Every hostess at least once in her life found herself in a situation where one spoiled egg spoiled the whole dinner. This unpleasant phenomenon is due to the fact that it is difficult to determine at a glance fresh product or not. It will be useful to learn how to determine the freshness of eggs quickly and accurately.

The most famous method is associated with determining the way eggs are spoiled in water.

For this you will need:

The most popular way to test an egg is to dip it in water.

  • bowl or glass, at least 10 cm high;
  • water;
  • table salt;
  • eggs.

To determine the freshness of an egg in a glass, it must first be filled with water. Then drop the egg.

You can see several options:

  • The egg is at the bottom. This is a completely fresh, dietary product. It is good for children to use.
  • The egg stood at the bottom with a blunt edge up. This egg is over 7 days old. You can still eat it, but it is already called a canteen. These foods are great for baking and salads.
  • The egg breaks off the bottom and floats in the water column. Such an egg is more than 7 days old - most likely 2-3 weeks. It is not spoiled yet, it can be consumed boiled.
  • The egg floats on the surface - it is absolutely impossible to eat, it has gone bad.

If in doubt, you can repeat the experiment in water with salt. Such a solution will be more “heavy” relative to the egg and will tell you as reliably as possible whether the product can be eaten. The determination criteria are the same as for plain water.

Important! Do not use too small dishes - water must cover the egg completely.


On the left in the photo is a rotten egg, on the right is the freshest, in the middle is a 2-3 week old.

Method two - shaking

Inside each egg there is a yolk, protein, membranes and air. If the product has deteriorated, then the contents become dense, and the amount of air increases. These processes make it possible to test the freshness of an egg by shaking it.

To do this, the egg is firmly taken in hand. Now you should bring it close to your ear and shake it. If you hear a frank gurgling - the egg is not fresh. Dense structures mix with air and create characteristic splashes.

This is one of the unreliable methods, but it can be used, for example, in a store when buying eggs. You should carefully look at the shell.

Suspicion must be raised:

  • cracks, even the smallest;
  • pronounced irregularities;
  • high gloss surface.

At good egg the shell is clean, matte, strong and without cracks.

The appearance of a fresh egg is pleasantly rough, matte. Over time, the shell becomes smooth, an unhealthy shine appears. It is better not to purchase such a product - there is a high probability of stale eggs.

At home, an already purchased egg can be examined for freshness by carefully examining the contents. A suspicious product is broken onto a flat, clean plate.

Now let's take a closer look:

  • The yolk of a fresh egg is almost round, convex. It is uniformly yellow or orange in color. In a spoiled product, the yolk is flat, may be of a non-uniform color, interspersed.
  • The white of a fresh egg is almost transparent, dense, gathered around the yolk. If the protein is liquid, almost watery, this is not the freshest product.

Special attention is paid to the smell of eggs. A spoiled product smells characteristically of hydrogen sulfide - a pungent, unpleasant odor. If there are doubts about freshness, it is better to simply not eat a suspicious egg.


In a fresh egg, the yolk is bright and uniform, the protein is dense and transparent.

Understanding the expiration date of eggs

Eggs are a product of animal husbandry. It is impossible to add preservatives to them, so they are stored for a very short time. Depending on conditions, storage times may vary. Many people keep their eggs outside the refrigerator - in a cupboard or pantry. Then the egg can remain edible for no longer than 21 days.

This is possible only if the following conditions are met:

  • the egg must not be washed;
  • it should not be exposed to direct sunlight;
  • There are no heaters nearby.

A boiled egg can be stored in a cupboard or on a table for up to 12 hours. It spoils much faster than fresh.

How long to keep eggs in the refrigerator

The temperature inside the refrigerator ranges from 2 to 4 degrees. Eggs can be stored here much longer. In special containers it is possible to keep the product up to 90 days. They do not need a very cold atmosphere, so it is quite possible to keep eggs on the refrigerator door.


In the refrigerator, eggs are stored in the door.

A boiled egg can be kept in the refrigerator for up to a week. Just as in the case of storing the product outside the cold, the eggs should not be washed. Processing them before putting them in the refrigerator washes off the thin film, opens the pores and promotes rapid spoilage.

Why is a spoiled egg dangerous?

When boiling eggs, a situation may happen that the hostess did not notice the floating egg. Then finished product can be recognized by the characteristic strong odor from the egg. In addition, not the freshest egg will be well cleaned - so all the bonds between the shells have already been destroyed, the shell easily moves away from the insides.

