How long do fresh eggs last unrefrigerated?

[Uwharrie]

I've used them 1-2 days from date of purchase on camping trips. I hear some people will eat them up to a week after. I say, if it smells okay,it is okay. A rotten egg is easy to smell.

A friend warned me that that is not always true and that salmonella contaminated eggs don't necessarily smell bad. Now I'm worried. Last thing I want is food poisoning on a camping trip. Any experts out there?

[vicdotcom]

Originally Posted by Uwharrie

I've used them 1-2 days from date of purchase on camping trips. I hear some people will eat them up to a week after. I say, if it smells okay,it is okay. A rotten egg is easy to smell.

A friend warned me that that is not always true and that salmonella contaminated eggs don't necessarily smell bad. Now I'm worried. Last thing I want is food poisoning on a camping trip. Any experts out there?

In cool weather, they can last a month or so. Many places outside the US do not refrigerate eggs at all.

Other factors can speed up/delay that time though. Cooking well through kills salmonella.

[Smudge]

Fresh eggs unwashed will easily last just over a month (6weeks is the oldest we've eaten to date), eggs in shops are usually several weeks old before getting on the shelf from what Ive been given to understand.

Side note: Ive not seen any shop in the UK that refrigerates eggs, we dont with the ones from our hens.

[ex-hunter]

If you bought them in a store, they've been washed and won't keep.

If they are truely fresh (like, if you know the chickens they came from) they will last un-refridgerated for weeks.

[bikerdruid]

fertilized eggs don't last as long as unfertilized eggs.

[bridgierapa]

depends entirely on ambient temperature how long they last; if they float in a glass of water they're off. Or of course, you can crack them separately to see - the smell will tell you

Salmonella: if it's there, it's there in the fresh egg. Ie it's there from day one. People are mostly immune to salmonella/listeria which can be present in any delicatessen meats as well as eggs, only becoming susceptible to the amounts you might normally find in an egg if they're pregnant or otherwise have their health compromised - which could easily happen hiking when cold/wet etc...

As above, thorough cooking kills it. I don't know. I have a cast iron stomach. I'll poach an egg by preference but if you start to get niggly worries, just scramble them.

[svxak47]

Originally Posted by bridgierapa

depends entirely on ambient temperature how long they last; if they float in a glass of water they're off. Or of course, you can crack them separately to see - the smell will tell you

Salmonella: if it's there, it's there in the fresh egg. Ie it's there from day one. People are mostly immune to salmonella/listeria which can be present in any delicatessen meats as well as eggs, only becoming susceptible to the amounts you might normally find in an egg if they're pregnant or otherwise have their health compromised - which could easily happen hiking when cold/wet etc...

As above, thorough cooking kills it. I don't know. I have a cast iron stomach. I'll poach an egg by preference but if you start to get niggly worries, just scramble them.

2nd on the floating egg technique. Ive used eggs from the store that were 4-6 weeks past the exp. date that had just started to stand up in the bottom of the glass, the floaters would get tossed out. These are refrigerated eggs though. Here is a link to different techniques which used a 8 month unrefrigerated test. Looks like vaseline and lime water is the way to go as it seals the air out. http://www.alpharubicon.com/primitiv...ragereport.htm
Washed eggs will take the natural coating which seals the egg from the air. Hope this helps

[Uwharrie]

This all great info, thank you.

The question still is, would you feel safe eating a supermarket egg (apparently washed) after 3-5 days on the trail?

I'm planning a 4 -5 day hike/camping trip for the spring and love eggs as a hot meal. Or do I need to search out a local egg farm for unwashed?

[bridgierapa]

Originally Posted by Uwharrie

This all great info, thank you.

The question still is, would you feel safe eating a supermarket egg (apparently washed) after 3-5 days on the trail?

I'm planning a 4 -5 day hike/camping trip for the spring and love eggs as a hot meal. Or do I need to search out a local egg farm for unwashed?

Straight Answer: YES.

