I was using really fresh organic eggs given to me for a recipe lately and it had been a while since I had seen such quality, the whites were firm and clean with no impurities and the yolk a rich deep orange blemish free hue that just oozed goodness. I usually have to fish out bits from them before using but these ones were just perfect. We seem to just take eggs and their genius for granted these days but they have been such an important part of diet and cookery forever they should be given more credit for all they provide.
Eggs have it all and they help you keep a nutritious and healthy diet being a valuable source of protein. Man has eaten them forever and today they are as cheap, diverse and easily available. Even quail and duck eggs are common now. Ignore the so called experts who say you cannot eat them every day, pure bunkum. There was a time I recall where we were warned not to eat so many as they would lead to heart attacks from high cholesterol which is of course quackers.
Just one egg is only about seventy calories but it has superb protein, fats, iron, vitamin, minerals and an important nutrient called choline that helps cell development and brain health. Along with important antioxidants like selenium there is no doubt that they pack a powerful punch in keeping us healthy be it in the young or old. I was given a raw egg whisked into my porridge as a child, now that is the right way to start the day.
We also no longer have to go out to the hen coop to see if any eggs were laid and the old time hygiene health risks associated with them have long been allayed with our stringent farming regulations. Okay if you have low immunity or are medically compromised then having them in a raw form like mayonnaise should be curtailed but that is about the limit in my view bar you are allergic to them altogether. Egg whites are three quarters water as it the yolk. The shells are porous which means they can absorb odours and their natural carbon dioxide gas can escape after a while.
Cooking wise they are unbeatable. They are best fresh of course and really a couple of weeks is the maximum time to use them up. They are vital right across the culinary spectrum from sauces, salads and starters, both hot and cold, to main courses like omelettes and quiches. Desserts and cakes would be very limited without them being an essential element in infinite recipes from pastry to puddings or just as basic like an egg wash to have the finished product gleaming.
I would eat about six on average a week, two on breakfasts say scrambled or poached or in salads and three in an omelette perhaps and then they would be consumed in many other dishes as a component part. They keep well too and you should always keep them refrigerated. Each commercial egg will have its own little expiry date stamped on it now. They will not kill you if you exceed this by a few days.
It’s fashionable to keep your own hens now too, though they are a bit of work so you will want to be dedicated to the welfare and clean their area properly if home produced. The foxes have moved into our urban areas so any holes in that fencing will mean you could be missing one or more of your little darlings in the morning. The pleasure of having a fresh egg straight from the henhouse in is one of life’s great culinary joys.
So if you are not keen on eggs you are certainly missing out and if you cannot boil an egg then you definitely need some tuition. This is the common refrain from those who are cookery challenged but eggs are so versatile you can avoid boiling them altogether so you just need to crack on with all the other ways they can be enjoyed.
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