If you are collecting many eggs or not eating as quickly as your birds are laying eggs, you will have to preserve the eggs without wasting the good work of your birds. There are several methods to preserve your eggs to last longer.
Water glassing is one of the popular and cheapest methods of preserving eggs. Here we will take you through some of the methods through which you can preserve your chicken eggs and ensure that they last longer. Read on to find out more.
Baking Eggs In Muffin Pans
This is one of the easiest ways to preserve eggs. You will need to spray the muffin tins with cooking oil and then crack an egg in every spot.
You can leave all the yolks intact or use a folk to scramble half of them. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes. As you bake, be sure to check to make sure that the whites are done.
You can reheat these cooked eggs in the morning or use them for breakfast muffins. They can last for several months in the freezer if you double wrap them in plastic and a freezer bag. It will cost you about $1.15 for 12 Breakfast Egg Muffins.
Mix And Freeze Raw
If you do not have enough time to cook, you can thoroughly mix your raw eggs and place them in a zip-top freezer bag until you need them for use.
The bags can be thawed in the freezer and used just like fresh for French toast, scrambled eggs, or baking cakes and cookies.
You can go for small batches as they work best. An ice cube tray will also get the serving size right. In a standard ice tray, two cubes are = 1/4 cup = 1 egg. Four eggs will fit into a recycled yogurt container.
You will have to break them into a dish, beat them, pour them, and freeze them in the container. Mark your containers with information on the number of eggs, the date, and whether you added milk or water.
Coat Eggs In Mineral Oil
You can coat your fresh chicken eggs in Food Grade Mineral Oil, and they will last for several months. You will need plenty of mineral oil to coat the egg completely.
This treatment method normally replaces eggs’ natural protective coating (bloom) when they are fresh from the hen.
Mineral oil usually takes on the protective role of the bloom in an egg and ensures that it stays edible for several months at room temperature.
The method is not meant to extend the life of eggs in a freezer but outside the refrigerator. You will have to flip them monthly and store them in a cool and dark environment.
Be sure to store your eggs upside down to ensure that the air pocket migrates to the fat end and stays away from the yolk.
This will prevent oxidation and keeps the egg fresh for a long time. If the weather gets too hot or you do not have a cool and dark place to store the eggs, you can store them in the fridge in an egg carton. Cartons will help to keep mold at bay and reduce condensation.
The Salt Method
The salt method is one of the oldest ways of preserving chicken eggs outside a refrigerator. It was used when there was no electricity, but chickens were laying more eggs than people could eat.
The main idea behind this ancient method is to keep fungi and bacteria at bay from the eggs using salt. The process is very easy. Roughly, you just have to burry your eggs upside down in a bucket or container filled with salt.
You will have to make sure that they do not touch each other. The eggs will last for up to 5 or 6 months. However, they might lose their texture, so you can use them in baking or making scrambled eggs.
One of the challenges of this method is that salt may eventually dry out your eggs through the case’s pores.
To prevent dehydration, you will have to apply a generous layer of grease to the egg. The best greasy substance to apply to your eggs is mineral oil.
You can also use shortening or lard. According to experts, a mix of 4 ounces of olive oil and 2 ounces of beeswax can help preserve your eggs for about two years with the salt method.
Here is how you can do it:
- Clean your fresh farm eggs (avoid using store-bought eggs)
- Let the eggs air completely dry at room temperature to prevent condensation. Humidity will prevent the oil from doing its job.
- Coat the eggs in food-grade mineral oil, a mixture of olive oil and beeswax, or lard. Be sure not to leave any spots out.
- Place the fat end up in a bucket or container filled with coarse salt. Make sure that your eggs are covered in salt and do not get in contact with each other.
- Your eggs should last for about two years without refrigeration.
Preserving Eggs In Lime Solution (Water Glassing Eggs)
This is one of the most popular methods of preserving eggs. However, it has steadily fallen out of style as most chicken keepers do not have lime lying around their backyard.
It is one of the safest and oldest methods of preserving eggs. Besides, it has a 100% success rate, and no eggs will be lost if it is done correctly.
Your fresh eggs can stay safe for about two years without refrigeration with this method. However, there will be some changes in their flavor and texture, although that is not something big to worry about.
Here is what you will need for this method:
- Clean, fresh farm eggs. The eggs should be unwashed.
- A jar or a container with a large mouth
- 1-ounce lime. The lime should be hydrated.
- One quart of filtered or distilled water. You can boil it to get rid of any impurities that may spoil your eggs.
How it is done:
- Start by making the lime solution in which your eggs will be preserved. Mix 1 quart of water with 1 ounce of hydrated lime (use a digital scale to get the quantities). You can scale up or down, depending on the size of the container.
- Place the clean, fresh eggs (unwashed) in the solution. Put a lid on top of the container to prevent evaporation. You can add more eggs to the solution with time. However, make sure that you use the oldest eggs first. Be sure to store them in a cool dark location. Also, wash your eggs well before using them.
Eggs preserved using this technique will keep for up to two years without rotting.
Use Of Isinglass
This method of preserving eggs was popular and started in the first half of the 1900s. Chicken keepers would preserve their eggs in a container or crock filled with an isinglass solution.
Here are the steps for this method:
- If the eggs are from the backyard or a farmer’s, you can wipe them with a damp cloth. Do not wash your eggs, and be sure to use eggs with no surface cracks.
- Mix well your isinglass in water, heat the mixture, and let it cool. The mixture will later form a white jelly substance after it has been heated and allowed to cool.
- Arrange the clean, fresh eggs in the crock, pointing downwards. Pour the mixture over the eggs to cover completely. You can then cover the crock to keep bugs, dirt, or mice out of it.
- The eggs should be kept submerged completely in the solution until you want to use them.
This method will not work well in warm areas. However, it can be used to preserve eggs for up to a year in areas where it is suitable. When using the eggs, you can smell to see if they have gone off. Eggs that went off may have had cracks in the shell.
You should use the eggs as an ingredient in something like baking, instead of using them as fried or boiled eggs on their own, as they slightly have a chalky taste.
Their shells also get fragile, so you will not want to use any of them as a boiled egg, as the shell can crack. The egg whites will also start getting too thin for whipping from six to 12 months.
Why Should I Preserve Eggs?
You might be asking yourself what the importance of preserving eggs is. Don’t hens lay eggs every day? Chickens tend you lay eggs through the sunniest parts of the year (late winter through autumn.
Outside this period, their egg production will decrease or even become non-existent. Therefore, there is a need to preserve eggs when your chickens are laying more to use them whenever you need them in the future.
Conclusion
There is always a need to preserve eggs, especially when your chickens are laying more than what you can eat. You can use one of the methods on our list to preserve your eggs to last longer.
