A dietary mainstay is eggs. They are nourishing and versatile when it comes to cooking. If mishandled, they can also result in food poisoning. Salmonella is also not enjoyable. It can cause four to seven-day-long symptoms like fever, stomach pain, vomiting, and diarrhea. Because of this, many individuals avoid eating cookie dough made with raw eggs. But even those who handle and store eggs carefully may have a common problem. So, is an egg cracked while boiling safe to eat?

When eggs that have been boiled vigorously strike another egg or the pot, they frequently crack. It can happen if the eggs are overcooked, which results in the buildup of gasses that cause cracks to form. Although they may not look as good as eggs that don’t break during boiling, cracked eggs are safe to consume. After cooking, put the cracked, hard-boiled egg in the refrigerator if you won’t be eating it. One with a crack should be consumed within a week, just like every other hard-boiled egg.

Why Do Some Eggs Crack While Boiling?

A cracked-boiled egg might be an annoying issue, but once we investigate why it happens, you’ll wonder why it doesn’t happen more frequently! 

Every egg has a tiny amount of air, usually at one end. This airspace would have been visible when peeling a hard-boiled egg. Rapid heating causes the egg to become under pressure, which leads to air leakage via the egg’s microscopic pores. The shell will break because these can’t escape quickly enough to keep up with the rapidly building pressure. 

While not every egg experiences this, some do more frequently than others. A weak eggshell that is more likely to shatter will be produced by hens that are not in their best physical condition. They are also more prone to cracking if heated quickly or vigorously enough to knock against one another in the pan while boiling.

Is Egg Cracked While Boiling Safe to Eat?

If your egg cracks while boiling and you wonder if it’s still safe to eat, you’ll get your answer.

It is still completely safe to consume an egg that was initially whole but cracked while boiling, regardless of whether the egg comes out misshapen and bulbous or produces wisps of white that resemble clouds. Since it has been wholly heated, anything possibly hazardous should have been killed, just like any other egg. 

Nevertheless, there is a warning: since the shell has broken, pathogens may now target that gap in the shell. Just give eating and peeling priority. To avoid doubt, we’re referring to eggs that crack during or before boiling. Another matter is cracked eggs of undetermined vintage. 

Try this alternative way to prevent these free-form hard-boiled eggs: place the eggs in a pot, cover them with water, and bring them to a boil. When the water reaches a boil, cover the saucepan, turn off the heat, and allow it to stand for 10 to 15 minutes (depending on the size of the eggs). 

Eat them immediately after cooking, or cold them in an ice bath to keep them fresher for longer. This technique is believed to stop the eggs from becoming rubbery and to stop that ugly green ring that occasionally occurs on the yolk, in addition to those weird cracks.

What Does A Cracked Boiled Egg Look Like?

This issue has occurred, and you will know it has if you’ve ever seen a cracked-boiled egg! As soon as you raise the egg pan’s lid, you will see something seriously amiss. 

The egg could have broken so badly that the egg white has begun to leak out, which is the worst-case situation. It will be forced through the air-escape breach by internal pressure in the egg. 

One of two things will be evident here. Egg whites may leak out in one instance in the form of lengthy strands that twist around the egg and spread around the pan. As the egg white contacts the boiling water, it begins to cook and becomes a thick, gelatinous white substance. 

A tiny bit of egg white that escapes can adhere to the egg’s surface and cook there. Around a fractured portion of the shell, you’ll notice little white globules of cooked egg white. 

An egg will occasionally crack, but no egg white will leak out. It is due to the egg’s intact internal membrane.

Do You Need To Eat A Cracked Boiled Egg Straight Away?

If you just boiled an egg you planned to store for some days and noticed that it cracked while boiling, you may wonder if you need to eat it immediately.

Although a cracked cooked egg does not have to be consumed immediately, you must handle it differently than a full-boiled egg. 

A cracked egg exposes the inside contents to potential pathogens, as opposed to a whole egg’s shell protecting it against bacterial contamination. 

