[0 - 3] - Cage free, farm fresh, (incidental music) certified humane?
[3 - 4] We've all been there,
[4 - 6] standing in the dairy aisle of the supermarket,
[6 - 8] your stomach in knots, your knees weak,
[8 - 11] your head aching, your hands trembling,
[11 - 13] tears running down your face,
[13 - 15] as you try to pick out a carton of eggs.
[16 - 19] "This shouldn't be this hard." (sobbing)
[22 - 25] Chicken eggs are a culinary marvel.
[25 - 28] I've now done separate episodes on egg whites and egg yolks,
[28 - 30] and there's still so much more to say.
[30 - 32] That's why today, I'm covering the whole egg.
[32 - 34] Now if you want a deep dive on those two components,
[34 - 35] check out the links below.
[35 - 38] Let's dive right into shopping for and cooking eggs.
[38 - 39] Now, unless you get your eggs
[39 - 42] from your parents really nice neighbors with chickens,
[44 - 46] you've likely been assaulted at the supermarket
[46 - 48] by an unfathomable amount of terminology.
[48 - 50] Eggs, which seem like the most ubiquitous
[50 - 52] uniform commodity at the store,
[52 - 54] are by far the most confusing things to buy.
[54 - 55] But you know what?
[55 - 57] We are gonna learn this stuff right here and right now,
[57 - 59] so the next time you go to the store,
[59 - 61] you'll know exactly which eggs you wanna buy.
[61 - 62] First up, we gotta clear some brain space.
[62 - 65] So let's look at what you can completely ignore.
[65 - 66] First is eggshell color.
[66 - 69] This has zero to do with the egg inside the shell.
[69 - 71] Some hens simply put a pigment
[71 - 72] in the final coating on the egg,
[72 - 73] which is called the cuticle.
[73 - 75] According to Paul Adams,
[75 - 77] Cook's Illustrated Senior Science Research Editor,
[77 - 81] the eggshell color is the same as the hens ear lobes.
[81 - 83] So now you know that information.
[83 - 85] Sorry, I know we're trying to clear out brain space,
[85 - 87] but eggshell color, forget about it.
[87 - 90] Farm fresh, wow, I sure love farm fresh foods.
[90 - 93] Now, if only this term were regulated by the USDA
[93 - 94] and it meant anything.
[96 - 98] Grading indicates how fresh an egg is.
[98 - 99] You should always buy grade A,
[99 - 102] because it's likely your only option.
[102 - 104] Now, AA eggs are the freshest,
[104 - 106] but you really don't find them at most supermarkets.
[106 - 109] And B's, they end up in big processing facilities.
[109 - 111] Hormone-free is a great thing,
[111 - 112] and it applies to all eggs,
[112 - 115] because giving hormones to chickens is illegal.
[115 - 116] Okay, so let's recap.
[116 - 118] We're going to ignore eggshell color,
[118 - 121] farm fresh, grades, and hormone-free,
[121 - 123] and to help us remember that at the store,
[123 - 125] I came up with my own little pneumonia device,
[125 - 129] pneumatic device, pneumonic device, EFGH.
[129 - 133] So it's eggshell, farm, grade, and hormone.
[133 - 135] That's great, we understand some terms that don't matter,
[135 - 137] but what about the terms that actually mean something?
[137 - 139] First up, is it vegetarian-fed?
[139 - 142] Yes, it means the chickens ate vegetarian feed,
[142 - 143] but chickens are omnivores,
[143 - 146] so that's not necessarily an ideal diet for them.
[146 - 147] Next is pasteurized.
[147 - 150] The vast majority of eggs are not pasteurized,
[150 - 151] so these aren't super easy to find.
[151 - 154] If you wanna use raw eggs but eliminate the small risk
[154 - 155] of getting sick from salmonella,
[155 - 157] these are a decent option.
[157 - 159] But beware, the process of pasteurization
[159 - 161] can affect egg white protein structure
[161 - 164] and cause problems in egg white heavy baking recipes
[164 - 165] such as angel food cake.
