though warm to cold seems fine lol.


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## OneFineAcre (Feb 18, 2019)

Boiled and pickled.


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## animalmom (Feb 18, 2019)

Well, that there is always an option OFA, but does make for lumpy scrambled eggs in the morning.


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## Mike CHS (Feb 18, 2019)

We have quite a few pint containers of eggs in the freezer with eggs ready to thaw out for scrambled eggs.  We make enough for a couple of breakfasts and the dogs get the leftovers.


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## misfitmorgan (Feb 18, 2019)

animalmom said:


> Well, that there is always an option OFA, but does make for lumpy scrambled eggs in the morning.



Just force them thru a sieve then add milk and scramble 

The whole freezing eggs things, you can make fried eggs too. I keep seeing people scrambling eggs then freezing them, you dont have too.


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## Sheepshape (Feb 18, 2019)

misfitmorgan said:


> Now that your mentioning I remember reading something about that for when washing eggs. Using warm water vs cold water. I know it is something to do with going from cold to warm....though warm to cold seems fine lol.


 Generally, if you don't have to wash them.....don't. Washing will remove the natural protective coat. Sometimes they are, well, gross and covered in poo.....wipe off with a damp cloth then, but use as little water as you can. Use these eggs first.


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## misfitmorgan (Feb 19, 2019)

Sheepshape said:


> Generally, if you don't have to wash them.....don't. Washing will remove the natural protective coat. Sometimes they are, well, gross and covered in poo.....wipe off with a damp cloth then, but use as little water as you can. Use these eggs first.



Those are the only ones i "wash" and generally are the duck eggs. The chickens eggs usually stay pretty darn clean.


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