Should eggs be kept in the fridge or out?

Whether eggs will sit in the fridge or at room temperature depends on how they were kept where you bought them. What really decides it is not which one you choose but that the temperature does not go back and forth.

Why does a change of temperature matter?

An eggshell is porous and is affected by outside conditions. Moisture condenses on the surface of an egg taken out of the cold and left at room temperature; that moisture weakens the protective function of the shell.

So the real rule runs one way: an egg that has started being kept cold should stay cold. Eggs kept in the chilled cabinet at the store go into the fridge when they get home, and are not taken out again afterward.

The reverse holds in the same way. Eggs sold at room temperature can be stored at room temperature in a cool, dark place; but once they have gone into the fridge they are not taken out again.

Where do they go in the fridge?

The door of the fridge is the least suitable place for eggs; yet in most fridges the egg holder is exactly there. The door is the part of the fridge whose temperature swings the most, and it warms every time it is opened.

A more suitable place is the middle or lower shelves of the fridge. The temperature is steadier there and the eggs are not exposed to the temperature going back and forth.

Leaving the eggs in their own carton helps too. The carton both protects the shells from knocks and reduces the passage of surrounding odors through the pores.

Is washing them right?

Washing eggs before storing them, common as it is, is not the preferred method. The natural protective layer on the shell comes away when it is washed, and the shell becomes more open to outside effects.

An egg that looks dirty is washed right before it is used. This does not affect the storage time and lets the protective layer stay in place through the storage.

Eggs with broken or cracked shells fall outside this. They are not stored; they are used the day they are bought, or not bought at all.

How do you tell if they are fresh?

The most practical method is the water test. In a bowl of water, an egg that lies on the bottom is fresh, one that stands upright is older, and one that rises to the surface has been sitting too long to be used.

The difference is seen when it is cracked too. The yolk of a fresh egg stands up and its white stays gathered; in an older egg the white spreads and the yolk flattens.

Smell is the surest sign. An egg with a noticeable change of smell when cracked is not used under any circumstances, and the other eggs cracked into the same bowl are thrown away as well.

This is why cracking eggs into a separate bowl first, rather than straight into the dish, is a common habit. It keeps a whole mixture from being thrown away because of a single egg.

How do you store cooked eggs?

A boiled egg keeps better when it is stored in its shell. Once the shell is peeled the surface is exposed and it both dries and takes on the odors around it.

If it will be stored peeled, it should sit in a closed container and in the fridge. Adding a little water on top also reduces drying and protects the texture.

Writing the date on eggs boiled during a weekly preparation is a practical detail. Among several eggs sitting in their shells, which was cooked when is easily confused.

What do you look at when shopping?

Opening the carton and looking at whether the shells are intact is the simplest and most effective check. A cracked egg can soil the others in the same carton.

Looking at where the eggs sit in the store decides the storage too. If they are in the chilled cabinet they go into the fridge when they get home; if they are on a shelf they can be stored at room temperature in a cool place.

How many eggs to buy is decided by looking at how many are used at home in a week. Rather than a carton that will sit for a long time, buying smaller amounts more often protects both freshness and ease of use.

Not taking the eggs out of their own carton when you get home is the most practical choice. That way the information and the date on the carton are not lost; with eggs moved into the holder in the fridge that information disappears entirely.

Putting the eggs away right after shopping is the last link in this chain. A carton left waiting in the bag both takes knocks and goes through a change of temperature; both shorten the storage time.