Such a spoiled egg should never be eaten. A large number of bacteria have multiplied inside it, which will certainly cause intestinal upset. During long-term storage, toxic substances accumulate in the egg, which, being absorbed into the blood, will cause severe poisoning. Do not experiment on your own body.

Watch a visual video on how to determine the freshness of an egg using water and other methods.

Do you have eggs in the fridge and you cannot determine how edible they are now? Knowing how to check if an egg is rotten or not will help you find spoiled eggs without breaking the shells. There are several ways to do this.

Appearance check

Fresh and rotten eggs differ in appearance. In fresh specimens, the shell is smooth and slightly shiny in the light. For those that have had time to lie down, the shell becomes dull and slightly rough to the touch. And if it is covered with spots and has become a little soft, then the egg cannot be used - it is definitely rotten.

Checking with an ovoscope or a conventional lamp

Pick up an egg and look through it at any source of bright light. Fresh protein is perfectly translucent, and the yolk is located in the center. After a week or two, the protein will still show through, but there will be small dark areas in it. Rotten eggs will not show through.

Hearing test

If you have keen hearing, put an egg to your ear and shake it. Inside a fresh specimen, there is no particular shaking, but a thoroughly lain one will gurgle a little, and its contents will actively move when shaken. The more the contents hit the shell, the more likely it is to go rotten.

Smell test

Rinse the egg with water and smell it. Hydrogen sulfide released by the spoiled contents gradually corrodes the egg membrane and penetrates through the shell. With a well-developed sense of smell, this smell can be caught.

Water test

Take cold water in a saucepan. Dip the eggs one by one into the water and see what happens to them. The freshest, 2- or 3-day-old specimens will simply sink to the bottom. Those that are already about a week old will also first fall to the bottom, then begin to move up and go down again. After 2-3 weeks of storage, the eggs will sink to the bottom only with a sharp tip and balance on it. This means that they are no longer too fresh, but still edible. But those specimens that remain floating on the surface can be safely thrown away - even if they are not rotten, they are still no longer suitable for food.

Visual assessment of freshness

If you are not sure about the freshness of the eggs, but for some reason do not want to check them using one of the above methods, then before cooking, simply break them over a separate bowl and look at the protein. You will notice a rotten copy immediately. Its characteristic smell and dark spots on the surface will not leave the slightest doubt. But the degree of freshness of an egg that has not yet deteriorated will be a little more difficult to determine. To do this, look at its protein. Fresh protein will be lush and dense enough, it has two layers: jelly and liquid. The density of stale protein will be much lower, it will spread over the plate with a liquidy mass.

Eggs provide many excellent health benefits and can be cooked Tasty food. With that said, there's nothing more frustrating than opening the fridge and smelling that nasty sulfuric "flavor".

A strong odor is a sign that your eggs have gone bad. However, it is much easier to know that the eggs are on the verge of expiration than to wait until they spoil.

Is the expiration date on the package the only indication that your eggs have gone bad? Or can you use them after it expires?

Below you will find five methods that will make it easy to determine the freshness of eggs. So grab the box and get ready to learn something interesting.

Why are eggs disappearing?

Eggs must be stored in the refrigerator at a temperature of 2 to 5 degrees Celsius. Depending on their condition, their shelf life will vary.

  • Raw whole eggs (in shell) - 4 to 5 weeks from date of packaging or within 3 weeks of purchase
  • Raw whole eggs (with slightly damaged shells) - up to 2 days
  • Raw egg whites - up to 4 days
  • Raw egg yolks - up to 2 days
  • Hard-boiled eggs (in the shell) - up to 1 week
  • Hard boiled eggs (peeled) - use same day for best quality.

There are also a few dates that manufacturers print on packaging that are important when deciding whether or not to toss them. The packaging date tells the consumer when the eggs have been cleaned, sorted and packaged. The item must be sold within 45 days from that date. The date after which the product is no longer good is sometimes marked instead of the date of sale.

Can you eat eggs after the expiration date?

With meat, cottage cheese, and herbs, it's pretty easy to tell if they've gone bad. Since the egg is hidden in the shell, you cannot visually and smell them. Therefore, many people throw away eggs according to the expiration date.

