Can You Eat Cloudy Egg Whites?
Unlike industrially produced foods and beverages, eggs can vary greatly in appearance and composition. They are made from chicken, not in a factory, which means that these variations are to be expected not only from chicken to chicken, but also from egg to egg. I once bought a box of eggs with 11 double yolks. (I thought I was a witch, but luckily that kind of thing is no longer frowned upon.) Eggs are a gamble of sorts, that’s what I’m saying, but the differences in appearance can be startling.
My parents recently bought some chickens (they came with their new home outside the city), which was great because in the last six months I only had to buy eggs once. Fresh eggs obtained directly from chicken (or purchased from a farmer’s market) may have even more options than those sold at the grocery store. Sometimes the shell is wrinkled, sometimes the egg is very small, and sometimes the white is cloudy.
If you’re used to seeing perfectly translucent egg whites, cloudy may sound startling, but that’s not cause for concern. In fact, this is a cause for celebration. Cloudy white indicates that your egg is very fresh. This turbidity is due to dissolved carbon dioxide that has not been able to escape through the shell and will not affect the taste of your egg in any way.
However, pink and white is not what you want to eat. According to the USDA , a pink tint or pearl white “indicates deterioration caused by the Pseudomonas bacteria.” This is in contrast to the blood stains in the yolk, which result from “rupture of one or more small blood vessels in the yolk during ovulation,” but can still be eaten safely. (If the sight of blood hits you, just beat it up.)