“When you start with a portrait and try to find pure form by abstracting more and more, you must end up with an egg.” - Picasso
According to Merriam-Webster, eggs are the hard-shelled reproductive bodies produced by a bird and especially by the common domestic chicken. In the biological sense, eggs can take on a variety of meanings, from female gametes to fish, reptile, bird, mammal reproductive structures. In any case, all the appearing egg terms will mostly refer to chicken eggs. Chicken eggs are great sources of protein, minerals and other vitamins like A, B, E and D. The Department of Health launched an advertisement campaign, "An egg a day is okay!" and can be seen in tarpaulin streamers in public markets and clinics. I learned later that similar campaigns were in effect in US and other European countries.
Egg and your Cholesterol
We have always been told, even by our doctors, not to eat too many eggs, because it contains a lot of cholesterol and may end up clogging out arteries. This is partially true because each egg has an average of 213 mg of cholesterol and 5 g of mostly saturated fat. Therefore, cutting on the intake of eggs, say only once or twice a week will reduce blood cholesterol. Such common knowledge was proven false, just recently, by a team of Harvard researchers. Studying more than 115,000 men and women, they found out that "healthy people can eat an egg a day without raising their cholesterol to harmful levels. This study suggests that dietary cholesterol isn't bound to blood cholesterol. Frank Hu, a Harvard researcher, noted that dietary recommendations to prevent heart disease should concentrate less on cholesterol and total fat intake and more on reducing intake of saturated and trans-unsaturated fats. I would guess fast foods and junk foods are on the hot list!
Egg Storage
According to US surveys, the chance of getting contaminated eggs is 1:20,000. There are no reports however, in our country, but basing on the number of foodborne illness outbreaks associated with contaminated egg products, I believe the chances are higher. Eggs can be contaminated by various Salmonella sp., the most common being S. enteritidis. Normally, contamination can be prevented by good housekeeping in poultries of egg producers. But, even careful disinfection and washing of raw eggs will not totally eliminate the chances of contamination.
Eggs should always be kept in the coolest part of the refrigerator. Egg experts say that 1 day at room temperature is equal to a week in the refrigerator. I can also suggest to store the eggs in their own cartons and not on the door where the usual egg trays are located. The reasons for this are: (1) the eggs are kept in a more constant cold temperature, and (2) the cartons prevent the eggs from acquiring off-odors from strong smelly foods in the ref like cabbage and onions.
Eggs should always be stored with the pointed end up. The large end of the egg which usually contains the air space, when placed down, prevents the yolk from touching the shell of the egg. The yolk will be relatively in the center of the egg protected by the porous shell, the egg membrane and the white albumen. Normally, a newly laid egg would not have an air space, but as time goes by, the egg becomes dehydrated and an air space forms on the large end of the egg. Storing it large end down will also help reduce egg shrinkage.
Eggs and the Melamine Scare
In October 2008, the news of contaminated products from Northern China escalated from milk to other food products. A popular crackers company in the Philippines found out that their products contained melamine. This means that the eggs or the milk products used were contaminated. Investigations revealed that the chickens were apparently fed with melamine contaminated feeds. One can only surmise if the contamination was intentional or accidental. In a poultry farm, it is very important to closely monitor not just the chickens themselves, but the feeds, the cages and the poultry farm management as well. Our country is slave to Chinese products nowadays. From toothpicks to computers, all are made from China. Our government has not the capabilities, and more importantly the will, to monitor the quality of these imported products. I sure hope this melamine scare is over but I wouldn't bet my money on it.
Egg on Every Child's Plate
Chicken egg is at the 6th place of commonly eaten food by Filipino children according to the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI). It's the number 1 "ulam" since the other five are rice, coconut oil, milk, white sugar, milk and brown sugar. Small wonder since it's relatively cheap and nutritious. Preparing eggs, however, for family consumption should not be taken lightly. Eggs shouldn't be given to babies less than 1 yr old as this would increase the likelihood of developing food allergies. Some pediatricians say that yolks can be given as early as 8 months old but since the allergens are mostly in the egg whites, these should be given later. Recent studies are slowly showing evidence that we can give eggs even to 4-month old babies. But, as a parent, would you take that chance?