Even though eggs deteriorate in quality after a certain date, they can still be eaten for a few more weeks, especially if they are stored properly. Refrigeration preserves egg quality and prevents bacterial growth. Eggs are definitely bad if you smell bad, but there are a few signs that can be seen a couple of days before.

How to tell if an egg has gone bad

Smell test

The smell test is the easiest way to tell if an egg has gone bad. If the eggs are past their expiration date, you can tell if they are fresh by simply smelling them.

Step 1: Smell the egg. Eggs that have gone bad have a smell of sulfur, which is difficult to confuse with something. If there is no smell, the egg can be consumed.

Step 2: If you're unsure, break the egg onto a clean plate or bowl and sniff again. If there is an unpleasant odor, discard the egg.

Step 3: Wash bowl or plate with hot soapy water before use.

Egg in a cup method

This one step method is reliable way check if the eggs have gone bad. The shell is porous and the liquid inside evaporates over time. More air in the egg causes it to float on the surface of the liquid. Fresher eggs sink and older ones float.

Step 1: Fill a bowl with cold water and place the eggs inside. If they sink to the bottom and lie on their sides, they are fresh. If they are a few weeks old, they will sink to the bottom, but will stand in the water with their tips. If they float to the surface, they are no longer fresh enough to be eaten.

Listen to the eggs

This method is the same as above.

Step 1: Hold the egg to your ear and shake it.

Step 2: Listen. If you hear any sounds inside the egg, it has most likely gone bad. If you haven't heard anything, you can eat the egg.

Open up and sniff

You cracked an egg into a frying pan and noticed that it looked weird. Usually most continue to cook the egg, hoping that heat treatment save you from bacteria. Here is a way to avoid this:

Step 1: Crack an egg onto a flat surface.

Step 2: Examine the egg. If it is fresh, the yolk should be bright yellow or orange, and the white should not spread much. If the egg is old, the yolk will be paler and the white will spread quickly.

If the yolk is pale and spreading, you are more likely to smell a bad odor. Eggs should be odorless. You may not want to fry this egg, but the remaining ones in the container can be hard-boiled.

Flashlight Test

This looks more like a fun experiment for kids than a kitchen hack, but worth a try. Believe it or not, a flashlight can be used to determine the freshness of an egg or to assess the development of chicks in a fertilized egg. Since you probably don't study embryonic egg development if you're reading this article, use this method at home to find out if eggs have gone bad.

Step 1: Enter a dark room with a flashlight. Candles were used in the past, but it is more practical to use a small flashlight.

Step 2: Hold the flashlight at the larger tip. Tilt the egg by quickly flipping from left to right. This will illuminate the inside of the egg.

Step 3: Examine the contents of the egg. This will allow you to see the size of the air cell. According to the University of Florida, “Fresh eggs have an air chamber thinner than 3.175 mm. As the eggs age, air replaces the liquid that evaporates and the air pocket gets bigger.”

It's highly likely that millions of edible eggs end up in the trash every year. Lack of knowledge on how to determine the freshness of eggs leads to the fact that many simply throw them away. Of course, even if your egg passed all the tests, it needs to be thoroughly cooked before being eaten. Some eggs contain bacteria that cause digestive tract diseases such as salmonellosis. Salmonella can be present in eggs that look and smell normal, so it's important to cook them properly.

The article was prepared based on www.littlethings.com.

The problem of food freshness is observed not only in spontaneous markets, but also in supermarkets "with a name". And if most products have an expiration date, then there is a category of products where you have to determine the freshness “by eye”. First of all, these are semi-finished meat products and, of course, eggs. Eating spoiled eggs can lead to both indigestion and more serious diseases that can only be treated in a hospital. To avoid negative consequences, we propose to consider the differences between a fresh egg and a rotten one.

Signs of freshness of unbroken eggs

The easiest way to recognize a rotten egg is to sniff it. Rotten eggs have a characteristic unpleasant odor that is difficult to confuse with anything. The second sign is a soft shell. When shaking, the yolk should not be felt in the egg, knocking or beating against the walls, otherwise the egg is rotten.

The yolk is clearly visible in the light in a fresh egg. You can also spin the egg on a flat surface: a rotten egg (because it is lighter) will spin for a long time, and a fresh one will stop quickly.

There is another good old-fashioned way to distinguish a fresh egg from a rotten one, based, by the way, on the laws of physics. A fresh egg is heavier than a rotten one, and if you pour 3/4 into a glass of water and lower the egg there, it will quickly sink, but this only applies to eggs no older than three days. Eggs that are a week old will be upright in the water, but a rotten egg will remain on the surface.

