Can’t remember if an egg is fresh or hard
boiled? Just spin the egg. If it wobbles, it’s raw. If it spins easily,
it’s hard boiled.
A fresh egg will sink in water, a stale
one will float. Eggs contain all the essential protein, minerals and
vitamins, except Vitamin C. But egg yolks are one of few foods that
naturally contain Vitamin D.
Eggs also contain choline, which is
necessary for healthy cell membranes in the body. Choline stimulates
brain development and function and helps preserving memory.
Eggs also are good for your eyes because
they contain lutein which helps prevents age-related cataracts and
muscular degeneration. In fact, eggs contain more lutein than spinach
and other green vegetables.
The color of the egg shell is not related
to quality, nutrients, flavour, or cooking characteristics. White
shelled eggs are produced by hens with white feathers and white ear
lobes.
Brown shelled eggs are produced by hens
with red feathers and red ear lobes. Brown egg layers usually are
slightly larger and require more food, thus brown eggs usually cost more
than white eggs.
An egg shell has as many as 17,000 pores
over its surface. A whole egg is about 3 tablespoons worth of liquid,
the egg yolk measures about 1 tablespoon of liquid.
Older hens tend to lay bigger eggs but
double-yolked eggs are produced by younger hens whose egg production
cycles are not yet synchronized.
There are about 70 calories in an
uncooked egg and 77 calories in a cooked egg. China produces the most
eggs, at about 160 billion per year.
In the US, about 280 million hens produce more than 65 billion eggs per year. A hen can lay about 250 eggs per year.
Chicken are descendants of the red jungle
fowl (gallus gallus spadiceus) that lives in Asia. The chicken is one
of the first domestic animals, appearing in China around 1400 BC. The
are some 150 chicken species and hundreds of chicken breeds.