[165 - 166] Next is organic.
[166 - 168] Now this term carries the full weight
[168 - 170] of the USDA organic requirements,
[170 - 173] which include feeding hens organic, non-GMO feed,
[173 - 175] giving antibiotics only as needed,
[175 - 177] and providing the hens with access to the outdoors.
[177 - 179] Next on our list is certified humane.
[179 - 180] In order to be certified humane,
[180 - 182] a non-governmental third-party auditor
[182 - 183] checks to make sure
[183 - 185] that the hens are being treated humanely.
[185 - 187] Some requirements include providing access to purchase
[187 - 190] and nest boxes and limiting flock density.
[190 - 192] And finally, omega-3.
[192 - 195] The food these hens eat contains omega-3 fatty acids.
[195 - 196] They're basically given fish oil
[196 - 198] or other ingredients rich in omega-3s.
[198 - 200] The final category of terminology
[200 - 201] that we're gonna talk about
[201 - 202] is where the hens were raised.
[202 - 204] First up is cage-free.
[204 - 206] Now this just means that the hens are in a big building
[206 - 207] but not cages.
[207 - 209] Next is free range
[209 - 211] and these hens have continuous access to the outdoors.
[211 - 213] It doesn't mean they spend time outside,
[213 - 214] but they have the option.
[214 - 217] If there's a certified humane label on the carton,
[217 - 219] those hens must spend six hours per day outside.
[219 - 221] Finally, we have pasture-raised.
[221 - 224] Now on its own, it's not regulated by the USDA,
[224 - 226] so shouldn't it be in the ignore section, not so fast.
[226 - 228] If paired with certified humane,
[228 - 231] it means that the hens spend most of their lives outside.
[231 - 232] Now, that's a lot of terminology,
[232 - 233] and at the end of the day,
[233 - 236] what's most important is that you are an informed consumer
[236 - 238] and you make choices that are based on your values.
[238 - 239] Now, with all this information,
[239 - 241] what do I personally look for at the market?
[241 - 242] I'm looking for organic,
[242 - 245] because that carries actual important requirements
[245 - 246] and certified humane,
[246 - 248] which in and of itself is good,
[248 - 249] but it also adds tithe the other terms
[249 - 251] regarding how the birds live.
[251 - 253] What I'm not gonna get into today is packaging,
[253 - 255] which seems to get crazier by the day.
[255 - 257] I mean, I've bought macaroni in France
[257 - 258] with less fancy packaging.
[258 - 259] Okay, so we've purchased our eggs,
[259 - 261] and now it's time to cook them.
[261 - 263] I'm gonna show you recipes and techniques
[263 - 265] for two of my favorite preparations,
[265 - 266] poached and scrambled.
[266 - 267] Let's go to the kitchen.
[267 - 270] Now, everyone knows that you gotta crack a few eggs
[270 - 271] if you wanna make an omelette,
[271 - 273] but did you know that you also have to crack a few eggs
[273 - 275] if you wanna make poached eggs?
[276 - 277] Okay, well, stick with me.
[277 - 279] I've got lots more wisdom to share, promise.
[279 - 281] It's not difficult to crack open an egg,
[281 - 282] but where you choose to crack it
[282 - 285] can have an impact on how clean and easy the process is.
[285 - 287] Let's look at two common methods,
[287 - 289] and one, you likely haven't tried before.
[289 - 291] Cracking an egg on the counter or other flat surface
[291 - 293] has some pros and cons.
[293 - 295] One positive is that contact with the flat surface
[295 - 298] creates larger shell fragments in the break.
[298 - 299] Those larger shell fragments
[299 - 301] are less likely to get into the egg,
[301 - 302] and if they do,
[302 - 304] they're much easier to find and remove.
[304 - 305] The downside of this method
[305 - 308] is that the counter isn't very likely to break the membrane
[308 - 309] under the shell.
[309 - 311] That can lead to some really messy opening.
[311 - 314] Next up, we have the classic edge-of-a-bowl technique.
[314 - 316] For this method, the pros and cons are swapped.
