School me on farm fresh eggs

[Joshua223]

Regarding the darker yolk and better taste in farm-fresh eggs, both rooster(s) and hens roam free and inseminate so could be part of the taste.

I thought owners usually didn't keep roosters for that reason.

The yolks is much darker in fresh eggs. They are stronger tasting than store bought. I've heard once they're refrigerated they have to stay refrigerated. Washed or not.

That is what I've heard.

Never really compared the two so I haven't noticed that much of a difference. I just know whenever I've had fresh eggs I always enjoyed them.

 

[jeep78]

I thought owners usually didn't keep roosters for that reason.


That is what I've heard.

Never really compared the two so I haven't noticed that much of a difference. I just know whenever I've had fresh eggs I always enjoyed them.

Rooster not needed for laying hens. They are a PITA, so I had none for my hens.

 

[jeep78]

Agreed, rooster not needed for layer hens to lay eggs, but my family always kept a rooster or 2 with the flock, eaten those eggs for 30 years and my neighbor keeps a rooster for the same for her laying hens today, and she shares those eggs with me now.

I had a rooster with my first flock of hens. He was always hiding under a truck and gigged my wife as she walked by. That didn't bother me as much as him attacking MY legs when I was under a vehicle working on it.

I once asked an old farmer how long roosters live. His answer, after some thought, was "Ya know, I never heard of a rooster dying of old age".

 

[lftd&pwrstrok'n]

Unless you plan to hatch the eggs, the only reason for having a rooster(s) is to protect the flock. We have roosters and have had them since the first flock was purchased. Of the dozens of roosters over the past 6-8 years, I have only had to dispatch 2 of them for being aggressive.

As far as the taste of eggs go; rooster spunk has nothing to do w the tastes of farm fresh eggs. It's the diet of the hens that affect the taste.

 

[Joshua223]

Unless you plan to hatch the eggs, the only reason for having a rooster(s) is to protect the flock. We have roosters and have had them since the first flock was purchased. Of the dozens of roosters over the past 6-8 years, I have only had to dispatch 2 of them for being aggressive.

As far as the taste of eggs go; rooster spunk has nothing to do w the tastes of farm fresh eggs. It's the diet of the hens that affect the taste.

Anyone here had that fresh, wild onion milk? I hear that is something else!

 

[lftd&pwrstrok'n]

Anyone here had that fresh, wild onion milk? I hear that is something else!

No sir. Our milk cow died before we were able to figure out how them quad teats worked...

 

[gh1950]

We never wash our eggs for our/family consumption. Only wash the eggs we sell. Have eaten eggs off the counter that were 4-5 months old w/ no issues. They do start to lose their "fresh" taste though. If you have any concern about them being okay to eat: place them in a bowl of water:
Floats- toss is out
Sinks- good to go
Stands up on end- use immediately ("they" say to boil immediately, but I don't see why the cooking method matters)

The protective coating is called Bloom and eggs should be refrigerated after it is washed off. It has been claimed that eggs will stay "fresh" and unrefrigerated for up to a year w/ a mineral oil wash, but I have not tried it to see.

The key to not refrigerating your eggs is temperature control in your storage area and no sunlight.

Personally, I only wash the eggs that have poop/dirt on them before cooking. I have survived w/o salmonella so far, although my day could be coming?

There are a couple of ways to preserve eggs for long periods and use them like they are fresh. never tried them, but I know that it can be done.

 

[Freshly Minted Georgian!]

We used to have about 15 hens out in Utah. Fresh eggs are richer tasting. We always spoiled them with treats too....they loved dried cranberries and raisins and went crazy over a plate of cooked spaghetti noodles. We also gave them crushed oyster shell which made the egg shells much thicker and more durable than store bought eggs.

We also kept 1-2 turkey hens most of the time. They don't lay as frequently but good eggs there too!

 

[Joshua223]

We used to have about 15 hens out in Utah. Fresh eggs are richer tasting. We always spoiled them with treats too....they loved dried cranberries and raisins and went crazy over a plate of cooked spaghetti noodles. We also gave them crushed oyster shell which made the egg shells much thicker and more durable than store bought eggs.

We also kept 1-2 turkey hens most of the time. They don't pay as frequently but good eggs there too!

I remember when I was a kid visiting a neighbor for Easter. For the egg hunt, they hid a boiled goose egg among the others.

 

[chrislibby88]

Regarding the darker yolk and better taste in farm-fresh eggs, both rooster(s) and hens roam free and inseminate so could be part of the taste.

Naw, the dark yokes are a product of a richer diet with forraiged plants, bugs, whether the chickens fit down their throats. The light colored bland store bought yokes are from the primarily corn diet, same reason corn fed beef has white fat compared to the yellow/orange fat found in grass/pasture fed beef. The same can be observed in deer on a heavy corn diet.