Chicken Salad?

[fuzzi]

Mother Earth News did an article back in the 70s where the author tested how long eggs lasted under different circumstances: both washed and unwashed on the counter, and washed and unwashed in the fridge. I thought I had it bookmarked but I can’t find it, so I will dig around more and see if it turns up. But the gist of it was, in both places, the unwashed eggs kept their fresh qualities longer than the washed eggs. Even at 6 months! (Edit: after finding and rereading the article, it looks like there really isn’t that much difference between washed and unwashed in the refrigerated category. Guess I have to readjust my thinking.)

That coating is amazing stuff and really makes a difference. I will say though, any eggs I get that are unsightly get washed. But I get so many eggs that the ugly ones and those with cracks get boiled, ground up and fed back to the chickens.

The reason I leave eggs out is twofold:

1. My refrigerator freezes eggs
2. I always have a supply of fertilized eggs for hatching emergencies

When Naomi's brood died before hatching I put 8 of the freshest eggs on my counter into the incubator. Then Rahab went broody, and most of the eggs were transferred to her. It worked out well.