No worries whatsoever. Go for your life entirely. Most people don't keep their eggs in the fridge anyway. Most people you meet will be eating eggs off a basket on top of the fridge, where it's reasonably warm, up to two weeks after purchasing them.

I personally would have zero qualms.

(but that's just meeeee (uses get out of jail free card )

[bikerdruid]

Originally Posted by bridgierapa

Straight Answer: YES.

No worries whatsoever. Go for your life entirely. Most people don't keep their eggs in the fridge anyway. Most people you meet will be eating eggs off a basket on top of the fridge, where it's reasonably warm, up to two weeks after purchasing them.
I personally would have zero qualms.
(but that's just meeeee (uses get out of jail free card )

i haven't had a fridge for years.

[razadp]

The basics are - crack each into a bowl, if its good pour into the scrambled eggs pan.
Cook it through, will kill any of the common germs.

Only reason to worry are if you like the whites still jiggly. ie raw or just warmed up.

Ate eggs from the singapore 'wet markets' for four years. No refridgeration in those. No problems.

[njenkins]

Eggs will be the first that goes for me if things get bad.. They have been the only thing I've ate and gotten violently sick from. I don't care to repeat that any more.

[Bavarian Raven]

until they hatch ^^

lol, they do last for several weeks if kept cool and the such. common sense is needed.

[vicdotcom]

Originally Posted by Bavarian Raven

until they hatch ^^

lol, they do last for several weeks if kept cool and the such. common sense is needed.

Shoot you can eat eggs long into the embryo stage. Ever heard of Balut? It is a cooked egg where the embryo has already developed. It has a beak, legs, some feathers and all. You just cook it up and eat it whole. Delicacy in some Asian countries.

balut1.jpg
balut2.jpg

[trekker111]

This is for informational purposes only, as I have no experience with this personally, but I have read that eggs can be canned, inside their own shells, by liberally rubbing them with mineral oil, and that in this state they will keep for months unrefrigerated, and years refrigerated.

This is something about it, I think that the original place I heard of this was in the survival files of this forum, in the "Everything under the sun" download, but don't hold me to it.

http://www.dld123.com/q&a/index.php?cid=12665

Edited to add:

I don't care if it is a delacasy in some countries, I ain't eating a even partially developed egg.

[kyle1337]

My friend has a chicken coup and gives me eggs all the time the same day they came out of the chicken, I have eaten them up to 3 months later since he gave me so many and they are still better than store bought, tasty! Granted they were refriderated the whole time.

[regulator74]

While in the submarine service we would stock eggs before we left and use them for 3 months, and we stored them in the lower areas of the sub, not refrigerated. No problems, tasted fine.

[Resqu]

Originally Posted by regulator74

While in the submarine service we would stock eggs before we left and use them for 3 months, and we stored them in the lower areas of the sub, not refrigerated. No problems, tasted fine.

thats a fact

[Mtnman Mike]

Originally Posted by Uwharrie

I've used them 1-2 days from date of purchase on camping trips. I hear some people will eat them up to a week after. I say, if it smells okay,it is okay. A rotten egg is easy to smell.

There are powdered and freeze dried eggs. Yumm.

But personally, without refrigeration, I just hardboil eggs which keep quite a while. Not sure how long for I eat even up to two dozen eggs within a week, before the bear etc. can get to them.

Any kind of eggs but hardboiled are too easily broken and too easily spoiled, from my experience anyway.

[S.P.Q.R.]

Originally Posted by Mtnman Mike

There are powdered and freeze dried eggs. Yumm.

But personally, without refrigeration, I just hardboil eggs which keep quite a while. Not sure how long for I eat even up to two dozen eggs within a week, before the bear etc. can get to them.

Any kind of eggs but hardboiled are too easily broken and too easily spoiled, from my experience anyway.

Thanks for this thread guys, I've had the same questions about eggs. But I have to agree with Mtnman Mike, I don't really want to risk wasting them by breaking them, where can I get powdered eggs? Would Wally world have them or is it something you guys get off the net?
Thanks