Eggs and Cooking Time
Eggs can be cooked in a number of ways. Some say that the pleats of the chef's hat correspond to the number of preparations you can make with an egg. Whether hardboiled, sunny side-up, poached or scrambled, eggs should always be cooked thoroughly. No runny whites and the yolk should be at least viscous if not hard. The whole egg coagulates between 144 and 158°F and FDA recommends a minimum of 15 sec at 145°F for eggs for immediate consumption. Normally, almost all harmful bacteria are immediately destroyed at 144°F, but improper cooking and storage can result to eggs unsafe to eat.
Fresh eggs are likely to have more intact membrane and thus are more difficult to peel when hard boiled. The shells of older eggs are easier to peel. So, remember that when complaining about getting pockmarked peeled eggs.
As for cooked eggs with still liquid yolks (i.e. sunny side up or poached), these should be consumed within 2 hours. More time would allow for both contamination and bacterial growth. This is a wake up call for parents giving their children, eggs as part of their packed lunch for school. Even only a few cells of Salmonella can cause foodborne illness. Let us recall the 112 elementary students who got sick by eating egg sandwich at the school cafeteria in Tondo.
On Choosing Eggs
So how would you know if the eggs you are choosing are any good? Placing an egg against a strong light would reveal its freshness. The white should appear translucent and the yolk should be clearly defined. Not so fresh eggs will appear cloudy and stale eggs will have a dark cloudlike part near a portion of the shell. Of course, I don't advise you to bring your Mag-Lites inside the supermarket.You will decidedly look suspicious taking a sneak peak at those eggs looking for cloudy areas.
Another option is to put them in a saturated salt solution. One tablespoon salt, one quart water. Fresh eggs will sink and more than 6 day old eggs will float. Stale eggs will go high up and may ride high on the briny surface. As mentioned earlier, fresh eggs have little air space. Of course, putting egg after egg on a glassful of salty water may also attract trouble in the grocery store.
What else? You can also shake the egg gently near your ear. If a gurgle or a gentle thud is heard, congratulations, you just broke the yolk. Just kidding! It means that the egg is stale.
But for me, the best way is to look for the expiration date. Estimate your egg needs and don't buy too much eggs. Fresh eggs are always the best.
Which Came First, the Chicken or the Egg?
There are three possible answers for this one:
1. The chicken
2. The egg
3. Both at the same time.
Evolution states that chicken did not originally came from a chicken egg. The chicken, essentially all birds, evolved from reptiles. Notice the similarity in the presence of scales and egg laying habits? One theory suggests that a bird ancestor (that is not a chicken) gradually evolved to produce a chicken egg. When that egg hatched, it produced a chicken that layed more eggs to produce more chicken. In this case, the egg came first because the bird that layed that first chicken egg was not a chicken, but a bird ancestor of that chicken.
Genesis 1:21 from the Bible stated:
"So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good."
It didn't say that God created eggs from which these birds came from. This means that there were no chicken ancestor in the first place, thus the chicken came first. It can also be argued, that if only an egg laid by a chicken can be considered as a chicken egg, then the first chicken (which hatched from a non-chicken egg) laid the first chicken egg! Therefore, the chicken came first before the egg. Not only a mind-twister but a tongue-twister as well.
So what is the correct answer? Maybe it's harder to figure out than I thought it would be. This mind-warping chicken-egg thing would be a good point of debate, though I doubt any side would get all the points. Maybe it's a matter of opinion.
A similar dilemma faces our new graduates. They have a hard time getting jobs because they lack experience. How could they get experience if nobody is hiring them? Wish I had paid more attention to my logic / philosophy classes.
Some references and useful sites below:
http://www.incredibleegg.org
http://thinkexist.com/quotes/with/keywortd/egg
http://chicken-or-egg.3wpages.com
http://pinoyfranchising.blogspot.com/2006/09/franchising-chicken-egg-production
http://www.biology-online.org/dictionary/Egg
http://bible.cc/genesis/1-21
http://www.quotes.ubr.com/quotes-alphabetical/e-quotes/egg-quotes
http://www.eggsafety.org/f_a_q.htm#8
http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/eggs
http://www.thepoultrysite.com/poultrynews/18974/philippines-to-import-poultry-products-to-meet-demand
http://www.eggs.ab.ca/about/handling
http://www.topnews.in/health/melamine-discovered-chinese-eggs-authorities-make-first-arrest-25036
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/metro/view/20080925-162897/DoH-eyes-salmonella-in-Tondo-food-poisoning
http://www.ats.agr.gc.ca/ase/4670-eng
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/egg
http://stronglifts.com/cholesterol-saturated-fat-how-many-eggs-daily
http://www.proceeded.org/Chicken_or_the_egg
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