PIPS TIPS - To Fridge or not to Fridge your egg?

Why it depends on where you live

In the US, Salmonella vaccination isn't compulsory for laying hens, so all eggs there must be washed and sanitised before sale. That washing removes the protective "bloom" (which normally lasts at least 21 days) and makes the shell permeable to bacteria - which is exactly why Americans are told to refrigerate their eggs straight away.

In NZ, all commercially produced chicks are vaccinated for Salmonella, so this isn't an issue for us (unless you're keeping unvaccinated backyard hens). That means storage here really is up to you - the optimum temperature is anything below 16°C.

How I store mine

I keep mine in the pantry, out of the sun and away from heat, and use them within a week. Stored that way, they're still completely fine right up to their best-before date - see PIP'S TIPS - What's up with those Best Before Dates? - they're just a little less "perky." The whites do run a bit more in the pan as the albumen naturally starts to break down, which makes them a little less ideal for poaching. Research suggests unrefrigerated eggs stay fresh for about 14 days, which is another good reason to buy direct rather than supermarket eggs that may have already sat around for a week or more before even hitting the shelf.

If you're eating your eggs within a week or so, keeping them out of the fridge is completely fine. If you want some to last a few weeks though, storing half in the fridge slows that breakdown right down and keeps them poachable for longer.

A tip most people miss: ditch the plastic wrap

Whichever way you store them, take any plastic wrap off your eggs - they don't like getting sweaty! I'd honestly prefer no wrap at all, but I get that it helps in wet weather, and it was genuinely useful during the pandemic, so I understand why it's there.

Baking, whipping, and freezing eggs

A few extra tips worth knowing if you bake:

• For high-fat recipes like cheesecake, let cold eggs come up to room temperature first (about 30 minutes on the counter, or a bowl of lukewarm water) to avoid a lumpy batter.
• Room-temperature eggs also whip up to a greater volume for meringues. The trick is to separate your yolks and whites while they're still cold (easier to do), then let the whites warm up before you start beating.
• Got leftover yolks or whites? Both freeze beautifully for up to a year - beat whole eggs before freezing, or freeze whites separately. Perfect for quiches or a bacon-and-egg pie down the track.
• If you do refrigerate your eggs, store them on the middle shelf at the back rather than in the door - that's the most stable temperature spot in the fridge, away from the temperature swings every time the door opens.

Want to check exactly how fresh your eggs actually are, wherever you're storing them? Here's a ten-second trick: PIP'S TIPS - How Old Are My Eggs?