Intense conversation at work today about hard boiled eggs.

Why are hard boiled eggs in the frig section of the supermarket?

Any thoughts?

The only thing I can think of is that I might start looking for another job if I would have to listen to intense discussions about hard boiled eggs

Here's a reasonable explanation.

Short version, American mass farming introduces a need for sanitation of eggs that damages the cuticle (outer chemical protective layer) of the egg, which allows easier permeation of bacteria to the inside of the egg as the shell is semi-permeable. EU has banned the practice, which supposedly forces better farming practice and leaves the cuticle intact, so the egg is much less vulnerable to bacterial invasion.

Are they? I've found them to be in the normal aisle with the raw eggs. But if they're in the fridge, then it's likely down to the cooking method removing the cuticle.

__________________
The red blobs are all mine, you can't have 'em back!!! Bwahahaha!!!

The fridge has replied.

Now let's wait for these users
http://www.englishforum.ch/members/5527-chicken.html
http://www.englishforum.ch/members/17502-egg.html

And we have all we need

Should have said "aren't." Clearly I was to excited when I posted this.

Thanks for the replies, very interesting stuff.

Not for 1 second.

We never refrigerate cooked eggs in the US, just raw ones.

Tom

Hard boiled eggs in the supermarket tend to be painted too, though I've no idea if that makes any difference.

you can tell the difference between hard boiled eggs and raw ones because they are painted. swiss person told me hard boiled are always painted.

And here I thought it had to due to the small fridges...

There is a simple way to tell if an egg has been hard boiled or not. You put it on a flat surface and spin it. The boiled egg will spin for a long time because it's solid, and the raw won't because there's liquid inside and one of the laws of physics will slow it down.

Or, the swiss way, create a job to paint the eggs!

I am sure that there is at least one person on these forums who is now going to the fridge to test this...

I've seen at Coop and Migros hard boiled eggs (the painted ones) just on the aisle, not in the fridge.

The traditional way is to spin both, stop them and then immediately let go. The boiled egg will remain still but the raw one will continue to turn due to the inertia of its contents.

The coloured lacquer is the protective coating.

I used to prefer the "hit it on your sister's head" method.

This is actually what I do to make sure my eggs are fully boiled before cracking them. Lay the egg horizontally on the table and give it a strong spin, if it was fully boiled, it would stand up vertically.

not just in the USA

Pickle them and they last for years, great with a bag of cheese and onion crisps and a pint of Guinness.

Probably the same reason that hard-boiled eggs don't need to refrigerated anywhere else.

I don't keep eggs in the fridge at all, hard boiled or otherwise.