What to look for when buying chicken eggs? What is the difference between dietary and canteen? How long can eggs be stored and how to avoid salmonellosis? 9 answers to the most popular questions about this product.

1. How to read the stamp on an egg?

The letter “d” or “c” means, respectively, a dietary or table egg. The first sign on the stamp indicates the date - the day and month of the “birth” of the egg, the second - the category (and therefore its size).

2. What is the difference between a dietary egg and a table egg?

A diet egg (with a red stamp) differs from a table egg in its freshness. It must be implemented within 7 days from the moment of birth. Then, after a week, the egg goes into the table category. If the egg is initially doomed to a long life, long-term sales and, possibly, storage at sub-zero temperatures, a stamp is applied to it with blue ink.

3. How long can an egg be stored?

A table egg can be stored at room temperature for up to 25 days from the moment of “birth” and up to 90 days in the refrigerator.

4. Which category of eggs is better?

• Third category- the smallest eggs (35-44.9 g).
• Second category- medium (45-54.9 g).
• First category- large (55-64.9 g).
• Selected(indicated by the letter “o”) - the largest (65-74.9 g).

By the way, in culinary recipes an egg weighing 40 g is taken as one egg, that is, an egg of the third category.

5. White or dark?

Experts have no disagreement on this matter: the color of the eggs is just a tribute to the breed of the chicken. This is a purely aesthetic point that does not in any way affect the quality of the product.

6. What are “enriched eggs”?

“Smart” eggs with iodine, “fitness” eggs with selenium, and “vitamin” eggs are increasingly appearing in stores. Enrichment of eggs with various microelements occurs through the addition of appropriate preparations to the feed of laying hens. Whether such a product is useful for you or not is an individual question - if you do not know the level of iodine in your body, it is better not to experiment with eggs enriched with this element.

7. What does “organic” mean on egg packaging?

Abroad, the appearance of this word on product packaging is strictly regulated. It means that these are eggs from chickens that have the opportunity to freely range in natural fields under the sun, which are fed exclusively with natural feed, rich in chlorophyll, and in winter - seaweed. In our country, although a resolution on sanitary and hygienic requirements for organic products was adopted (in the summer of 2008), testing for compliance with the declared standards has not yet been carried out.

All that remains is to express gratitude to those manufacturers who themselves send their products for voluntary laboratory research, for example, to the Institute of Nutrition of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences. In general, read the labels on the packaging more carefully.

8. How to protect yourself from salmonellosis?

• Cracked eggs should not be eaten.
• Before use, the egg should be washed with soap or soda (dried droppings are not at all a sign of an “organic” egg, but rather a consequence of poor hygiene at the poultry farm).
• Always wash your hands with soap if you handle eggs.
• Do not eat raw eggs or add them to dishes.
• It is recommended to boil eggs for at least 10 minutes.

9. What are the storage conditions for eggs?

Eggs are stored in a cool place away from strong-smelling foods and away from raw meat. The optimal temperature is 0-5°C. To protect them from foreign odors, use an airtight tray. Experts advise storing eggs with the pointy end down - otherwise the yolk, located on the air chamber of the egg, will begin to dry out faster.

How to cook eggs in the microwave

1.

First, get a microwave-safe bowl. It should not be too big and not too small. Grease with oil.

2.

Break 1-3 eggs into it, add a pinch of salt and some of your favorite spices and beat with a fork until lightly smooth.

How can you tell if an egg is fresh?

We all often buy chicken eggs; they are needed for preparing most dishes, and especially baking. But how can you tell if an egg is fresh? We will help you with this a little with our advice.

Eggs are always a popular product, but before the bright holiday of Easter their popularity increases even more - after all, they are used both in Easter cakes and for dyeing. To make the holiday a success, we choose only quality ones!

What should you pay attention to when choosing eggs?

First, pay attention to the appearance of the eggs. Cracked or uneven surfaces are rejected immediately. Look through the egg into a bright light - there should be no microcracks on the shell.
Which egg is considered dietary? Diet egg expiration date.

The manufacturer also tells us the degree of freshness of the egg. On the packaging you may notice the markings “D” and “C”. If the letter “D” is indicated, this means that the egg is dietary. This egg is no more than 7 days old, that is, it is the freshest and healthiest, it contains all the vitamins and nutrients.

The egg is considered dietary, which is not stored at subzero temperatures and must be sold within 7 days. That is, a dietary egg is not an egg that has fewer calories, but is simply very fresh. The letter "C" means that the egg is a table egg. And it is from 7 to 25 days old, such an egg is already less useful.

