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| USING
FRESH EGGS |
FOOD
TIPS BY TALLYRAND |
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Cooking
and health tips on using eggs
I suppose aking any raw egg product is always risky
from a food hygiene point of view and really depends
on a number of factors:
- Where
in the world you are - in New Zealand, for example,
we have little problem with food poisoning from eggs
because of the strict control measures and hygiene
of the farms
- The
reliability of the supplier (see above)
- Your
climate - the warmer the climate the more chance of
problems
- How
the egg has been stored at home - always store them
in the fridge, never at room temperature
- However,
the eggs are best left at room temperature for 30
- 60 minutes prior to use for any baking purposes
- Store
away from any strong smelling foods and raw meats
and fish (the top shelf is best or the special storage
rack if the fridge has one)
- Do
not think of the egg shell as a solid object but as
a sponge as it is very porous and will absorb any
strong odours and bacteria from foods they are left
in contact with or near
- When
making mayonnaise only make as much as is required
and store any left over in a sealed container in the
fridge for no more than three days
How
can you tell if an egg is fresh or not?
- Look
for the use by date - it should have at least 3 weeks
left . . . 5 weeks means they are really fresh and
straight from the farm . . . the eggs I use in New
Zealand are delivered on a Tuesday after being laid
at the weekend. They don't come much fresher than
that!
- When
you break them open a fresh egg's yolk will stand
tall and the white will be tight, with very little
secondary white (this is the really runny part
of the white). If you boil it the yolk will be
central. If you were to fry it the egg will stay compact
and nicely shaped.
- As
the egg gets staler/older the white will break down
and become more liquid and the yolk will start to
flatten and spread out as well. If you boil it the
yolk will be off centre. If you were to fry it the
egg will stay fairly compact but the white will start
to spread out.
- A
stale egg (3 - 4 weeks after being laid) will
have little or no tight white and will be totally
secondary white. If you boil it the yolk will be touching
if not breaking the surface of the white. If you try
and fry these they will run all over the pan . . .
so if this sounds like your fried eggs . . . you have
been buying or the store is selling stale eggs!
Look
for more tips on eggs in coming weeks!
RELATED RECIPE
Food
and Cooking Tips
from professional
Chef Tallyrand
Born
and raised in Plymouth, Tallyrand started his initial
training as a chef at Plymouth College of Further Education.
It was here that he was to learn his love, his passion
for food and the culinary arts. From here he headed
to Germany to complete his apprenticeship as Commis
de Gardemanger.
Germany
gave him his first taste of cooking for the rich and
famous, as half way through his first year, along with
the Sous Chef and a Chef de Partie, he was whisked off
to Cologne to help prepare meals for a political conference,
where amongst other dignitaries they cooked for Mr Brehznev,
the then powerful Russian leader. This was to prove
to be just one of the many celebrities he was to cook
for or get to know over the years . . .
If
you would like to find out more why not visit Tallyrand's
own web site www.tallyrand.info (link in main menu)
Email Hub-UK : info@hub-uk.com
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