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How to Tell If Those Eggs Living in the Back of Your Fridge Are Still Good

still fresh organic white eggs in carton

It’s Saturday morning and after a delicious sleep, you saunter into the kitchen in your pajamas with only one thing on today’s to-do list: Whip up a plate of fluffy scrambled eggs with a side of bacon and bliss. But as you open up the fridge to grab the carton of farmers’ market eggs from the back, you realize that you can’t actually remember when you bought them. Was it Wednesday or the week before? Or—gulp—maybe it was last month? Don’t fret— there’s a simple way to tell if those eggs are still good. Just employ the easy yet effective float test and voilá, you’ll know if those eggs are fresh and ready for use. 

How to Tell If Your Eggs Are Still Good

What you’ll need: Your eggs and a bowl filled with cool water (make sure it’s deep enough to submerge an egg plus a couple of extra inches).

What to do: Gently drop an egg into the bowl and wait to see what it does. If the egg sinks to the bottom and lays on its side, then it’s very fresh and totally cool to eat. If the egg sinks but “stands” up, it’s still safe to eat, but you should do so very soon. And if it floats to the top, you should toss it—that’s a bad egg.

Why this works: Egg shells are semipermeable and as an egg ages, the liquid inside evaporates and air takes its place. And the more air inside an egg, the more buoyant it becomes.

One more thing: If you feel like expanding your repertoire (no pressure, though) may we suggest a croque madame Dutch baby or eggs in a basket? It is the weekend, after all. Breakfast is served. 

OUR 47 FAVORITE EGG RECIPES EVER



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Executive Editor

Alexia Dellner is an executive editor at PureWow who has over ten years of experience covering a broad range of topics including health, wellness, travel, family, culture and...