Other valuable indicators for the buyer:

• packing date
• egg collection date
• best before date

The packing date can be indicated both on the eggs and on the packaging. It carries practically no information for us. After all, it is unknown how long the eggs lay before they were packaged.

The date of egg collection is a completely different indicator. This is the day the chicken laid an egg. From this date, their expiration date is counted, which cannot be more than 25 days.

It is one of the staple foods of the population of many countries. But despite the popularity of this product, people quite often face the problem of choosing them. It turns out that chicken eggs come in several categories, each of which has its own shelf life and a lot of other information that is incomprehensible to most. Let's look at what types of eggs there are and how to choose them.

Acceptable storage period

The shelf life of a product is the first thing we usually focus on when purchasing. Chicken eggs are no exception. Depending on the time that has passed since the hen laid eggs, they are usually divided into two types: dietary and table.

Dietary "D"

Dietary specimens include: the shelf life of which does not exceed 7 days, not counting the day the hen laid eggs. However, they should not be at sub-zero temperatures. Moreover, this species must have a compacted white, an equally colored yolk, and a height of the space occupied by air of no more than 4 mm. The shell of such eggs must be clean; a small presence of dots or stripes on it is allowed.
You can recognize this product on the counter by a red stamp on the shell with the letter “D” on it. Thus, this species is not a specific variety or species - it is simply the freshest eggs.

Did you know?A laying hen produces on average 250-300 eggs in 12 months. It takes her a little more than a day to lay one egg.

Dining rooms "C"

It is customary to include specimens that are stored at living room temperature as canteens. no more than 25 days from the date of their sorting, not counting the day of their demolition, or stored in refrigerated chambers for no longer than 90 days. Such a product has a mobile yolk, low protein density and a height of space occupied by air of more than 4 mm, which, as a rule, ranges from 5 to 7 mm.
If dots and stripes are present on the shell, their total number should not occupy more than 12.5% ​​of the total surface. A blue stamp is placed on the shell of each table egg indicating the capital letter “C” and its category.

Categories of chicken eggs and their weight

So, you and I know what types of chicken eggs there are and what is their difference. Now let's try to understand their categories. The key criterion by which eggs are classified into one category or another is their eggs, therefore, according to modern GOSTs, there are 5 main categories.

Highest category (B)

Choice Egg (O)

Products in this category are slightly smaller in size and weight - from 65 to 74.9 g. Indicated on the shell or packaging with a large letter “O”.

First category (C1)

Second category (C2)

Category 2 includes those eggs that have weight from 45 to 54.9 g. Such products are usually designated by the number “2”.

Third category (C3)

Did you know?Every year, about 570 billion chicken eggs are consumed worldwide.

Thus, if you see a chicken egg on the counter with a mark on the shell “C2”, this means that it is a table egg of the second category, and the abbreviation “D1” classifies the product as a dietary product of the first category.

In addition, on store shelves you can often find products labeled "premium", "bio" and "organic control". However, we advise you not to fall for this trick of manufacturers and not to overpay extra money.
The thing is that abroad this designation implies that those who demolished them the chickens are free-range and fed exclusively with natural food. However, our GOSTs do not provide any requirements for these inscriptions, so the above text does not guarantee you anything.

It is worth noting that the manufacturer may not label any of the above types and categories at all, if at the same time he packs the products in containers with a label that shows all the information necessary for the buyer.
But the main condition is that the manufacturer must place the testicles in such packages that cannot be opened without leaving visible damage. This condition guarantees the buyer in the future that the contents of the container cannot be re-sorted or replaced.

Choosing an egg: how to protect yourself from infections

After receiving the above information, choosing eggs of the desired type and category will not be difficult.
However, when purchasing, we still advise you to pay attention to the following:

1. First of all, check the production date, which must be present on each copy or packaging.
2. Pay attention to the manufacturer, which is recommended to be chosen based on the distance from the factory to the counter: the shorter the product was in transit, the better.
3. The next step is to check whether the egg is rotten. To do this, simply bring it to your ear and shake it a little. If at the same time the yolk knocks against the wall of the shell, it is better to put it aside.
4. The storage location of the goods in the store is also important, since the products in question are susceptible to strong absorption of unpleasant odors. It is also worth paying attention to this when purchasing goods in packaging: carefully check that there are no stains or mold on it.
5. Well, the last important argument when choosing is appearance. Make sure that there are no cracks or chips in the shell, as bacteria can penetrate through them.

I would also like to note the false opinion that has developed among people that the larger the egg, the more useful substances it contains. In fact, large specimens are laid by older hens, so they contain much less nutrients than those laid by a young hen. Scientists call eggs of the first category the most optimal option for the human body.
However, even with such careful selection, it is not always possible to avoid infection.

