That's an immense difference! Where are you buying your eggs?
There should not be that much of a difference.
There should not be that much of a difference.
Foolproof boiled eggs for idiots
- Thread starter Jennifer Murphy
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Jennifer Murphy
Senior Cook
We buy them at the local market. We use them for snacks, so I have been buying the largest size eggs (Jumbo). Maybe that's the problem. Since there is no larger size, I suppose it could include any eggs that are larger than some mimimum size (66g?). I'll buy the next smaller size next time and weigh those.
I usually cook a dozen at a time. We typically have one or two a day, so that lasts us up to a week.
Now that I have them all weighed, I'll cook them in batches that are as similar as possible and try to adjust the cook time.
Any insightful guesses as to how much to vary the time? If 9:00 minutes is best for the 67.63g average weight batch, what would be the equivalent time for the 69.25g, 72.18g, and 77.43g batches?
My guess is that not much difference for the three lighter batches.
What I also found interesting is that the physical size of the eggs was not a good indicator of the weight. The largest eggs were not the heaviest. Some fairly small ones were surprisingly heavy. If they sort them by size, rather than weight, there may be a problem with the smaller sizes, too.
Professional egg suppliers use weight to separate sizes. As the eggs roll along a conveyer belt, they are sensitive to weight. The heaviest eggs trigger a lever and they drop down (well, not drop but roll). Next weight on the scale down the line does the same thing. So as they go along at the end you have the pee wee's.
I don't know about there but here eggs are classified by their weight.
so I'm thinking that it is entirely likely, your eggs were probably hand separated and the person was going by eye as to the classification of the egg.
I don't know about there but here eggs are classified by their weight.
so I'm thinking that it is entirely likely, your eggs were probably hand separated and the person was going by eye as to the classification of the egg.
I know that many eggs, pee wee's for sure, and I believe cracked, go to bakeries. Don't quote me on that though, I was told that many years ago so it may not still be true.
When you buy your eggs in the UK - are they refrigerated? I don't believe they were at one time but now?
Nor were they 'washed' as they are here. Heaven forbid the poor city gal open the carton and find straw (and something else) on the breakfast egg!
When you buy your eggs in the UK - are they refrigerated? I don't believe they were at one time but now?
Nor were they 'washed' as they are here. Heaven forbid the poor city gal open the carton and find straw (and something else) on the breakfast egg!
So, LOL, not washed - which is OK as far as I'm concerned. But are they refrigerated?
They are here, which I tried to explain to a British ex-pat that she HAS to keep them refrigerated once that they have been. She kept them in a bowl on the counter saying that's how she did it "at home" (England).
They are here, which I tried to explain to a British ex-pat that she HAS to keep them refrigerated once that they have been. She kept them in a bowl on the counter saying that's how she did it "at home" (England).
Ah yes, sorry, I didnt answer that bit! No, they are not refrigerated in the store, but I must admit I put them straight into my fridge when I get them home! (Hence why we need to take them out of the fridge to reach room temp for baking I guess?)
Yeah, I was always told they need to be room temp for baking.
OK, good to know about the refrigeration. Not that it matters here as - because the eggs are washed here - the 'bloom' has been removed and therefore they must be refrigerated. Shells are porous and once the 'bloom' is gone, which protected the egg from various nasties, they are open to absorb those nasties.
If, as in the UK, they are not washed, there is no real reason to put them in the fridge. They are fine with their 'bloom' they got from mama hen.
But once they have been in a fridge, they then need to be kept there. As the 'sweating' from cold to room temp makes them susceptible to absorption.
Oh dear, I'm not explaining this very well, am I? LOL
OK, good to know about the refrigeration. Not that it matters here as - because the eggs are washed here - the 'bloom' has been removed and therefore they must be refrigerated. Shells are porous and once the 'bloom' is gone, which protected the egg from various nasties, they are open to absorb those nasties.
If, as in the UK, they are not washed, there is no real reason to put them in the fridge. They are fine with their 'bloom' they got from mama hen.
But once they have been in a fridge, they then need to be kept there. As the 'sweating' from cold to room temp makes them susceptible to absorption.
Oh dear, I'm not explaining this very well, am I? LOL
OP
OP
Jennifer Murphy
Senior Cook
They are from an association of small local farmers. I have sent them an email asking how they sort the eggs.
I took a photo of 5 eggs from the smallest to the largest by weight.
Tell me if you can sort them by weight without the numbers.
OP
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Jennifer Murphy
Senior Cook
Here they are refrigerated and probably washed. They are not 100% clean, but they do not look like the ones my grampa used to bring in from the coup when I was a kid.
I can't say I have ever seen an egg like those. My dad said the best egg he ever tasted was a duck egg. I never tasted one of those ever either. (Though I have eaten some lovely duck over the years!) I look forward to eating a duck egg!
Yes, they are. I agree, it's very interesting. I always wondered how some types of birds manage to lay one egg a day, but still have all the eggs hatch nearly at the same time. Why didn't those eggs go bad, while mum wasn't incubating them? But, this is probably the reason that eggs are self-protecting.
Jennifer - LOL - I certainly can't but the conveyor belts used by the industry can!
Katy - they are very rich, bakers love them for the richness and "fluff" they give to their baked goods.
