Everyone knows the drill with eggs. You check them in the grocery store for cracks, then you shove them into your fridge and try to finish them by the date on the carton. But if you’re using that date as a guideline for tossing your eggs, you might be throwing them away far too soon.
The “best-by” date on egg cartons isn’t a safety warning — it’s actually a suggestion about quality. As you may have learned over the years, there are many better ways to tell whether an egg is truly rotten.
We turned to a food safety expert to settle the debate on how long eggs really last and the proper way to store them. Here’s everything you need to know.
How long do eggs last in the fridge?
Eggs typically remain good for use for three to five weeks in the refrigerator, according to the US Department of Agriculture. They “often remain safe to eat for a week or two beyond that [best by] date, as long as they’ve been kept refrigerated,” said Zachary Cartwright, a member of the Food Safety and Quality Management Division at the Institute of Food Technologists and lead food scientist at Aqualab by Addium.
There are ways to maximize an egg’s freshness. Cartwright said you should keep your eggs in their original carton and “with the pointed end down to help maintain their freshness by keeping the air cell at the top. This slows moisture loss and keeps the yolk centered.”
It’s also important to store eggs in the coldest part of your fridge rather than the door as the temperature fluctuates in that area, he says. Hard-boiled eggs that are still in their shell stay good for about a week in the fridge, according to the USDA.
Read more: I’m Just Going to Say It: The Air Fryer Makes Perfect Hard-Boiled Eggs, and Your Pot Can’t Compete
Why do we refrigerate eggs?
“In the US, eggs must be refrigerated due to the washing process that removes the natural protective coating on the shell, making them more susceptible to bacteria,” Cartwright said. “In some other countries, eggs are not refrigerated because they retain their protective coating. However, once eggs are refrigerated, they should remain so to prevent condensation, which can promote bacterial growth.”
According to State Food Safety, the US washes its eggs to prevent the spread of salmonella. The USDA also recommends that eggs from a hen be stored in the fridge as soon as possible after they are gathered.
Can I freeze eggs?
Eggs may be frozen but not in their shells. One option for freezing eggs is to crack them and then beat them together before storing them. Or you can freeze the egg yolks and whites separately. According to the USDA, the whites are more optimal for freezing because the texture stays the same but if you want to freeze the yolks, you’ll need to add salt and corn syrup or sugar to help with the consistency. Individual eggs can be frozen separately in ice cube trays and muffin pans, and they can stay frozen for up to one year.
You can also cook scrambled eggs or egg bites and store them in the freezer for two to three months. Although eggs can spoil, they often stay fresh much longer than you’d think.
How to test egg freshness
If you want to check if your eggs are still good before you crack them, you can perform a simple float test with the egg and a glass of cold water.
First, fill a large glass with cold water, then gently drop the egg in it. If the egg sinks and turns to its side, it’s still perfectly good to eat. If the egg sinks, but stays upright, it’s also still OK to eat, but it is an older egg and should be used soon. However, if the egg immediately floats to the top of the water, it has gone bad and should be thrown away.
“This test works because air builds up inside the egg as it ages, making it more buoyant,” said Cartwright.
One important thing to remember about the egg test is that if one of the eggs in the carton passes the test, that doesn’t mean all of them will. Individually test each one before cooking it and pay attention to the smell after you crack the egg open.
“A strong, sulfur-like odor is a clear sign the egg has gone bad,” Cartwright said.
Something else to look out for is “unusual coloring, such as a pink, green or iridescent hue in the egg white or yolk, which can indicate bacterial contamination,” he adds.
Is the ‘best by’ date on eggs accurate?
Cartwright said that the “best by” date on eggs is “a guideline, not a strict rule,” adding that eggs are often good for one to two weeks after the date printed on the carton, as long as they’ve been refrigerated.
“As eggs age, their quality diminishes — they may lose some firmness, and the whites might become thinner — but they can still be safe to eat,” he said.
Is it bad to eat expired eggs?
We’ve confirmed with experts that the “best by” date on a carton of eggs serves as a guideline, not a strict rule. So, it may not be bad to eat an expired egg, provided you’ve verified that it’s not spoiled.
To check if an egg is still good, perform the simple float test, check for any odd colors in the egg white and yolk and smell for any sulfur-like odor. If any of your eggs fail one of these tests, toss them into your food waste; if they pass, they should be safe to consume. But of course, the best thing is to always eat your eggs sooner rather than later.
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