[316 - 317] The sharper edge of the bowl
[317 - 319] breaks the shell into smaller fragments,
[319 - 321] while also pushing those inside the egg.
[321 - 324] The good news is that the membrane gets cleanly severed.
[324 - 327] My favorite method delivers results right between the two.
[327 - 330] Here you crack your egg on another egg.
[330 - 332] The egg with a slightly weaker shell will crack every time.
[333 - 335] It's a little like snapping a wish bone each time you do it,
[335 - 336] but beyond those thrills,
[336 - 338] it's the quality of the crack that I like most.
[339 - 340] The gentle curvature of the egg shell
[340 - 342] creates a perfect divot for your thumbs,
[342 - 343] and it severs the membrane
[343 - 346] without creating tiny eggshell shards.
[346 - 348] And you can also play a pretty fun game, in my opinion,
[348 - 351] where you see which egg in the carton reigns supreme
[351 - 353] in round after round of egg on egg battle.
[353 - 355] Okay, we've done the first step of poaching,
[355 - 356] which is cracking our eggs.
[356 - 357] Now it's time to cook.
[357 - 359] One big key for poached eggs
[359 - 361] is to use the freshest ones You can find.
[361 - 363] If you do run into AA eggs,
[363 - 365] grab them for your poached eggs.
[365 - 366] The other key is to understand
[366 - 368] that there are two important parts of egg whites.
[368 - 369] Now, if you look closely,
[369 - 371] you can see that there is a thick portion
[371 - 373] sitting snug next to the yolk
[373 - 374] and a thin portion surrounding that.
[374 - 375] The difference in textures
[375 - 378] is thanks to a protein called ovomucin.
[378 - 380] That protein creates more structure in the thick part.
[380 - 381] In a fresh egg,
[381 - 383] the thick part makes up about 60% of the white.
[383 - 385] Now, that number drops over time
[385 - 387] as more of the thick white turns thin.
[387 - 390] If your poached eggs fill the pot with feathery bits,
[390 - 391] you can blame that thin white.
[391 - 393] When instead of blaming it, why not just get rid of it?
[393 - 394] Simply place your eggs
[395 - 397] in a relatively fine mesh calendar like this
[397 - 399] and watch the thin whites drop right off.
[399 - 401] I like to say them for my next scramble or omelette.
[401 - 404] Now we just bring water to a boil in our dutch oven,
[404 - 405] add vinegar and salt,
[405 - 407] which both help the whites set more quickly,
[407 - 409] and then off heat, we'll add our eggs,
[409 - 411] cover, and cook for three minutes.
[411 - 412] When I remove the eggs from the water,
[412 - 414] I then press the bottom of the slotted spoon onto a towel
[414 - 416] to wick away any water
[416 - 417] that we don't want to end up on our plate.
[417 - 419] My favorite way to eat poached eggs
[419 - 421] is the Turkish dish, cilbir.
[421 - 422] Now, this recipe
[422 - 424] by Cook's Illustrated Senior Editor, Annie Petito,
[424 - 427] seasons the yogurt with garlic and salt.
[427 - 430] A final drizzle of this Aleppo pepper-infused butter
[430 - 431] and a sprinkle of dried mint
[431 - 432] brings the dish to life.
[432 - 433] Let's break into that egg.
[433 - 436] Oh, just look at that beautiful yolk,
[436 - 438] and the whites, perfectly tender.
[438 - 440] Next up, scrambled eggs.
[440 - 443] Now everyone on this planet is a scrambled egg expert,
[443 - 444] and their method is great.
[444 - 445] I'm not even being facetious.
[445 - 446] I can't think of a food
[446 - 449] where personal preference plays a greater role
[449 - 450] than scrambled eggs,
[450 - 452] and my preference, most of the time,
[452 - 455] is glossy, rich, big, fluffy, tender curds.
[455 - 456] And here's how to achieve that.
[456 - 458] A good deal of making great scrambled eggs
[458 - 461] happens before you even turn on the burner.
[461 - 462] By that I mean what you add to the eggs
[462 - 464] has a big impact on the end result.
