What makes an EQA® egg?

The Egg Quality Assurance™ (EQA^®) certification program is an industry-wide initiative that certifies Canadian eggs are produced according to strict food safety and animal welfare standards. While some egg cartons feature the EQA^® mark, know that this quality standard applies to all eggs produced on regulated Canadian farms!

What makes a Grade A egg?

There are three main things that determine Grade A quality of an egg: the condition of the shell, the position of the yolk, and the size of the air cell inside the shell. If the shell has no cracks, the yolk is centered and the air cell is very small – it meets Canada Grade A standards. These are the eggs you buy at the store.

Types of eggs at the store:

• Regular white or brown eggs – These eggs come from hens that are housed in small group settings. These are the most common eggs found in Canada.
• Enriched colony and furnished eggs – These eggs come from hens that are housed in small group settings with amenities such as perches and a curtained off area where hens lay their eggs.
• Free run eggs – These eggs come from hens that roam the entire barn floor. Some of these barns are equipped with vertical space too.
• Free range eggs – These eggs come from hens that roam the barn floor and access the outdoors when weather permits in Canada. 
• Vitamin-enhanced eggs – These eggs have more of a certain nutrient, like vitamin D or Omega-3. Hens are fed a nutritionally enhanced diet containing higher levels of certain nutrients that make their way from the diet of the hen into the egg.
• Eggs from hens fed a vegetarian diet – These eggs are from hens fed a diet containing only ingredients of plant origin. This is a special case as hens are omnivores.
• Organic eggs – These eggs come from hens raised in a free-range system with access to the outdoors. These hens are fed certified organic feed, and farmers follow the Canadian Organic Standards regulated by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

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Egg salad can also be served in many ways too–atop a slice of crusty bread with a sprig of fresh dill, tucked into a buttery croissant, or spooned into a crisp lettuce cup for a quick and delightful lunch. It’s perfect for picnics and potlucks as it can be prepared ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator until it’s time to serve.

To make egg salad, you will need the following ingredients:

• 4-6 hard boiled eggs
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• Optional add-ins e.g. dill, chives – see below for more inpso

To make the egg salad, follow these steps:

Begin by peeling and placing the hard boiled eggs in a medium-sized bowl.

1. Using a fork, gently press into the egg yolks until they are finely mashed and the whites break into pieces. Don’t over-mash–it’s good to have some texture.
2. Incorporate the mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, salt, and black pepper into the bowl, and mix it all together until the ingredients are evenly distributed.
3. Gently fold in any additional ingredients and mix until everything is just combined.
4. Give the mixture a taste test and make any necessary seasoning adjustments.
5. Serve the egg salad immediately or refrigerate it until ready to use. Egg salad will keep for up to 4 days in the fridge. 

Of course, this is merely the foundation for a great egg salad. Change up the ingredients and seasonings, anything from paprika to cumin to celery salt, and there’s no end to the ways that you can enjoy it.

If you’re looking for more egg salad inspiration, check out our collection of egg salad recipes.

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The dish consists of fried eggs served on a tortilla and covered with a flavourful salsa made of tomatoes, onions, and chiles. It’s often served with beans, cheese, and guacamole or avocado on the side.

Huevos rancheros owes its roots to the traditional indigenous cooking of Mexico, which used local ingredients and cooking techniques to create simple, hearty, and flavourful dishes. The dish likely originated as a way to use up leftover tortillas and eggs, which were staples of many rural Mexican diets. Over time, it has evolved into the popular dish that is enjoyed today.

The key to a great huevos rancheros is a perfect fried egg. Traditionally, the eggs would be prepared sunny-side up, but feel free to make your eggs the way you like them. For an in-depth look at how to make the perfect fried egg, check out our Eggs 101 article.

Huevos rancheros is a popular breakfast dish in Mexico but has also become popular in other parts of the world where it’s often served as a brunch or lunch dish.

