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Is Water Glassing Eggs Safe for Long-Term Storage?

Water glassing eggs has gained popularity in recent years as a way to preserve eggs outside of the fridge.  But is water glassing really safe? What other methods might be a good option? 

What Does it Mean to Water Glass Eggs?

This is an egg preservation method that became popular in the late 1800s to early 1900s. You have very likely seen it on other homesteading blogs or YouTube channels.

Pickling lime, also known as calcium hydroxide, is added to water. Clean eggs (but not washed) are then submerged in this solution. It is thought that this solution protects the egg and keeps any bacteria from getting into the eggs.

It is important that clean, unwashed eggs are used in this process as they still maintain their “bloom”. This is a protective layer that is naturally on eggs and helps keep bacteria away from the inside of the egg. It also creates something of an additional barrier between the lime coating and the egg shell itself. 

The eggs and pickling lime solution are stored usually in a glass jar (half gallon jars are pretty popular but any large jar is often used) or food-grade bucket, then kept at room temperature in a dark place or at the very least out of direct sunlight. They are then kept at room temperature for months or even years and used primarily in baking.

Prior to eating or using the eggs, they are washed thoroughly to remove the lime solution which both tastes pretty awful and can make you sick. 

Some folks also use sodium silicate instead of pickling lime, which also can be used to seal concrete floors, as a cleaning agent, or as a general adhesive. Surprised by that? Me too.

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Why is it Risky to Water Glass Eggs

I’m not going to beat around the bush here. This method of preserving eggs is one that I do not, and will not use. Let’s talk about why.

Eggs are Porous

Even though they are hard to see, eggs are themselves covered in tiny pores, just like on your skin. The pores of the egg are there to allow oxygen to enter through the egg as a chick develops inside. 

The idea behind using the lime solution is that it will seal up the pores in the eggs, preventing any oxygen from getting in and thus “preserving” the egg. 

However, there is risk of the lime solution permeating the shell and getting into the eggs themselves. 

This would greatly affect their taste, structure, and if consumed in larger amounts could also make you sick. Here is what Kansas State Extension has to say on the topic, “The risk of storing eggs for long periods of time include loss of nutrients, several oxidative reactions, changes in protein functionality, and a strong bitter taste from the lime.”

Salmonella May Already Be In the Eggs

It used to be thought that salmonella (a nasty bacteria that can make you and more sensitive populations very sick) was something that gets ON the outside of eggs. More current science tells us that salmonella is often inside the chicken itself, thus it can be inside eggs already when they are laid.

Unfortunately chickens can pick up salmonella from contaminated feed, contact with infected animals, and even through the air. 

Bacteria like salmonella, at room temperature inside an egg, will develop at a more rapid rate than a refrigerated egg. 

​Botulism is Also a Risk

Botulism is another big baddie in the food preservation world. Unfortunately, botulism thrives in room temeprature enviroments that are low in acidity. Guess what is very low in acidity? Pickling lime. Unfortunately botulism can exist in fecal matter or even naturally in soils. Unwashed eggs can be a potential source for it.

Realistically then, botulism would be a risk with any egg. 

However, refrigeration greatly reduces the ability for the bacteria to grow. Additionally, if one egg does have botulism on it, it is not just going to jump across the carton and get on another egg.

If you have the bacteria on the outer shell of an unwashed egg that is soaking for months on end in the perfect conditions to grow, sitting around with a number of eggs in a mason jar, that entire batch of eggs could pose a major risk. 

If One Egg Cracks, the Whole Batch is Botched

If any of the eggs in the batch crack or there is a broken egg, the entire container is considered contaminated and all the eggs must be thrown out. What a bummer it would be to lose a dozen or more chicken eggs because just one of them turned out to be cracked?

Additionally, eggs can easily get small hairline cracks on them that are not very noticeable. I would worry every time I used an egg, if it hadn’t been contaminated by a cracked one deeper in the jar I just hadn’t noticed yet. 

Quality is Iffy 

I am personally in a few homesteading and small farm grsoups on Facebook. I have seen many conversation about water glassing eggs. It seems like 50/50 whether this method works well for people or not. About half will sing its praises, saying they water glass dozens of eggs and eat them even two years later. 

