Water Glassing Eggs – Long-Term Storage Of Raw Eggs

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Water glassing eggs is the perfect way to preserve fresh raw eggs for long-term storage.  If you have chickens, you know that egg production varies throughout the year.  During certain times of the year like springtime, you will get extra eggs.  And at other times of the year like winter, you might not get any eggs at all.  So how can you preserve eggs in the springtime, so you can have them to eat in the fall and winter months when your chickens aren’t laying as many eggs?  You can water glass them!

Water-glassing eggs is an old-fashioned egg preservation method that makes raw eggs shelf stable at room temperature for up to two years. In the days of long ago before there was refrigeration, people used to water glass their eggs to preserve them without refrigeration, and we can do the same today.  We have a large homestead pantry that we eat from everyday.  We are always looking for new ways to improve our food security and independence.  Having lots of water-glassed eggs on the shelf at all times, means that even if the chickens aren’t laying eggs, or the grocery store prices are high, I can still feed my family eggs as often as needed.

What Is Water Glassing Eggs?

Water glassing eggs is a method of preserving clean, unwashed raw farm-fresh eggs by placing them in a solution of pickling lime and water.  This solution prevents oxygen from reaching the egg, and therefore keeps the eggs from spoiling for up to two years.  

When a chicken lays an egg it has a natural protective coating on it called a “bloom”.  When this “bloom” is intact, it shields the egg from any outside contaminants.  This is why you must use clean unwashed eggs for water glassing, because this bloom must be intact in order for the eggs to keep.  When put into the pickling lime and water solution, it prolongs the life of the bloom, and helps to preserve the egg without refrigeration.  You can use water glassed eggs the same way you would use any other raw egg in cooking or baking.  If the yolks seem a bit soft, you can place them in the refrigerator for a few hours before using them and they will be firm up for frying or whatever you need a firm yolk for.

Tips:

• I like to use glass jars for water glassing eggs.  Quart of even half gallon wide mouth jars work great.
• You want to use a wide mouth container so you can make easily get the eggs in and out of the jar without cracking them.
• Sort through your eggs and find the cleanest eggs you can find, but make sure you don’t wash them.  Keeping plenty of hay in the nests will help to keep your eggs clean until you gather your eggs.  I always wash the dirty eggs and just store them in the refrigerator and use them right away.
• You’ll want to use unchlorinated water in your pickling lime/water solution.  If your water has chlorine in it, you can let it set out on the counter for a few hours and the chlorine will evaporate.
• Feel free to water glass eggs in larger containers if you wish, just keep the ratios of lime/water the same no matter the size of your container.

FAQ:

Why Preserve Eggs Anyway?

Eggs are kind of a seasonal food, because chickens don’t typically lay eggs in the winter when the days are cold and short.  In order to have eggs in the winter, and not purchase any eggs from outside sources, you’ll need to preserve some of them during the spring and summer months when you have an over abundance of eggs.  Eggs are also getting more expensive and hard to source all the time, so finding a way to produce all of your own eggs is very important.

How safe are water glassed eggs?

Water glassing eggs is perfectly safe as long as you’ve followed the process correctly.  It’s a simple process, so that’s not hard to do.  Make sure you’re using clean eggs and clean jars.  If an egg goes bad, you’ll definitely know it because it will smell like a rotten egg.

Do water glassed eggs taste the same as fresh eggs?

Yes, water glassed eggs taste just like fresh eggs.  There’s no difference between eating a water glassed egg and a farm fresh egg that was laid this morning.

What is the best container for water glassing eggs?

The best container for water glassing eggs is a solid-sided container like jars or food-grade buckets.  I prefer wide mouth quarts or half gallon jars because they are easy to handle, and that’s about how many eggs I’ll need to get out at a time for my family of seven.

How many eggs will fit in a glass jar?

8 – 10 eggs will fit in a quart jar, and 12-18 in a half-gallon jar.

Can you water glass store-bought eggs?

No, the bloom has been washed off of store bought eggs, so they are not safe for water glassing.  They must be refrigerated.

What kind of water can you use to water glass eggs?

Unchlorinated or filtered water is best.  Well water works fine also.

Can I use any kind of lime to water glass eggs?

There are two kinds of lime, garden lime and pickling lime.  Garden lime is calcium carbonate, whereas pickling lime is calcium hydroxide. Since the hydroxide is more alkaline, pickling lime is recommended for water glassing eggs.

Is it normal for the lime to sink to the bottom of the water-glassed eggs?

Yes, no matter how much you mix in the lime with the water, the lime will still settle to the bottom of the container.  This is perfectly normal.

What kinds of eggs can you use for water glassing?

You can use any kind of fowl egg, chicken, duck, guinea, the choice is yours. 

Where can I source pickling lime?

You can order it from Amazon or look for it at your local hardware store.

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Ingredients:

• 1 oz. of pickling lime powder
• 1 quart of water
• Clean, unwashed eggs.  (Eggs that don’t have any filth on them and are naturally clean with their bloom still intact.)

Equipment

• Kitchen scale
• Quart or half gallon sized jars with lids and rings

How To Water Glass Eggs

Measure out ½ oz. of pickling lime per quart jar, or 1 oz. of pickling lime per half gallon jar.  

Fill jar half full of water and mix well.

Carefully place clean, unwashed eggs into the pickling lime solution, making sure they are all fully submerged.

Place lids and rings on the jars and hand tighten.

Put the jars on a cool, dark place in your pantry for long-term food storage.

When you’re ready to use the eggs, just pull them out of the lime/water solution, rinse them off and use as you would any other egg.

They will keep for up to two years.