Dehydrating Eggs

[MountainGirl]

I recently bought a Corosi 6-tray dehydrator.

20555

So far I've done two big batches of Jerky, sliced store-bought mushrooms, sweet peppers, and a bag of chopped up mixed bell peppers-onions-mushrooms that had been in the freezer too long. Everything has turned out good... but now it's time to get serious.

Eggs. In my researchings (i.e. YouTubes, lol) I learned that eggs can be dehydrated - so when I ordered the Corosi I also bought silicone trays that hold sufficient fluid to do this. Below are pics of my test run.

******

Each tray holds 4 eggs. Scramble them up with a fork, and pour it on a tray - UPDATED - see post #24
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For the test run, I did 3 trays, one dozen
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After 12 hrs, they looked like this -
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So I crumbled them up, and let them finish drying - another 2 hours UPDATED - see post #24
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Here's the whole dozen - 14 hours at 115 degrees.
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Now - the last step is to put the flakes/crumbles in a blender to make the powder.
I didn't have a blender - so I thought I'd see how they did just left as flakes.
The dried one dozen filled a pint jar.
20561

That was all two days ago. This morning it was time to see how they rehydrated/tasted/etc.
My next post will show how that went. :biglaugh:

[Slippy]

We have never thought about dehydrating our own eggs! We do have some Egg Powder in the long term storage but dehydrating our own sounds like a good plan.

Interested in hearing how they taste?



I recently bought a Corosi 6-tray dehydrator.

20555

So far I've done two big batches of Jerky, sliced store-bought mushrooms, sweet peppers, and a bag of chopped up mixed bell peppers-onions-mushrooms that had been in the freezer too long. Everything has turned out good... but now it's time to get serious.

Eggs. In my researchings (read YouTubes, lol) I learned that eggs can be dehydrated - so when I ordered the Corosi I also bought silicone trays that hold sufficient fluid to do this. Below are pics of my test run.

******

Each tray holds 4 eggs. Scamble them up with a fork, and pour it on a tray -
20556

For the test run, I did 3 trays, one dozen
20557

After 12 hrs, they looked like this -
20558

So I crumbled them up, and let them finish drying - another 2 hours
20559

Here's the whole dozen - 14 hours at 115 degrees.
20560

Now - the last step is to put the flakes/crumbles in a blender to make the powder.
I dont have a blender - so I thought I'd see how they did just left as flakes.
The dried one dozen filled a pint jar.
20561

That was all two days ago. This morning it was time to see how they rehydrated/tasted/etc.
My next post will show how that went. :biglaugh:

[Dwight55]

We have never thought about dehydrating our own eggs! We do have some Egg Powder in the long term storage but dehydrating our own sounds like a good plan.

Interested in hearing how they taste?

Join the Army . . . go to basic . . . you'll find out

May God bless,
Dwight

[MountainGirl]

Okay - the good and the bad.
My understanding is egg "powder" will rehydrate in about 10-15 minutes.
Flakes and chunks are a different story.

I scooped a good half cup into a bowl, added the same amount of water (plus a little more as time passed) and after an hour - a lot of it had rehydrated, but the larger flakes and chunks took a LOT of mashing etc to break them up, some of which never fully did,
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so finally I just said.. well, you know what I said... and poured it all in a hot pan (with some of the butter I made!) and cooked it up.
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It cooked like a 1/4" slab, flipped fine, smelled great!
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Tasted like eggs. Was really good tasting actually.
The texture sucked. I'm buying a blender. Tomorrow.
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I've now got 9 dozen to process - but I'll tell that story in my next post.

[MountainGirl]

We have never thought about dehydrating our own eggs! We do have some Egg Powder in the long term storage but dehydrating our own sounds like a good plan.

Interested in hearing how they taste?

Slip - they tasted really good. I intentionally did not season them or anything. Even the small 'unhydrated' pieces were fine; they were mostly yolk so kind of tasted like the yoke of a hard-boiled egg.

PO agreed they tasted good, no hesitation whatsoever - and they'll be a real treat if/when things are down to 'beans' lol.

I'll be doing it the same way plus turning it to powder. :thumb:

[MountainGirl]

Join the Army . . . go to basic . . . you'll find out

May God bless,
Dwight

I've been in the Army. I've been to basic. Those powdered eggs tasted nothing like mine.
I'd bet the Egg Powder you can buy online now doesn't taste as good as mine either.
Those ^^ are likely freeze-dried first. More taste retained in dehydrating, imo.
And - mine have no additives. :)

[MountainGirl]

For some reason, since always, I thrive on eggs. They just work for my body. Can't explain it; don't need to.
So - you can imagine the discussions we had about raising chickens. Neither of us really wanted to - BUT - MG needs eggs. Up to now we've been able to get farm fresh eggs from that great Vegi Stand a half mile away. BUT if/when things go sideways - that source would end. So... I needed to find a way to keep eggs, long term, and get a lot of them stocked up now.

