Can I freeze eggs? Learn how to preserve eggs, from how to freeze dry eggs to rehydrating them and freezing eggs in silicone forms.
It’s frustrating to buy eggs from the store when our own hens aren’t laying. But as soon as the weather warms and light levels increase, the flood of eggs will begin again. So, take advantage of the spring abundance and put up the excess eggs to enjoy all year round.
How to Freeze Dry Eggs
If you have access to a freeze dryer, you can put up lots of eggs when your hens are at peak production. Freeze-dried egg powder will last up to 20 years if it’s stored properly, though my goal is to get through the winter months without buying eggs from the store. The exact amount that can be freeze dried at a time will depend on the size of the freeze dryer. My large model holds between 2 and 3 dozen per load.
Crack the eggs, whisk them together, and pour them onto the trays. The hardest part is loading the trays into the freeze dryer without spilling eggs, but I found that if I move slowly, it’s doable. I use the factory settings for eggs, drying them at 125 degrees F until they’re completely dry and there aren’t any cold spots.
They’re very light and crunchy when finished. Break them into chunks and put them in the blender to make an egg powder. I prefer to store the powder in vacuum-sealed pint jars with oxygen absorbers because we go through a jar in about a week.
For longer-term storage, seal the powder in Mylar bags with an oxygen absorber.
Rehydrating Freeze Dried Eggs
When I’m ready to use the eggs, I stir 2 tablespoons egg powder into 2 tablespoons water (equals one egg) and wait a bit while it rehydrates. Then I can scramble them or use them in recipes. It’s also a great way to bring a healthy, lightweight source of protein on a camping trip.
Overall, I like that freeze-dried eggs are shelf-stable, and the process of freeze-drying is easy. My freeze-dried eggs open up freezer space for other food.
Ana
Wisconsin
Can I Freeze Eggs?
Another easy way to preserve your eggs is to freeze them. What I’ve heard most often is the suggestion to beat a few eggs together slightly before putting them in the freezer. I find this highly inconvenient because I have to search for the bag with the correct number of eggs for whatever recipe I’m working on.
Another common suggestion is to crack them into ice-cube trays. One egg easily overflowed the space in a standard ice-cube tray when I tried this.
Then I saw a suggestion for silicone cupcake pans, which seemed like a good idea until I discovered two packages of reusable silicone cupcake wrappers costs less than the price of one silicone cupcake pan. They’re also fairly sturdy and require less space in the cabinet.
I line a cooking sheet with parchment paper to help keep the pan clean in case I drip a bit of egg white (I keep the scraps at the end of the roll for this purpose) and place the silicone cups on the pan. I can fit 24 silicone wrappers on one pan; a cupcake pan only has 12 spaces. Crack one egg into each cup.
Place the cooking sheet in the freezer for two or three hours or until the eggs are frozen through. If you leave them overnight in the freezer, cover them with plastic to keep them from drying out too much.
Once they’re solid, remove them from the freezer, pop each one out of its liner, put them in freezer bags, and date them.
When I need eggs for cooking or baking, I take out as many frozen eggs as I need for the recipe, let them thaw, and get to cooking. If I need four eggs for cookies, I pull four frozen eggs out. If I want two eggs for an omelet, I pull out two eggs. The yolks do tend to break as they thaw, though, so they’re not good for anything that needs runny yolks. But, with plenty of frozen eggs for baking and cooking, I can keep the few eggs that come in during molt and winter for eating over-easy.
Can You Freeze Egg Whites?
You can also separate your yolks and whites. Put one yolk in each cup and the white in another (like I’ve done here for a few in here) so you can pull out what you need later. Don’t worry if the yolk breaks prior to freezing; it won’t hurt anything.
Audra
Kansas
