Can You Freeze Chicken Eggs?
Yes! Freezing extra chicken eggs is a fantastic way to preserve those extra eggs your backyard flock gives you, when you have too many to give away, sell, or use for immediate baking.
We’ve got a fantastic and fruitful backyard flock that have been good egg producers for several years. There is always a time during the summer months when their production peaks for several weeks, and we end up with more eggs than we need. Though we have a regular route of friends, family, and neighbors that we deliver to, we always seem to end up with an abundance of healthy fresh eggs. (And that’s after we have eaten omelets every morning and done all of the baking we can think of). When we get to this point, I have found that freezing the eggs is a good method of preserving them until I can use them. It’s simple, straightforward, and it works! Here is how you can freeze eggs for storage and future use.
First, gather the materials you will need.
1. Eggs (of course) just make sure you wash them first and that they are clean.
2. 2-3 standard ice trays (depending on how many eggs you plan on freezing).
3. Freezer storage bags or freezer storage containers.
4. Salt – for savory use
5. Sugar or corn syrup (for sweet use).
Step 1
Egg shells are porous and will crack open and introduce bacteria if you attempt to freeze an entire egg. So, the first step you will want to do, is wash, and dry, then crack open your eggs.
Step 2
Next, use your fingers, or an egg separator to separate the yolk from the whites. The yolks must be separated from the whites completely, as (unless treated properly) the yolks will thicken into a gelatinous substance that will not be usable for baking. To retard the yolk from becoming gelatinous, you should beat 4 egg yolks together with either 1/8 of a teaspoon of salt (for use in main dishes), or 1 and ½ sugar per ¼ cup of yolk (for sweet dessert dishes).
- In other words, for every half cup of yolks for savory foods, stir in ¼ teaspoon of salt.
- For every half cup of yolks for sweet foods, stir in ¾ teaspoon of sugar.
Remember to freeze the eggs in quantities that you will use for future baking/cooking
Step 3
I like to use a standard ice cube tray, and freeze each egg white in its own cube compartment. Once frozen, I transfer the frozen whites to a sealed and labeled freezer bag or container. I have heard of others using muffin tins for the same purpose. You get the idea.
Thawing
When it is time to use the eggs, just let them thaw overnight. Or, place them in a container that is resting in warm water. Much the same way you would heat a baby bottle. The eggs will thaw quickly. Be sure to use them immediately.
This same concept applies to dough made with eggs, such as cookie dough or pie crust. Just make your cookie dough, and roll out the size of cookie ball you want to cook, and instead of baking, place them on parchment paper and freeze them. Once frozen, you can place all of the frozen cookie dough balls into a freezer bag or freezer storage container and keep frozen until use. When it’s tie to bake, just take out the dough balls, let them thaw, and cook.