Of course, not all of these ways you can check the eggs in the store. In this case, you need to pay attention to the variety of eggs. Because it depends not only on the weight of the eggs, but also on when they were laid. The highest grade includes eggs that were laid three days ago, the first - a week ago and the second - three weeks ago. There is another way to check, available to advanced buyers of modern supermarkets - to check the egg with a special device - an ovoscope. This device highlights the eggs, and in the "old" ones, a dark yolk immediately becomes visible, which is close to the shell or even sticks to it, or a large air chamber.

Signs of freshness in broken eggs

After breaking the egg, carefully look at the yolk. If the yolk is convex and tight, then the egg is fresh, laid a few days ago. A stale egg (three weeks old) has a flat, yolk, and the white is watery.

A boiled fresh egg is difficult to peel, and a spoiled one is easy.

Findings site

  1. A rotten egg has a characteristic odor; a fresh egg has no odor.
  2. In a rotten egg, the yolk beats against the walls when shaking; when shaking a fresh egg, no extraneous sounds are heard.
  3. When untwisted, a stale egg will spin for a long time, a fresh one will quickly stop.
  4. Spoiled eggs float in water, while fresh eggs sink.
  5. The freshest eggs are assigned top grade, those that are not older than a week - the first, and three weeks - the second.
  6. If you determine the freshness with an ovoscope, rotten eggs there will be a large air chamber, a dark yolk.
  7. When broken, a fresh egg has a convex yolk, a stale egg has a watery protein and a flat yolk.
  8. If the egg is boiled, then the fresh one will be poorly cleaned, and the “older” one will be easy.

Eggs are valuable food product which is used in every family. They are eaten as a separate dish or used as an additional ingredient in different recipes- soups, pastries, meatballs. They buy them in dozens and spend them gradually as needed. However, there are times when the expiration date is called into question. How to determine the freshness of eggs at home?

The freshness of a chicken egg depends on the production time and storage conditions.

Eggs can be divided into several types.

  1. Dietary - the freshest, the shelf life of which at low temperatures does not exceed 7 days.
  2. Canteens - 25 days room temperature and 90 in the fridge.

boiled chicken eggs can be refrigerated for up to 14 days if hard boiled. And if soft-boiled, then no more than two days. Cracked and peeled - no more than three days, and broken raw - only two days.

Easter, painted in natural dyes(onion peel, vegetable juices), are stored for no more than two weeks. If dyed with artificial dyes, then the shelf life increases by another one or two days. A colorful thermal film that does not allow air to pass through greatly reduces freshness, such eggs should be eaten within the next three days.

And if you keep chickens, you can safely store fresh eggs for up to 3 months, in the refrigerator, of course. When buying homemade eggs on the market, even from a trusted seller, do not store them for a long time, make an amendment that they have been collected for more than one day for sale.

Most people keep their eggs in the refrigerator, there is a special shelf for them on any door. But it turns out that they are not recommended to be stored in this way, because the refrigerator is often opened and closed, so the products on the door are subject to temperature changes, which does not affect their freshness in the best way. But the vegetable compartment is best suited for eggs - these are closed containers with a constant temperature. The optimal mode is from +2 to +4 degrees.

Before putting the eggs in the refrigerator, they should not be washed - the shelf life will decrease to 12 days, because the protective film is washed off, the pores open, and the penetration of bacteria inside increases.

The shell has a porous structure and easily absorbs odors, so put the eggs in a closed container with a sharp spout down, then the yolks will be located in the center, and nothing will interfere with the supply of oxygen to the contents. Try not to let the eggs touch each other.

Many housewives keep eggs out of the refrigerator in the old fashioned way, for example, in enamel pots. This method of storage is possible if the temperature does not exceed 20 degrees. Eggs stay fresh for up to three weeks. It is recommended to wrap each in any paper and lay it with the sharp end down.

Salt is an excellent preservative. Dissolve salt in water at the rate of 1 tablespoon per liter of water, dip the eggs there and place in a cool, dark place. Eggs can be stored this way for up to one month.

How to know if eggs are fresh

Determining the freshness of an egg at home is quite simple. If you suspect that an egg is stale, try a few proven methods.

If the eggs are of industrial production, that is, they were laid down by chickens at a poultry farm, then each of them is stamped with the exact date of manufacture. This is very convenient, because you can always check how fresh the egg is.