[464 - 466] Since my goal here is richness,
[466 - 468] I go for half and half over milk.
[468 - 470] Half and half is about 10% fat,
[470 - 471] and that fat helps prevent egg proteins
[471 - 473] from bonding too tightly.
[473 - 474] So we'll still get nice curds,
[474 - 476] but they'll be more tender.
[476 - 478] I also test in using heavy cream in this recipe,
[478 - 480] but found it took over the egg flavor.
[480 - 482] But there is another great source of fat
[482 - 484] that actually tastes like eggs,
[484 - 486] and that would be egg yolks.
[486 - 488] I steal a common fresh pasta technique
[488 - 491] and add a couple of extra egg yolks to my scrambled eggs.
[491 - 492] Just as with pasta,
[492 - 494] the addition makes this scramble luxurious and golden.
[494 - 496] My final addition to the eggs is salt.
[496 - 498] Obviously, it's there for flavor,
[498 - 500] but getting salt in there before cooking
[500 - 501] also helps tenderize the scramble,
[501 - 502] for the same reason,
[502 - 505] brine or salted poultry and meat is more tender.
[505 - 506] It alters the proteins
[506 - 509] so that they don't bind as tightly together during cooking.
[509 - 510] I like to beat the mixture with a fork
[510 - 512] until it is pure yellow,
[512 - 513] but you can stop earlier
[513 - 515] if you like some streaks of egg white.
[515 - 516] Okay, time to cook.
[516 - 517] Now we're starting with a 10-inch skillet,
[517 - 519] which might seem sort of small
[519 - 520] for this amount of eggs,
[520 - 521] but that's actually the point.
[521 - 524] Keeping the eggs in a thicker layer helps to trap steam,
[524 - 527] which gives us greater chance of creating big curds.
[527 - 529] It also limits the amount of pan surface
[529 - 530] actually touching the eggs,
[530 - 532] which makes our job a lot easier.
[532 - 535] You see, we aren't actually going to scramble these eggs,
[535 - 538] I know, I know, bait-and-switch, are going to scrape them.
[538 - 541] I pour the eggs into the skillet over medium high heat
[541 - 542] and then immediately start
[542 - 544] methodically scraping the bottom of the skillet.
[544 - 545] What my spatula lists from the skillet
[545 - 549] are big swaths of set eggs that clump into meaty curds,
[549 - 551] and then the egg liquid fills in the gap.
[551 - 553] And it's just repeat, repeat, repeat.
[553 - 555] Once my spatula leaves a trail in the skillet,
[555 - 557] I know it's time to turn the heat to low.
[557 - 560] This step lowers the risk of overcooking the eggs
[560 - 561] during the final few seconds of cooking.
[561 - 564] The final key is to get the eggs out of the skillet
[564 - 565] and onto a plate
[565 - 567] before they have reached your preferred doneness.
[567 - 569] The heat retained in the eggs
[569 - 572] will actually finish the cooking for you right on the plate.
[572 - 574] Hmm, look at these big, plush curds.
[574 - 576] Okay, big recap time.
[576 - 578] Now we know how to buy eggs,
[578 - 579] crack eggs, and cook eggs.
[579 - 581] I guess there's really nothing more
[581 - 582] to all to say about eggs.
[582 - 584] I covered absolutely everything.
[586 - 590] Right, okay, so maybe I will be back with more eggs.
[590 - 590] And you know what,
[590 - 591] that next time,
[591 - 594] I'm also gonna teach you the final egg lesson,
[594 - 595] how to lay eggs.
[595 - 597] Until then, happy cracking,
[597 - 600] because this is absolutely one of one brilliant,
[600 - 602] incredible ways to eat eggs.
[604 - 605] Thank you so much for watching.
[605 - 608] I would love to know what method you prefer
[608 - 609] for cracking your eggs.
[609 - 611] Have you ever done the egg-on-egg method?
[611 - 612] Will you try it now?
[612 - 613] Let me know in the comments,
[613 - 614] and I'll see you next time.