To avoid water and bacteria being trapped within a cracked-boiled egg, it is best to peel it. Remove any lumps of egg white that stick out from the egg’s surface. 

While a whole-boiled egg in its shell can be kept for a fair amount of time, a peeled-boiled egg must be handled just like any other cooked egg. 

It can be kept in the refrigerator for up to four days, but it shouldn’t be left at room temperature for more than two hours. 

Peel and consume these first if you have a pan of boiled eggs and just one or two of them have cracked. They won’t last as long as their uncracked counterparts, only a few days.

How To Prevent Eggs From Cracking While Boiling

So, how can we avoid having this annoying issue in the first place? Luckily, we can lessen the likelihood of your eggs shattering in the pan by taking a few easy precautions. 

Keep away from plunging your eggs into boiling water. To avoid an abrupt change in pressure that could cause the egg to burst, hard-boiled eggs can be started in cold water that has been heated to a moderate simmer. 

The cooking water should be salted. Egg cracking is less likely, and the egg white cooks more quickly. Use free-range, organically-fed hens to lay high-quality eggs. These will have more durable, less brittle shells. 

Your boiled eggs will bump against each other if you allow them to roll around in the pan. A weak spot on the egg might develop with the slightest bump, resulting in an egg explosion in your pan. Use eggs that are neither overly old nor too fresh. Most individuals discover that cooking eggs about a week old produce the finest results.

How Long Can Cooked Eggs Be Stored In The Refrigerator?

An egg is a food you need to be careful with when cooking and storing, as any wrong move could lead to you eating an egg that could cause harm. So, how long can cooked eggs be stored in the refrigerator?

Depending on the type of cooked egg, eggs can be kept in the refrigerator for varying periods. It depends on whether the egg has been cooked in another way or is still in its shell. Eggs are better protected from bacterial contamination when cooked inside their shells. 

Compared to frying an egg without its shell, boiling eggs will partially break the natural barrier that keeps bacteria from accessing the eggshell. It means a hard-boiled egg in its shell can be preserved for up to a week in the refrigerator. 

Any other way of cooking the egg, such as scrambling, poaching, or frying it, dramatically increases the likelihood of bacterial contamination. It also applies to egg-based casseroles, frittatas, and omelets. This method of cooking eggs allows you to keep them in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Best Cooker For Boiling Eggs

1. Cuisinart Egg Cooker

This steamer can cook up to ten eggs at once in two levels and steam-cook eggs to a hard, medium, or soft boil. Oven mitts are a good suggestion because they get hot while cooking, despite the handles on the side making lifting the lid easier. 

The Egg Central also has removable trays, so you may cook three-egg omelets or poach four eggs simultaneously. However, frying more than two eggs would have caused the tray to overflow. Using the supplied measuring cup, adjust the amount of water added to determine the cooking time. To prevent the eggs from overcooking, there is a simple on/off button, a blue LED light, an audible alert, and standby mode. A piercing pin is included to make a tiny hole in the eggshell so it can be peeled more easily.

Pros:

• It fits up to 10 eggs at once
• Includes trays for poaching and omelets
• Easy to clean
• Accurate, automatic cooking

Cons:

• The Omelet tray is 
• The buzzer must be turned off manually

Conclusion

Despite not looking particularly delicious, an egg that has cracked while boiling is safe to eat! After all, we frequently boil eggs without the shell with no issues. The egg white is poached in the simmering water when it breaks free from the shell. 

Cracked eggs could be a problem if you need flawless, unstained cooked eggs for a picnic or buffet lunch. Water might enter the egg through the crack while it cooks, so that it may be slightly watery. It won’t be as aesthetically beautiful because the fried egg’s exterior will be marred. 

The good news is that there are some delicious ways to utilize eggs that have cracked while boiling. The white that escaped during cooking should be removed, as it may have an unpleasant rubbery texture. Peel away the shell. The egg can then be used in salads or sandwiches or eaten whole, diced, or mashed.