Proud To Be British.Egg facts, storing, using & freshness
last updated Monday 2nd April 2012 - 19:13
Understanding what is printed on an egg
The information printed on an egg is quite easy to understand. There may be a lion which is the British Lion Quality mark. Lion eggs have a best-before date of up to 27 days from the time the egg was laid. 85% of eggs are produced to Lion Quality standards.
Next comes a number which refers to the method of farming
0 means it is organic
1 means it is free range
2 means it is barn egg
3 means it is cage egg
After this will be the country of production, e.g., UK followed by the farm identification number.
Finally, the Best Before date.
Read more about British Lion Quality Mark here.
How best to store eggs
Keep eggs in the refrigerator. Egg shells are porous so to protect from strong smells in the fridge always store in the box.
Always use eggs by the Best Before Date
Never use cracked or dirty eggs.
Eggs can be frozen and kept for 6 months. Do not freeze in their shells but remove and either separate and store yolks and the whites on their own or whisk the whole egg. Adding salt or sugar at the time of freezing to egg yolks and whole eggs will give a better result on thawing. (Mark your storage container if doing so to prevent adding sweetened eggs to a savoury dish and vice versa) Thaw eggs in a refrigerator.
How best to use eggs
Recipes sometimes require eggs at room temperature, for example eggs that are to be boiled. This is simply because a fridge cold egg shell will crack in boiling water. Cold eggs in baking will not bind as well with other ingredients and will not whisk up as quickly as the protein is less elastic. Meringues are more successfully made with eggs that have been removed from the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
How to test an egg for freshness.
If you want to check the freshness of eggs, follow this tip.Take a glass of water and place the egg carefully in to it.A fresh egg will settle on the bottom of the glass.An older egg will float vertically.An egg that should be discarded will float on the top of the water.Eggs stored in a fridge will keep for about 4 weeks passed their sell by date because eggs deteriorate much more quickly when stored at room temperature.
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