The beauty of huevos rancheros is in its versatility. It can be customized with a variety of ingredients and flavours to suit individual tastes. Here are some ideas to customize your huevos rancheros:

• Poach the eggs instead of frying them. Poaching the eggs will give them a soft, silky texture that is different from the firm texture of fried eggs. Check out our in-depth guide to perfect poached eggs here.
• Add some greens and a soft boiled egg to make it a healthy and filling lunch.
• Switch up the sauce! Instead of using the traditional sauce made with tomatoes, onions, and chiles, you can try using a different sauce, such as a salsa verde, a mole sauce, or a chile sauce.
• Change up the cheese! Try swapping out the cheese for crumbled feta, or something more traditional like cotija if you can find it at a specialty market.
• Amp up the herbs! Add flavour with herbs like cilantro or parsley.
• For the kids, try our bite-sized version with made with scrambled eggs.
• Serve it with a side! Huevos rancheros makes a great dinnertime meal that can be served along with rice, grilled vegetables or corn on the cob.

Huevos rancheros is a tasty and nourishing dish that can be enjoyed at any meal. It’s also a great way to try new ingredients and flavours, and it can be made using a variety of egg cooking methods, from frying to poaching to scrambling. Huevos rancheros is a healthy and satisfying option that is packed with protein, vitamins, and minerals, making it a great choice for anyone looking to eat a balanced and nutritious meal.

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The real fun on Easter begins once the brunch table has been cleared and the craft table is set out. Let your children channel their creativity and energy into fun crafts the Easter Bunny himself would approve of.

Take a look at these fun ideas on how to plan the best Easter for your family:

Easter Yarn Eggs

Not your traditional Easter Eggs, Yarn Eggs are a fun twist on an old classic! All you need are some eggs, coloured yarn, and a glue gun. The best part about this fun craft is that it is 100% mess free and your kids will have so much fun choosing the colours of their yarn.

Dyeing Easter Eggs

Perfect for the artist of any age, Dyeing Easter Eggs creates beautiful, brightly coloured eggs. Get the whole family involved with these easy steps to Easter Egg decorating.

Magic Marker Eggs

Feel the magic of Easter come alive with Magic Marker Eggs! Using magic markers, your little ones can spruce up their eggs by doodling delicate patterns, writing their names or adding any personal touches they’d like.

Easter Eggs Galore

From glittery eggs, marbled eggs, embroidered eggs and more, the options for Easter egg decorating are truly endless. Give your Easter eggs some creative flair with these fun tips!

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Protein Power

Along with water, protein is a key component of egg yolks and whites. Protein is made of long chains of amino acids tightly coiled by weak bonds. When protein is heated or air is beaten into it, its bonds come apart, and the chain partly unwinds. The protein is now denatured, or changed from its natural state.

As the proteins unfold, they expose their hydrophobic (water-hating) and hydrophilic (water-loving) ends. The proteins form new bonds, arranging themselves so their water-hating ends are in the air and the water-loving ends are in the water. This creates a web of protein molecules that hold the air bubbles in place. If the proteins are overheated or overbeaten, the bonds will tighten and squeeze out the moisture, leaving the eggs dry, firm and rubbery.

The Role of Eggs in Cooking and Baking:

Leaven

Eggs have a great ability to leaven or puff up foods when air is beaten into them. Egg whites are especially good at this and, when beaten, they create a foam that has more stability and volume than whole eggs or yolks.

When air is incorporated into the protein molecules in egg whites, the proteins unwind and stretch to form an elastic web that encases the air bubbles. Egg whites can expand up to eight times their volume. They provide volume and structure to soufflés, angel food cake and meringues.

Room temperature egg whites create the best foam volume and stability. Adding an acid (e.g. cream of tartar, vinegar, lemon juice) will help to strengthen and stabilize a foam. Any fat, such as a trace of egg yolk mixed in with the whites, or oil in the bowl, or butter or cream on the mixing utensils will diminish the foaming ability of the whites.

Whole eggs and yolks can also trap and hold air that expands during heating, leavening cake batters and sauces such as sabayon. 

Examples:

Basic Souffle

Angel Food Cake

Lemon Meringue Pie

Raspberry Chocolate Torte

Emulsify

Hollandaise sauce and mayonnaise are good examples of an emulsion, the blending of two incompatible liquids such as oil and water. Since these two liquids don’t mix, an emulsifier is needed to hold the oil molecules in the water without the ingredients separating. The lecithin in egg yolks is an excellent emulsifier. With the water-loving end of the lecithin molecule buried in the water molecules and the water-hating end buried in the oil molecules, lecithin forms a thin film around tiny drops of oil enabling them to remain suspended in a water-based liquid.

Creamy desserts such as crème brûlée also benefit from eggs’ ability to emulsify and produce smooth, satiny, homogeneous mixtures.

