Look at the lovely, fresh, multi-colored, pastel eggs that a neighbor placed in my eager, grateful hands a couple days ago. They're almost too pretty to crack open... but I did. Two of them found their way into egg salad spread atop slices of Flax Irish Soda Bread for Dick's and my fishing outing yesterday.
Here's an excellent hard- and soft-cooked egg tutorial that explains how to make perfect "boiled" eggs. Since eggs shouldn't be boiled because it makes them tough and rubbery, the process is correctly named "coddling" or coddled eggs. As soon as the water comes to a rapid boil, the heat is turned off and the pan is covered with a lid. I have used the method detailed in the tutorial for years. I can put my stamp of approval on its consistent results.
(The following helpful information comes from The Breakfast Cook.) Did you know that you should...
Store eggs in the container they came in:
Egg shells are porous so, at minimum, the eggs you buy should be stored in the container that came with them in the store. As such, they are susceptible to moisture loss and absorbing the odors that other foods in your refrigerator put off. Do not store your eggs in the open shelf on the inside of the refrigerator door. The ideal way to store eggs in your refrigerator is take them out of the styrofoam or cardboard containers that they come in and place them into an airtight plastic container like the 12 Egg Tray from Lock & Lock. Airtight containers are better at slowing moisture loss and preventing odor absorption.
Store eggs blunt end up.
Why store eggs point down? One reason for storing eggs point side down is to keep the egg centered; this makes for more attractive eggs when you cook them, especially hard boiled eggs. Another excellent reason for keeping the yolk centered is the anti-bacterial properties of the white. Centering the yolk by storing them pointed end down lengthens the shelf life of the eggs. Finally, storing the eggs point side down minimizes moisture loss.
Store eggs on a shelf, not in the door.
When storing eggs in the refrigerator, you want to store them on a shelf and preferably the bottom shelf towards the back. The idea is to keep the eggs as cold as possible and as still as possible. Storing them in the door exposes them to the huge temperature fluctuations that exist from having the door open and from the vibrations from the opening and closing motion. Both of these things will greatly increase the rate at which the eggs’ quality deteriorates.
If you purchase the freshest eggs you can and treat them with a little tender loving care, they should last for several weeks in your refrigerator.