After the success of this morning ^^, I went to that veg stand to buy every egg they had. They had none. (WTF?) I talked to the elderly owner and learned that they personally didn't sell their family's eggs (just a few layers) - but that they had a couple women who bring eggs to them to sell, which they do as a service for their vegi customers. He said those women haven't brought any eggs for a while now; that they were selling everything they had to their friends/family, etc.

We visited for a few minutes, then he remembered someone who might have some for sale - she has 140 hens - and he called her, she said she'd bring some within the hour; he promised to call me when they arrived and I went and got them all. Nine dozen for $3.00/dozen. That was her price; he doesn't mark up. Good man, good neighbor. Grateful to get them. I asked if I could let him know when I want more in quantity, he said yes, and nice to meet you and welcome to Texas. :D

I was happy to pay $3.00/dz especially for fresh eggs.
Saturday, Walmart had some old ones for $4.80/dz and they'll be more expensive tomorrow
Walmart sux but now I need a blender, so... We do what needs doing. Gettin 'er done. :thumb:

[Slippy]

Join the Army . . . go to basic . . . you'll find out

May God bless,
Dwight

Too old and broke down to join the Army!

In my youth, heck, even in my mid-40's adulthood, would have killed basic!

Already know what "institutional" powdered eggs taste like.

Need to find out what Home Dehydrated Eggs taste like! :D

[SOCOM42]

Join the Army . . . go to basic . . . you'll find out

May God bless,
Dwight

Ahhh, Yes, Army basic, I remember it well.

Did mine at Fort Dix NJ, 1960.

I think it was a battalion sized mess hall, at least the milk and orange juice were good along with the shingle without the shit on it.

It was quite different in AIT, we had company sized mess halls.

The food in them was good and cooked right in front of you, if you got in early, you could get food cooked to your request.

I do have a complete US army company level field kitchen.

I use to use it for cookouts during the summers many decades ago.

Got it at the Ft. Devens DRMO for around 50 bucks when they were closing.

[Jester-ND]

this is another alternative long-term egg storage method...

http://prepared-housewives.com/preserve-eggs-with-mineral-oil/

[Inor]

For some reason, since always, I thrive on eggs. They just work for my body. Can't explain it; don't need to.
So - you can imagine the discussions we had about raising chickens. Neither of us really wanted to - BUT - MG needs eggs. Up to now we've been able to get farm fresh eggs from that great Vegi Stand a half mile away. BUT if/when things go sideways - that source would end. So... I needed to find a way to keep eggs, long term, and get a lot of them stocked up now.

After the success of this morning ^^, I went to that veg stand to buy every egg they had. They had none. (WTF?) I talked to the elderly owner and learned that they personally didn't sell their family's eggs (just a few layers) - but that they had a couple women who bring eggs to them to sell, which they do as a service for their vegi customers. He said those women haven't brought any eggs for a while now; that they were selling everything they had to their friends/family, etc.

We visited for a few minutes, then he remembered someone who might have some for sale - she has 140 hens - and he called her, she said she'd bring some within the hour; he promised to call me when they arrived and I went and got them all. Nine dozen for $3.00/dozen. That was her price; he doesn't mark up. Good man, good neighbor. Grateful to get them. I asked if I could let him know when I want more in quantity, he said yes, and nice to meet you and welcome to Texas. :D

I was happy to pay $3.00/dz especially for fresh eggs.
Saturday, Walmart had some old ones for $4.80/dz and they'll be more expensive tomorrow
Walmart sux but now I need a blender, so... We do what needs doing. Gettin 'er done. :thumb:

Glad the dehydrated eggs worked out but you should still consider getting some chickens. Egg chickens are fun as hell to have around and they are not much work at all. Mrs Inor goes out to the chicken shack probably 6-8 times per day, but that is mostly because she likes them and wants to give them treats. We could really get by feeding them 1-2 times per week and refilling their water about twice per week. Beyond that, it is just opening the door to the shack in the morning and closing it again at dusk. They all go inside on their own. Then go out every day to collect the eggs. If you want to minimize the responsibility, it is probably about 20 minutes per day or less.

If you try dehydrating milk, let us know how that goes.

I have designs on starting to make my own chocolate this winter. I want to do it the right way with fermenting and drying cacao pods, then running them through a menager for a couple days. But to make milk chocolate, you cannot use liquid milk. Chocolate does not react well with any water at all. So I have been trying to figure out how to dehydrate raw milk. It doesn't look difficult, but trying to figure out quantities might be a different story.

[Michael_Js]

I still like the hydrated lime method I tried a few years ago...I'll be doing that again next year and am sorry I didn't do it this year :( We're not getting more than 1 egg a week due to the molting of the chickens and the short days...

[MountainGirl]

Glad the dehydrated eggs worked out but you should still consider getting some chickens. Egg chickens are fun as hell to have around and they are not much work at all. Mrs Inor goes out to the chicken shack probably 6-8 times per day, but that is mostly because she likes them and wants to give them treats. We could really get by feeding them 1-2 times per week and refilling their water about twice per week. Beyond that, it is just opening the door to the shack in the morning and closing it again at dusk. They all go inside on their own. Then go out every day to collect the eggs. If you want to minimize the responsibility, it is probably about 20 minutes per day or less.