Examples:

Hollandaise Sauce

Crème Brûlée

Thicken

Their ability to hold up to four times their weight in moisture makes eggs a good thickener for sauces, custards and curds. The proteins in eggs coagulate or set at different temperatures. This results in thickening but it means that eggs must be cooked gently and heated carefully or they will scramble rather than thicken a sauce or other mixture.

Egg white becomes jelly-like at 140°F (60°C) and firms at about 149°F (65°C). Egg yolk starts to set at 144°F (62°C) and is fully set at 158°F (70°C). A whole egg coagulates at about 156°F (69°C).

Examples:

Sunny Side Up Pavlovas

Lime Pudding Cake with Berries

Strawberries and Cream Canada Day Pops

Bind

Eggs can act as binding agents. As their proteins set, eggs bind ingredients together giving strength and stability to meatloaves, casseroles and baked goods.

Examples:

Rösti with Gribiche Sauce and Smoked Fish

Chocolate Krinkles

Italian Penne Bake

Challah (Egg Bread)

Coat and Seal

Eggs are used to coat foods with crumbs, flour, etc. as they help these ingredients adhere and also help to create browned appearance when cooked. Eggs have a stickiness that allows them to be used to bond two pieces of dough or pastry together (e.g. a decorative pastry garnish on a pie crust) or to provide a sticky surface on which to sprinkle seeds (e.g. poppy seeds on the top of a bun).

Colour and Shine

Protein browns when exposed to heat. Brushing pies, biscuits, breads and buns with an egg wash (beaten eggs alone or combined with water, milk or cream) before baking gives them a bronzed and glossy sheen.

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Prepare Easter egg dye. You can buy Easter egg dye in many craft stores and prepare it according to the package, or make your own. It only takes a few minutes and a couple of ingredients. Here’s how:

Mix 1 teaspoon vinegar with 1/4 teaspoon of food colouring. Pour the dye into 3/4 of a cup of water. Use a different cup for each dye, and be sure there is enough water in the cup to cover an entire egg.

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While farmers, graders and retailers work to implement safe handling standards at all levels, consumers also have an important role to play to ensure proper handling practices are followed:

• Purchase only Grade ‘A’ eggs with clean, uncracked shells that have been stored under refrigeration.
• When buying eggs, check the ‘Best Before’ date (found either on the carton or stamped on the eggs). This ‘Best Before’ date represents the length of time the eggs will maintain their Grade ‘A’ quality (which includes small air cell, firm yolk, thick white, clean, uncracked shells). If eggs are going to be used after that date, they should be thoroughly cooked.
• For optimal freshness, store eggs in their original carton on the middle shelf in the refrigerator (ideally at 4°C).
• Wash hands with warm, soapy water before and after food preparation.
• Serve eggs and egg-rich foods immediately after cooking or refrigerate and serve within three to four days.

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Always Keep Eggs in their Carton

We know a lot of people like to throw away the egg carton when they get home and store their eggs in the little egg caddy that comes with your fridge or in a separate bowl. This may look pretty, but we recommend always storing your eggs in their original carton. Why? Firstly, the carton protects the eggs and prevents them from absorbing strong odours and flavours of other foods in your fridge through the thousands of tiny pores in the egg shell. Secondly, the Best Before Date is always visible to you so you can guarantee freshness. Lastly, eggs should always be stored with the large end up, the same way they are packaged in the carton. This helps the yolk remain centered.

Other tips for storing raw and cooked eggs:

• Eggs should not be stored on the refrigerator door, but in the main body of the refrigerator to ensure that they keep a consistent and cool temperature.
• Leftover raw egg whites and yolks should be put in airtight containers and stored in the refrigerator immediately. To prevent yolks from drying out, cover them with a little cold water. Drain the water before using.
• When storing hard boiled eggs, you may notice a “gassy” odour in your refrigerator. The odour is caused by hydrogen sulphide, which forms when eggs are cooked. It’s harmless and usually dissipates in a few hours.