Eggs purchased in city stores are labeled according to the standard. Do we know how to decipher incomprehensible symbols? It turns out that everything is simple. One symbol determines the category by weight, and the second divides it into table (C) and dietary (D).

After a chicken lays an egg, for the first seven days it is considered dietary, then - table. There is a secret to find out whether you have a diet egg in your palm or not. To do this, you need to lower it into water. Dietary food should lie on the bottom, and table food should hang in the water column. It remains to be tested in practice whether this is true. The biological value of eggs directly depends on the degree of freshness. Day after day, they gradually lose value: the protein liquefies, the yolk shell becomes thinner, and the content of vitamins and enzymes decreases.

There are other ways to determine the freshness of eggs. A newly laid dietary egg is covered with a shell that gives the shell a dull appearance. Then its thin layer is erased, and the shell becomes glossy. You can try to hold the blunt end of the egg up to the light to see if there is an air chamber. In a fresh product it is small and almost invisible; in a product that has been stored for some time, a round-shaped spot of a darkish hue can be seen. Eggs can remain in the refrigerator for up to three months, but they will lose their usefulness.

Village eggs don't have a stamp, and you can't buy them in a store either. Moreover, eggs from rural farmsteads are a seasonal product. Chickens lay eggs well only in the warm season. In winter, at poultry farms they are stuffed with special fertilizers for “normal” wear, but it is unlikely that the farmer will do the same, since he not only sells his products, but also consumes them himself.

Since the chickens in the village are accompanied by a rooster, all village products are real, fertilized. When producing dietary eggs, hens are kept in cages and roosters are not allowed near them. In terms of the brightness of the yolk, the rustic variety is no different from the dietary variety. Chickens in the village lay eggs with yolks of different shades, but the agricultural industry does not stand still, and producers already know what to add to the chicken’s diet to tint the yolk.

Smell and taste are perhaps the two main differences! Homemade eggs smell rich, but store-bought eggs lack the spirit of freedom and health. The difference in taste cannot be described in words. Homemade rustic items are more expensive and cannot be bought everywhere. It’s up to you to decide what products to consume, village ones from the market or dietary ones from a nearby supermarket. But natural village ones are more tasty, nutritious and healthy.

One of the criteria for classifying eggs is the permissible storage duration.

Taking this into account, two groups are distinguished: table and dietary eggs.

• Dietary eggs are not stored at low temperatures and are sold within seven days. Essentially, it is a very fresh egg. The labeling on this product is usually in red and should indicate the date of its introduction.

Table eggs are stored for no more than twenty-five days at room temperature, in the refrigerator - ninety days. A blue stamp is placed on the shell with the obligatory indication of the category.

In addition, eggs are classified by weight.
Weight allows us to distinguish the following categories:

• The highest - seventy-five grams or more, denoted by the letters SV.
• Selected - from 65 to 74.90 grams, marked CO.
• – from 55 to 64.90 grams.
• Egg of the second category C2 - from 45 to 54.90 grams. It is distinguished by its small size, as it was demolished by young chickens.
• C3 - weight from 35 to 45 grams.

When purchasing, you should pay attention to the date the eggs were sorted. After all, the fresher the egg, the better it is. It is advisable that the sorting date be close to the date of purchase.

In addition, the location of egg production matters. It is better to choose instances from your region.

GOST chicken eggs

All chicken eggs must comply with the requirements of state standards, sanitary and epidemiological rules and veterinary legislation.

GOSTchicken eggs establishes a number of requirements for product quality.

1. First of all, the shell. It must be clean, without any damage or stains. The presence of stripes and single dots is allowed.
2. Eggs that are too dirty must be treated with special detergents, but only those that are approved for use.
3. The contents of the egg should not have any odors: rottenness, rottenness.

An examination is carried out to determine the type and freshness of eggs.

1. For analysis, several eggs are taken from each batch.
2. Then ovoscoping is performed, during which the transparency of the egg and the mobility of the yolk are checked.
3. If damaged eggs are detected and any problems are identified, the entire batch is passed through the ovoscope, after which a conclusion is drawn up about their quality.

Chicken eggs that meet the requirements of GOST are used for industrial processing and sale in stores.

A product with a dirty shell is packaged separately, the container is provided with an appropriate label and sent for quick use in the confectionery and bakery industries.

GOST also establishes the shelf life of eggs - no more than twenty-five days from the date of sorting at a temperature of zero to plus twenty degrees - a household refrigerator.