Weight of Eggs for Varying Sizes

Egg Size

Oz/dozen

Jumbo

Extra large

Large

Medium

Small

Peewee

The color of an egg shell has no relevance of what’s inside that shell in any culinary use.

Brown, white and yellow (even bluish-green for one chicken breed) all have the same nutritional

value, the same flavor and same behavior in heat, in whipping, in its thickening property. Only

the pigmentation of the shell is different. So much for the old belief that brown eggs are more

nutritional. Interestingly enough, different colors are more popular in different geographic areas.

The Northeastern U.S., for instance, has a definite preference for brown, while West Coast states

prefer white-shelled eggs.

If your cholesterol level is a concern, you have one more choice at the store, the yolkless

egg. Products in the supermarket refrigerator or freezer labeled “no-fat, no-cholesterol eggs” or

just plain “egg substitutes” are simply egg whites with some chemical additives that take the

place of the yolk, usually thickeners, stabilizers, emulsifiers, vegetable oil, and of course,

coloring. These yolkless eggs cost 2 to 4 times more than whole eggs. Consider buying whole

eggs, using the whites only and passing the yolks on to your neighbor. Your pet rabbit will

gladly accept them, too, mixed in with its regular food. You will avoid the chemical additives

that come with the substitutes, too.

Eggs in your Kitchen

Safe eggs

Eggs in unbroken shells are wholesome and perfectly safe. In the past no one hesitated

using them raw in hollandaise sauce, Caesar dressing or holiday eggnog. Second thoughts began

with an outbreak of food poisoning in the Northeastern U.S. in the late 1980s. Epidemiologists

traced the food poisoning to Salmonella bacteria that managed to infect hens’ ovaries. These

bacteria passed into the egg before the shell was formed, a completely unexpected route of

contamination. How did such an infection happen all of a sudden when we had no such

contamination for centuries (or at least, we weren’t aware it)? Scientists think that they can trace

the cause to a new feeding practice of poultry farmers. To reduce waste, poultry farmers ground

up any dead chickens that happened to be on the farm and mixed it in with their regular chicken

feed. This sounded like a good idea—it reduced waste as well as added high protein to the

chicken feed. But, if scientists are correct, the practice backfired. The resulting chance of

Salmonella infection of eggs created uncertainty of safety in many raw-egg recipes in both home

and commercial kitchens.

Overnight, chefs and home cooks modified their recipes for any dish using raw or only

slightly cooked eggs. Hygiene in the chicken coop and egg processing industry came under

strong scrutiny and has improved tremendously since then. Fortunately, even moderate heat kills

Serious Kitchen Play