The other half say the eggs taste gross, have a weird texture, smell funny, etc.

I’ve also noticed on several occasions that people water glass their eggs but end up too nervous about their safety to eat them. 

For me, it isn’t worth going to all the trouble of preserving eggs this way when there is a decent chance they will be unusable anyway. 

pile of multicolored eggs with the text over top top that says "is water glassing eggs safe?

But Some People Swear by Water-Glassed Eggs!

Yes, they absolutely do. I would say the majority of homestead bloggers will tell you water-glassing eggs is perfectly safe and a great way to preserve your farm-fresh eggs.

However, my background is in working for the University of Minnesota Extension, where I became a certified Food Preservation Consultant.

The same is true with canning protocols and water-glassing. Can you skirt the rules of food safety, fudge some protocols, and still be perfectly safe? Of course. But in doing so you are taking on a certain amount of risk. It is up to you how comfortable you are with that.

Folks will tell you “It’s such a small chance this will make you or your kids sick.” 

That might be true, but consider this. I have had three pregnancies. My first had zero complications for me or my baby. 

My second pregnancy, I ended up with a severe umbilical hernia. The chance of that happening is .08%. LESS than a percent.

My third pregnancy, my son had something called transient tachypnea. The chances of that happening are slightly less than 2%. 

So here I am, 2/3 pregnancies having incidents with less than a 2% chance of them happening. The chances were tiny, but not zero, and they happened.

I am absolutely not trying to fearmonger, but you should be aware of the risks associated with this preservation method before you decide to do it.

If you don’t NEED to take the risks associated with water-glassing eggs, why would you? See below for several great and perfectly safe options for preserved eggs.

Other Ways to Safely Preserve Eggs

In the summer months when your girls are really laying, it can be intimidating to keep up with all those extra eggs! Thankfully, there are many safe, great options for preserving eggs for long-term storage.

In the Fridge

The best way I have found to keep eggs is simply in the fridge! I know not everyone has a ton of fridge space, but for those that do, you can keep extra eggs in the fridge for up to six months.

Frozen

I love to do a lot of baking in the winter months, and frozen eggs come in great for this! Frozen eggs can last indefinitely in the freezer so long as they are sealed well. 

To freeze eggs, simply scramble them up, then pour them into silicone muffin pans. Freeze until firm, then pop them out and store in freezer bags until you need them.

They look like little frozen egg pucks. I would recommend making note of how many eggs you can fit in each of the muffin spots, so you will know how many eggs per “puck” you have. 

Dehydrated or Freeze Dried

This one takes a little bit of effort, but you can dehydrate eggs in a food dehydrator and store on your shelf. This is another preservation method which must be done carefully so as to avoid things like salmonella.

There is a great article from Backwoods Home Magazine about how to properly dehydrate eggs if you are interested in trying it.

If you have access to a freeze dryer this is another different method youc an try. I will admit I don’t have easy access to a freeze dryer so I can’t offer much for tips on the process. You’ll want to make sure you are following the protocols recommended by whatever freeze dryer you have. 

Cooked, Baked, or Pickled

My favorite way to store an abundance of eggs is to make them into prepared meals! Scambled eggs freeze wonderfully. You can make breakfast burritos, quiche, egg sandwiches, etc. and store them in the freezer for later use. 

I have an entire blog post for great recipes that will use up a lot of eggs. If you watch this video I even take you through how you can eat up almost three dozen eggs in just one day!

For example, the flourless chocolate cake uses up almost a full dozen alone. Why not make two? One to eat now, and one to freeze. Voila! You have two dozen less eggs on your hands. 

Pickled eggs are also delicious and fairly easy to make. These do need to be stored in a fridge, but will keep for several months!

Final Thoughts

I know I sound like an old curmudgeon on this one. Who doesn’t want a way to save their cleanest eggs from their own chickens?  

If we were in some sort of major crisis, I do think it is good to know about this method for an emergency situation. I’m talking “the grid is down, Zombie apocolypse” type stuff.

Otherwise, some methods from the past we don’t regularly use anymore because we better understand science and food safety. We also have better options than people did 100 years ago. 

If you feel like this preservation process is one you want to try out with your surplus of eggs, please make sure you understand the risks and how to do it as safely as possible. 

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