Diet eggs are marked in red, table eggs are stamped in blue with the obligatory indication of the category:

  • higher (CB) - large, reach 75 g;
  • selective (CO) - quite large, 65-74.9 g;
  • the first (C1) - from 55 g;
  • the second (C2) - from 45 g;
  • the third (C3) - from 35g.

Be sure to check the date of manufacture when buying and give preference to poultry farms in your region.

into the light

There is a special ovoscope device, by the way, it is easy to make it with your own hands in just 5 minutes. It shines through the eggs and determines their freshness. If the yolk is in the center, then the product is good for consumption. The presence of dark areas near the protein means that the testicles have lain for a week or two, but they can be eaten without problems. And stale eggs do not shine through at all.

Since you most likely do not have a device, then bring the egg to a light source with a power of at least 100 W and take a good look at it through the light. The following factors indicate stale eggs:

  • an air gap of more than 9 mm between the shell and the protective film;
  • blood ring or large clots (pinpoint blood inclusions are allowed).

If you have an ultraviolet lamp, then a fresh egg will show a bright red color, and a spoiled egg will show a pale purple or gray color.

One of the most popular home methods is to determine the freshness of eggs in water. This method was also used by our great-great-grandmothers, who did not have a refrigerator and were not familiar with GOST for storing eggs.

Immerse the testicle in a glass of cold water and watch the result:

  • lies at the bottom on its side - the freshest, recently demolished;
  • at an angle: a sharp nose at the bottom, a blunt one surfaced - a week-old egg;
  • stands in the middle of the glass with a blunt tip up - the egg is two to three weeks old;
  • floats on the surface - rotten.

Eggshells are porous and breathable. The moisture inside evaporates over time, leaving air, which raises the testicle up. The older the egg, the higher it will rise in a glass of water.

visual inspection

Start your inspection with appearance shell, it should be rough and matte. Stale eggs have a characteristic sheen and gloss. The presence of cracks and chips is not allowed, only if you yourself did not save the egg on the way home.

Fresh eggs smell like lime, if there is a smell of hydrogen sulfide, the egg is rotten.

Shake the egg. Fresh will not make sounds, and spoiled content can gurgle.

Crack an egg onto a plate. Protein may have a greenish or yellowish tint due to carbon dioxide, which gives color. If the yolk is round and convex, and the protein holds its shape, then everything is in order. If the yolk is loose or flattened, the protein is transparent and does not separate from it, then the product is edible, but the expiration date is already running out. Sometimes there are pinpoint blood blotches in a broken egg - this is normal and not scary. If you are uncomfortable, remove the clot.

Perhaps you noticed protein flagella along the edges of the yolk? They are designed to hold it in the middle of the egg so that the embryo is in the warmest place. The presence of these flagella indicates freshness, over time they dissolve.

A stale egg will have an unpleasant odor, spread - the protein is liquid, and the yolk becomes flat.

The color of the yolk or shell does not indicate the statute of limitations, it depends on the feed of the bird and its breed. This also does not affect the nutritional value, except that brown eggs have a stronger shell.

Eggs are the third leading cause of food poisoning after meat and dairy products. Poisoning often occurs due to Salmonella bacteria, the incubation period is only 72 hours, it develops rapidly, and if urgent measures are not taken, then death is possible. The biggest danger of infection is eating raw eggs, the bacterium "lives" on the inside of the shell under a protective film.

Recently, quail testicles have been very popular, it is impossible to get infected with salmonellosis from them, because when quails rush, the egg comes out at a temperature of 40 degrees, while all bacteria die.

If you have allergic reactions to egg products, then you need to eat only fresh dietary eggs. The longer they are stored, the greater the likelihood of allergies.

Try not to buy dirty eggs with sticky droppings or feathers - this indicates poor hygiene in keeping chickens.

Conclusion

If in doubt, break the egg into a separate container before adding it to food, make sure that there is no unpleasant odor or foreign matter. Dirty shells should be washed beforehand so that harmful bacteria do not get into the dish. If the eggs in the recipe are not cooked, then use only dietary or freshly laid homemade eggs.

Buy fresh eggs and don't use them past their expiration date.

Mother of two children. I have been running a household for more than 7 years - this is my main job. I like to experiment, I constantly try various means, methods, techniques that can make our life easier, more modern, richer. I love my family.