What is the danger of salmonella in 'home laid eggs' and how should I clean them?

Question

I have a question additional to this question How does salmonella get into eggs. This tells me that salmonella is mostly found on the shell of an egg. However, eggs are treated (typically washed) such that most egg shells do not contain any salmonella anymore.

I eat eggs which I get from my mother-in-law who has her own chickens, so these eggs are not 'treated'. I was wondering a few things:

• What is the risk that these eggs contain salmonella? Is this risk negligible?

• Should I use supermarket eggs to make food with raw eggs in it, for example chocolate mouse, and only use these eggs for food which is heated?

• If there is a risk, how should I clean the shells? (using hot water is not an option for eggs, of course).

A related question might be Is it safe to eat raw eggs?. The answer seem to be yes, but here it also seems that it is about 'supermarket eggs'.

Asked by Lotte Laat

Answer

The danger of bacterial contamination is much lower in home laid eggs than in commercially produced eggs exactly because of the washing process that eggs go though in the US.

See the accepted answer to this question:
How long can I keep eggs in the refrigerator?

Eggs are naturally laid with a protective coating on them that will keep out bacteria. An egg keeps for a long time in a nest after all.

Commercially produced eggs are washed- I assume for cosmetic reasons- which destroys this coating and makes the porous egg shells very susceptible to bacteria.

You should discard eggs that have damaged shells but other than that you can consider your mother-in-laws eggs much safer than any you could get at the supermarket.

Answered by Sobachatina

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Eggs in Pancakes, health hazard?

Question

I want to make pancakes. I have a powder mix that needs only milk to be ready. However there is note on the power mix's box that says I can add an egg to the mix as well.

Question is, how safe is it ?? Is there a risk of salmonella ?

Thanks !

Answer

Eggs are completely safe in cooked food, and pancakes are cooked. Pancakes made from scratch have egg in the batter too. As long as you don't drink the batter, or more realistically, leave an uncooked bit in the middle of the pancakes, you're totally safe.

(And of course, it doesn't take much to kill salmonella, and a mL of uncooked batter right in the middle of a pancake has ridiculously small odds of getting you sick even if it's somehow still cold, but if you're trying to play by all the rules, then you should make sure they're fully cooked - you probably want that anyway.)

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Mousse has Raw Eggs — is it Really Safe? [closed]

Question

Possible Duplicate:
Is it safe to eat raw eggs?

I looked up a recipe for chocolate mousse the other day, and I noticed that pretty much all of them have raw eggs in them. And they're not cooked.

How is this salmonella-safe?

Is it really safe to feed to young kids (under one)?

Answer

Raw eggs are actually a lot safer than said to be believed, especially in recipes such as this one. Rocky ate raw eggs all the time! haha So please feel free to make the mousse and eat it too! Although cooking them almost always kills bacteria if they reach 150 degrees Fahrenheit. The most dangerous part about using eggs is something that many of us were taught to do at a young age, separating the yolk. Most people separate the yolk by cracking the egg and pouring it back and forth between the two egg shell halves. This is the easiest way to spread salmonella because it can hide on the egg shell or in the pores inside the egg. One thing to never do is wash an egg. They are washed after they are laid and a new barrier is put on by the egg company, some sort of hardened mineral I think. Washing the egg will make your situation worse by destroying this new man made barrier. For the last part of your question I suggest not feeding your baby and thing that has a small percent chance to have any bacteria, such as mousse, because their immune system is still developing. I would also choose not to feed your baby anything high in sugar, thats what Grandma is for later in life. The baby's tastes are forming now and veggies are the way to go with that. Need to teach them to like good for them foods. They like sweet stuff when they are born so they don't need to learn how to like those. Hope I helped!

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