Interesting facts about eggs

The inside of the egg is made up of the protein - also called egg white. If the egg is raw, the protein is colourless, viscous, and somewhat slimy. Wait a minute! Why is it called egg white if it’s colourless? It’s very simple: When the egg is heated up - boiled, fried or poached - the egg white becomes firm and white.

The egg white surrounds the yolk. The yolk is also thick in its raw state and only becomes firm when cooked. Many people like to eat eggs when the yolk is still soft and perhaps even a little runny, others prefer their eggs to be well cooked.

Eggs are not only eaten in the form of boiled eggs, scrambled eggs, fried eggs, and poached eggs, but are often used as an ingredient in many dishes where it’s not so obvious. Chicken eggs can be found in cakes and biscuits, spaghetti carbonara, breadcrumbs, mayonnaise, and many other sweet and savoury dishes.

Eggs from protected bird species are taboo, but there are other eggs besides chicken eggs that may be eaten, and some of them are even considered a true delicacy. Among the edible ones are mainly eggs from domesticated birds such as geese, turkeys, and breeding ducks. They are all slightly larger than chicken eggs and have a more intense taste. But beware: Duck and goose eggs should always be cooked thoroughly. Much smaller, but beautifully coloured, are quail eggs the size of a thumb. They are often used in upscale cuisine and are seen as a delicacy.

But it gets even more exotic: guinea fowl eggs, which originally came from Africa, are about half the size of a chicken egg and taste extremely good. Ostrich eggs are gigantic - about 25 to 30 chicken eggs fit into an ostrich egg. But it is not so easy to get into an ostrich egg - the shell is extremely robust and cannot be easily broken open. Both guinea fowl and ostrich eggs are not available in the supermarket - usually only directly from the breeder.

Each egg placed on the market in Switzerland must be identified by a code. This code indicates the farming method (organic, free-range, barn farming, or cage farming), the country of origin (CH stands for Switzerland), the manufacturer number, and the date it was laid.

A chicken egg can be kept out of the refrigerator for around 18 to 20 days from the date it was laid, and for around four to six weeks if it’s chilled. However, if the egg does not have a stamp because it came from your own chickens, for example, there is a very simple but effective test you can carry out to check the freshness.

The egg freshness test:

Fill a glass bowl with water and put the egg in. If it sinks to the bottom, it is fresh. If it floats around pointing upwards, it means it’s around two to three weeks old, but can still be eaten - it is best to cook it thoroughly. If the egg floats on the surface, it’s best to throw it away since it’s spoiled.

A nice, hard-boiled egg for breakfast on Sunday - delicious! If only peeling eggs weren’t so annoying. Sometimes you get an egg that just doesn’t want to be peeled at all. Did you know that this is usually the case for particularly fresh eggs? In this situation, the shell is still firmly attached to the egg membrane.

If the egg is already a few days old, it is easier to peel. Bang both ends of the egg on the table and peel off the fragments of the shell bit by bit. With cool tips from little FOOBY, peeling eggs becomes less of a chore.

Blowing eggs:

Pierce the egg at both ends with a wooden skewer, so that you can make a small hole at the top and a larger one at the bottom. Now take a deep breath, put your mouth over the smaller hole and blow hard! The egg contents will pop out of the bottom of the shell onto the plate - hopefully.

Shaking eggs:

Place the hard-boiled egg in a glass filled with a little bit of water, cover the glass with one hand and shake vigorously. The shell will break, but will still stick to the egg, meaning it can easily be removed. But be careful: Things can get pretty wet, so it’s best to shake it over the sink!

Rolling eggs:

Place the egg on the table and roll it back and forth while pressing on it slightly until the shell cracks. Now simply remove the shell and clean the egg. Don’t forget: if you press too hard, you will squash the egg.

Eggheads:

Put the egg in an eggcup. Using a knife, slice off the upper tip of the egg with a sweeping motion. Now the inside can be spooned out easily. This works especially well with soft-boiled eggs.