Author Login | Popular Articles | RSS Feeds | Sitemap

Home | Food-and-drink


The Marvelous Egg

By: Dennis Weaver

Eggs are marvelous. They are used in so many products and in so many ways. They provide structure and mouth feel; they provide moisture and nutritional value. Baking would be dramatically different without the egg.

There are three parts to the egg:

The shell is fragile and porous. It is important to remember that eggs will absorb flavors and odors through the shell and therefore must be protected from strong smelling substances and unsanitary surfaces. A tainted egg will spoil your product.

The yolk is high in both fat and protein and is a natural emulsifier. The white is primarily albumin protein. It is clear and soluble before it is cooked. It contains sulfur and becomes odorous when old.

About 75% of the egg by weight is water. The remaining portion is nearly equal parts fat and protein. A large egg weighs 1 2/3 ounce without the shell with the yolk weighing two-thirds of an ounce and the white, one ounce. A medium egg without the shell weighs about 1.45 ounces and a small egg weighs about 1 1/4 ounces. You can do the math but about 3 1/2 medium eggs equal three large eggs.

Eggs are a potential source of salmonella contamination. The American Egg Board estimates that only one in 20,000 eggs is contaminated. Still, it is recommended that you do not use raw eggs in your food and that egg products be cooked to 160 degrees. Always wash your hands after handling eggs and sanitize any work surfaces where raw eggs may have been used.

The egg industry is conscientious and regulated and it is very rare to find an inferior or rotten egg in a carton. It is not rare to find broken or cracked shells. When you open a carton and find a cracked egg, discard it since a crack creates an easy avenue for bacteria to enter.

Always buy eggs that are graded A or AA. You can determine the quality of the eggs from your refrigerator just as an inspector does. Open an egg onto a flat surface. If the egg is compact with a plump yolk, it is fresh. If the chalazae, the white strands in the egg white, are prominent, the egg is fresh.

Eggs kept in the coldest part of the refrigerator keep up to five weeks, though we plan on using our eggs within two weeks. Fresh eggs make for more stable egg white foams. Eggs become more alkaline as they age and may have a minor affect on the function of chemical leaveners.

Because the shells are porous, eggs will lose moisture over time. Eggs packaged for consumers are given a mineral oil bath to help seal the shells, reduce the moisture loss, and protect the egg from odors. Do not wash your eggs since doing so will remove the protective mineral oil covering.

Many recipes call for eggs at room temperature. Rather than leaving your eggs on the counter to warm, simply place them in a bowl of warm water for a few minutes.

Copyright 2003-2007, The Prepared Pantry (http://www.prepraredpantry.com ). Published by permission

Article Source: http://www.articlesnatch.com

About the Author:
Dennis Weaver is a baker, a recipe designer, and a writer. This article is an excerpt from oeIngredients and How They Work” --available free at The Prepared Pantry which sells baking supplies and tools and has a free online baking library.

| Print | Ezine Ready | |

Recent Food-and-Drink Articles

  • Reason Why You Should Become A Vegetarian By: Janet Somer - If you've eaten meat and animal products your whole life, you might think, why switch to a vegetarian diet? You've lived your whole life eating eggs, hamburgers, hot dogs, poultry, so why switch now? There could be many reasons to switch. Start by looking in the mirror. Are you at a healthy weight? Do you look and feel good most of the time? Do you wake up energized?
  • Reason To Stay A Vegetarian By: Janet Somer - Christmas is a season of peace, love and harmony. It's a time that brings families and friends together to reconnect and find comfort and happiness being together. It's also about respect for fellow man, appreciating and embracing one another's differences. Take some time over the holiday season to reflect on the reasons for your choice to become vegetarian, and enforce your commitment and dedication to the vegetarian lifestyle.
  • 25 Tasty and Traditional Menu Ideas To Celebrate Chinese New Year 2009 By: Hillary Marshak - Those who celebrate the Chinese New Year will welcome the year of the Ox this January 26th with all sorts of delicious recipes. If you're in need of ideas on what to serve, let Recipe4Living help you plan your Chinese New Year menu! Marked by the lunar calendar, the Chinese New Year is actually celebrated globally by various communities of not just Chinese but many other Asian ethnicities as well.
  • What To Eat At Ethnic Restaurants By: Jude Simons - With today's massive cultures in our country, it is almost impossible not to see several ethnic restaurants in today's towns. Block after block of one ethnic food group after another are choices we have the luxury of today with so many ethnic groups within our country. No matter where we go in our country, we have choices of restaurants, cafes and coffee shops to choose from with most of them ethnic.
  • Using Enema For Detoxification By: Jude Simons - An Enema will also Keep the system clean and fresh, detoxified. When an enema is given, there are specific purposes for it. They are a form of colon cleansing, so other than warming and cleansing the colon through a series of enemas, the system needs to be alkalized, any foreign protein is removed from the colon, and the bowel system is hydrated.
  • Tools You Need For Eating Raw Foods By: Jude Simons - You don't need to make a huge investment in eating raw and living foods. In fact, you'll probably be saving money by cutting back on highly processed convenience foods. All that high-fat, high-sodium microwaveable foods are pricey, too! If you're new to this, eating raw foods isn't just about putting something different in you mouth. It's an experience that goes beyond the act of eating.
  • Specialist Companies For Catering Equipment Spares By: Jenny Pilley - Looking for the ideal company for your catering equipment can be a tricky business, especially if you are in need of something specific. This is why there are specialist companies that provide the service for catering equipment and catering equipment spares who are reliable and can offer an excellent service to their customers.
  • The Water Intake And Raw Food By: Jude Simons - When you start eating more raw foods, you may find you're not as thirsty or don't need as much water or other beverages as you normally do. There are several reasons for this. First of all, raw foods, such as raw fruits and vegetables have a higher volume of water in them, so your body is getting the hydration it needs from foods.
  • Some games your increased cooking abilities and higher scores By: NidhiGoel3 - The name says it all; cooking games are actually engaging brainteasers and mind benders that are interactive, although virtual, ways of basic to expert cooking. These culinary art-inspired games, numbering by the hundreds, for more details visit to www.bread-bakers-assistant.com are geared in particular to kids so that they can have fun preparing and learning about food.
  • Taking Care Of Your First Tree By: Jeremy Seaver - Almost each's first ranking experience has some embarrassing events. Nobody can be a practiced right away; we all make mistakes that sometimes hangout us for being afterwards. Some of us make poorer mistakes than others, although. I think that if there was a verdict for being the most naïve person to ever crack upward a ranking, I would win.

Search Ebay

Still can't find what you are looking for? Search for it!


Submit Your link to the Open Link Directory Project

Copyright 2005-2008 MJE Sales, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Proud member of the ArticleCkr Search Network Search Network!
ArticleSnatch.com is free for both publishers and authors to use and is supported entirely from advertising revenue.
Use of our service is protected by our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.