The shells (at least here) have a greenish tinge to them.
Mama Hen coats the eggs just as she's laying them with that protective film. Layman terms call it "bloom".. can't think of the official name - not sure I even knew it.
Here's another FYI - mentioned here before but still gotta say it again.
With chicken eggs there are only white shells and blue shells. Brown eggs are just white eggs given a brown pigment coating as they are being laid (by various different breeds). Crack open a brown egg and the shell is white inside.
Blue eggs are from a specific breed, Araucana. There are multiple colours from hybrid Araucana hens that put a brown pigment on the blue egg in different intensities, thereby giving them a variety of colours - known to many as Easter Egger Hens - from tints of pink to green, etc.
Katy - they are very rich, bakers love them for the richness and "fluff" they give to their baked goods.
The shells (at least here) have a greenish tinge to them.
Mama Hen coats the eggs just as she's laying them with that protective film. Layman terms call it "bloom".. can't think of the official name - not sure I even knew it.
Here's another FYI - mentioned here before but still gotta say it again.
With chicken eggs there are only white shells and blue shells. Brown eggs are just white eggs given a brown pigment coating as they are being laid (by various different breeds). Crack open a brown egg and the shell is white inside.
Blue eggs are from a specific breed, Araucana. There are multiple colours from hybrid Araucana hens that put a brown pigment on the blue egg in different intensities, thereby giving them a variety of colours - known to many as Easter Egger Hens - from tints of pink to green, etc.
Exactly taxy, but also remember, the broods are not so big as to have them spoil. Especially in the wild. Plus, not all chicken lay an egg a day. The chickens (now-a-days) that do are specially bred to do so.
I was thinking of other birds than chickens, like robins.
How often do chickens lay eggs, when they are fertilized and could become chicks?
Don't know why I know this but Robins lay an egg once a day - as their brood is normally 3 to 4 eggs, they are not in the nest for very long before she 'sits'.
Chickens, how often? Depends on the breed. Hybrids are bred specifically to lay an egg every day (almost) and they don't often go 'broody'. Other pure bred chickens all have different laying patterns. Sometimes described as laying 200 eggs a year, or maybe 150... but as said - it depends on the breed.
Once the egg is released from the ovary, it takes 24 to 26 hours to actually being 'laid'.
It is the same time whether or not the egg is fertilized. I'm strictly talking about chickens here. I don't know but don't believe that wild birds spontaneously lay eggs if not bred. Chicken have been bred to lay eggs for centuries.
Please don't quote me! Been a long time since the chicken forum!
you also cannot incubate your average store bought chicken egg - no rooster's in the hen house so they aren't fertile! LOL Free range farm chickens likely have a rooster (or two) running around and will likely be fertile. That being said, once they are refrigerated. it's highly unlikely they will develop.
Chickens, how often? Depends on the breed. Hybrids are bred specifically to lay an egg every day (almost) and they don't often go 'broody'. Other pure bred chickens all have different laying patterns. Sometimes described as laying 200 eggs a year, or maybe 150... but as said - it depends on the breed.
Once the egg is released from the ovary, it takes 24 to 26 hours to actually being 'laid'.
It is the same time whether or not the egg is fertilized. I'm strictly talking about chickens here. I don't know but don't believe that wild birds spontaneously lay eggs if not bred. Chicken have been bred to lay eggs for centuries.
Please don't quote me! Been a long time since the chicken forum!
you also cannot incubate your average store bought chicken egg - no rooster's in the hen house so they aren't fertile! LOL Free range farm chickens likely have a rooster (or two) running around and will likely be fertile. That being said, once they are refrigerated. it's highly unlikely they will develop.
OP
OP
Jennifer Murphy
Senior Cook
My apologies, but all this chatter about how many eggs chickens can lay is forcng me to pose this question:
If a chicken and a half can lay an egg and a half in a day and a half, how many eggs can a chicken lay in a day?
If a chicken and a half can lay an egg and a half in a day and a half, how many eggs can a chicken lay in a day?
Aunt Bea
Master Chef
I think that egg producers have more leeway in packing eggs today than they did years ago.
Today the weight per egg is less important than the minimum weight per dozen.
From the USDA
Size tells you the minimum required net weight per dozen eggs. It does not refer to the dimensions of an egg or how big it looks. While some eggs in the carton may look slightly larger or smaller than the rest, it is the total weight of the dozen eggs that puts them in one of the following classes: In descending order, egg sizes are Jumbo (30 oz. per dozen), Extra Large (27 oz. per dozen), Large (24 oz. per dozen), Medium (21 oz. per dozen), Small (18 oz. per dozen), and Peewee (15 oz. per dozen).
Today the weight per egg is less important than the minimum weight per dozen.
From the USDA
Size tells you the minimum required net weight per dozen eggs. It does not refer to the dimensions of an egg or how big it looks. While some eggs in the carton may look slightly larger or smaller than the rest, it is the total weight of the dozen eggs that puts them in one of the following classes: In descending order, egg sizes are Jumbo (30 oz. per dozen), Extra Large (27 oz. per dozen), Large (24 oz. per dozen), Medium (21 oz. per dozen), Small (18 oz. per dozen), and Peewee (15 oz. per dozen).
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