Recommended Storage Times for Eggs

How to Freeze Eggs

Did you know that you can freeze eggs? Certain kinds of raw and prepared eggs (not in their shells) can easily be frozen following these simple instructions:

• Whole eggs: Beat eggs just until blended, pour into freezer containers and seal tightly. Label the container with the number of eggs and the date, and freeze.
• Whites: Break and separate the eggs one at a time, making sure that no yolk is mixed in with the whites. Pour them into freezer containers, seal tightly, label with the number of egg whites and the date, and freeze. For faster thawing and easier measuring, first freeze each white in an ice cube tray and then transfer to a freezer container.
• Yolks: Egg yolks require special treatment. The gelation property of yolk causes it to thicken or gel when frozen. If frozen as-is, egg yolks eventually become so gelatinous they are almost impossible to use in a recipe. To help slow this process, beat in either ⅛ tsp (0.5 mL) salt or 1½ tsp (7mL) sugar or corn syrup per ¼ cup (50 mL) egg yolks (4 yolks). Label the container with the number of yolks, the date, and whether you’ve added salt (for main dishes) or sweetener (for baking or desserts)
• Hard boiled: Hard boiled yolks can be frozen to use later for toppings or garnishes. Carefully place the yolks in a single layer in a saucepan and add enough water to come at least 1 inch above the yolks. Cover and quickly bring just to boil. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, in the hot water for about 15 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon, drain well and package for freezing. Hard boiled whole eggs and whites become tough and watery when frozen, so don’t freeze them.

Cooking with Frozen Eggs

To use frozen eggs for cooking or baking simply thaw them overnight in the refrigerator or under running cold water. Use the eggs as soon as they’re thawed and only in dishes that will be thoroughly cooked. The following is a list of the recommended substitutions for raw egg.

• Substitute 2 tbsp (30 mL) thawed egg white for 1 large fresh white.
• Substitute 1 tbsp (15 mL) thawed egg yolk for 1 large fresh yolk.
• Substitute 3 tbsp (45 mL) thawed whole egg for 1 large fresh egg

Cooking Food Safely

When preparing perishable foods, including eggs, follow these four simple steps to make sure food is prepared safely:

1. Clean – Wash hands and surfaces often. Proper hand washing may eliminate nearly half of all cases of food-borne illness.
2. Chill – Refrigerate/freeze food promptly. Cold temperatures can prevent the growth of most types of harmful bacteria.
3. Separate – Don’t cross-contaminate. Keep raw meat/poultry/seafood and their juices separate from one another and other food during storage and preparation.
4. Cook – Cook meat, poultry and eggs to proper temperatures.

Here are a few more simple guidelines to follow when preparing and serving eggs:

• Serve eggs and food prepared using eggs immediately after cooking, or refrigerate and use within three to four days.
• For entertaining, serve all egg dishes within two hours. Cold egg dishes and beverages should be kept on ice.
• If a recipe calls for eggs at room temperature, immerse them in warm water for a few minutes.
• To prevent toughness, always use moderate heat and controlled cooking times for eggs.
• Don’t eat cracked eggs or eggs that have been out of the refrigerator for more than two hours.
• Use a glass or metal bowl instead of a plastic bowl when making meringue. The greasy film on a plastic bowl can prevent foaming.
• The egg yolk and white separate best when they are cold.
• Egg whites will beat to a better volume if they’re allowed to stand at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes before beating.
• Unless otherwise specified, most recipes are written based on the use of large eggs. One large egg = ¼ cup or 4 tablespoons or 50 mL.

How to tell if eggs are fresh

The easiest way to tell if your eggs are fresh is by the Best Before Date on your egg carton, so it’s best to always keep your eggs stored in their original carton. Here are a few more simple ways to determine the freshness of your eggs:

• Grade A eggs have a firm white, a small air cell at the wide end and a centered yolk.
• A fresh egg will sink in water while an older egg will float. As an egg ages, the size of the air cell inside increases, causing it to float.
• In a fresh egg, the yolk sits up high, and the white is thick and closely surrounds the yolk. An older egg has a flat yolk that breaks easily and a thin, watery white.
• To differentiate between hard boiled eggs and raw eggs, simply spin it. A hard boiled egg will spin longer than a raw egg. The liquid centre in a raw egg prevents it from building up enough momentum to keep turning.
• A cloudy egg white is a sign of freshness, not age: the cloudiness is the result of the high carbon dioxide content when the egg is laid.

How to Safely Bring Eggs to Room Temperature 

Many recipes, especially when baking, work best with room temperature eggs. If you plan ahead, you can leave your eggs on the counter for about 30 minutes. Forgot? Place them in a bowl of warm water for 5 minutes instead. Watch this video to see how it’s done!

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