What signs show an egg is inedible?

Answer 1

There are many different "bad egg" test floating around the internet. But I found an article that says that these are not ways to test a "bad egg" but says that these are at best indicators of an aging egg. Here is the list and the reasons that they are not very reliable. Anything in the article is italicized because I could not think of any better way to word the paragraphs.

1. Place the egg in question in a bowl or wide glass of cold water and see if it floats.

· If the egg lays on its side on the bottom of the bowl, it is at peak freshness.

· If the egg stands upright on one end but is still touching the bottom, it is aging past its prime but is still safe to eat.

· If the egg is floating, it is not a fresh egg. This does not necessarily mean it's bad or unsafe to eat. You should test the egg by cracking it open and looking for (or smelling) signs that it has gone bad

""Forget this test, says Don Schaffner, PhD, a food scientist at Rutgers the State University of New Jersey. "Eggs do take in air as they age, but the size of the air cell in the egg varies from egg to egg. So a freshly laid egg and an older egg may react similarly." There is too much variability in air cell size from egg to egg to make this a valid test, he says.""

2. Hold the egg up to your ear and shake it, listening for a sloshing sound.

· A fresh egg should not make much, if any, sound when you shake it.

· A sloshing egg only indicates that the egg is old and does not mean the egg is unsafe for consumption.

""Shaffner says this sound test has no credibility. "Eggs do slosh around," he says. Sloshing doesn't indicate spoilage, however, he says. He does have another use for the sound test: "That would be a good way to see if the egg is hardboiled or not."'

3. Other Internet advice calls for cracking the egg open and inspecting the yolk and albumen (the white part). If it's a fresh egg, the yolk should be bright yellow or orange, and the white should not spread much.

""Schaffner gives a thumbs-down to this test as well. "The color of the yolk is primarily determined by what they feed the chickens," he says. "It may change over time, but it will vary from egg to egg.""

""The best test to see if an egg is OK to eat? Get the egg in question and have your nose ready. "As far as I know the only way to know an egg is bad is to crack it open and see if it smells." Of course, you can always examine the egg as you smell, he says." If it looks strange, I wouldn't consume it, but odor is the real tip off.""

Answer 2

Smell it. If it smells putrid, avoid at all costs.

If it smells okay, crack it open and see if there are any weird bits, colors, or smells.