If you try dehydrating milk, let us know how that goes.

I have designs on starting to make my own chocolate this winter. I want to do it the right way with fermenting and drying cacao pods, then running them through a menager for a couple days. But to make milk chocolate, you cannot use liquid milk. Chocolate does not react well with any water at all. So I have been trying to figure out how to dehydrate raw milk. It doesn't look difficult, but trying to figure out quantities might be a different story.

Chocolate! What a cool thing to try! Interesting that you cant use liquid milk.

I wont be dehydrating milk - but I did watch some tubes on it in my overall research, and from what I gleaned it's like drying eggs. One difference might be in the fat content (higher in eggs) and even that would change depending on if you're using the whole raw milk, or skimming the cream off the top first, etc. Fat content affects drying times.

If I run across more info I'll let you know. :)

[Mad Trapper]

How are you sure they are dried to prevent bacteria growth? Eggs/chickens are sort of touchy foods but I've eaten my share of raw eggs chased with a beer, never got the Scutters.....

I never tried eggs but have done all sorts of vegetables and spices. A little too moist and you get mold and crap growing. But I've got things 10 years old still fine, really dry.

I'll watch this thread, thanks MG, and test pilot PO

[Slippy]

How are you sure they are dried to prevent bacteria growth? Eggs/chickens are sort of touchy foods but I've eaten my share of raw eggs chased with a beer, never got the Scutters.....

I never tried eggs but have done all sorts of vegetables and spices. A little too moist and you get mold and crap growing. But I've got things 10 years old still fine, really dry.

I'll watch this thread, thanks MG, and test pilot PO

One thing we have done with some dried/dehydrated foods is "Oven Can" them before we put them up.

We also have "Oven Canned" crackers and they've kept their freshness and crispness for a number of years. 8 years or so if memory serves.

Don't want to have anyone get poisoned, but maybe "Oven Canning" dehydrated eggs will help?

I'd defer to Professor Mad Trapper on this one?

[MountainGirl]

Two of the nine dozen are in the dryer; all six trays running. I got this.


How are you sure they are dried to prevent bacteria growth? Eggs/chickens are sort of touchy foods but I've eaten my share of raw eggs chased with a beer, never got the Scutters.....

I never tried eggs but have done all sorts of vegetables and spices. A little too moist and you get mold and crap growing. But I've got things 10 years old still fine, really dry.

I'll watch this thread, thanks MG, and test pilot PO

You're welcome MT - and one of the ways to make sure they're dry - is to initially put the warm contents in a glass jar and watch it for a while - to see if any condensation forms. I do that with everything I dry. With the egg (flakes) there is still a sheen on them (from the egg fats) but they are dry, rock hard. After I powder up those flakes tomorrow - (got a blender today!) - I'll jar them again to watch for moisture. Doubt there'll be any but I'd want to be sure. Also, recall that after rehydrating what ya have is raw eggs - which are bound to be cooked before consuming anyway.

Also -


One thing we have done with some dried/dehydrated foods is "Oven Can" them before we put them up.

We also have "Oven Canned" crackers and they've kept their freshness and crispness for a number of years. 8 years or so if memory serves.

Don't want to have anyone get poisoned, but maybe "Oven Canning" dehydrated eggs will help?

I'd defer to Professor Mad Trapper on this one?

- also, the jars are vacuum sealed for the shelf, and re-sealed every time one is opened.

Here's how I seal the jars by hand -

Fill contents up as near to the top as possible (to reduce airspace)
Lay piece of something on top of powder (see post #19)
Clean rim, lid placed on (a used lid works here, too)
Put the appropriate sized Food-saver jar thingy on it
Attach the Brake Bleeder to the hole in the top of ^^ (gotta hold it in place while pumping)
Pump it till the needle stops moving (at least 15-20lbs)
Unhook the bleeder, take off the thingy, and voila !
Sealed jar, easy peasy. :)

The powdered dried raw egg can be reconstituted and used wherever eggs are called for: in baking, flapjacks, or just scrambled up :cool:

Here's where I bought the:
Food saver jar sealer thingys: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09T3C5F7W?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details
Brake bleeder: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07LFPJQMY?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details
And while I'm at it - here are the silicone mats. I really like them. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08NVRVVPF?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details

Slippy- thanks for the suggestion re Oven Canning - but the reason to dehydrate raw is to still have raw after hydrating. Time in the oven would 'cook' the egg powder. Which... would then be like dehydrating scrambled eggs. Which you could do! Make a bitchin omlet on the stove with all the fixins, put it on a tray and dry it. :thumb:

[Slippy]

Food Saver Jar Sealer Thingy=Oxygen Absorber? If so, brilliant idea MG! That makes sense and will eliminate the over cooking that would occur with oven canning. :beerchug:

Fun little project too!
:biglaugh:



Two of the nine dozen are in the dryer; all six trays running. I got this.



You're welcome MT - and one of the ways to make sure they're dry - is to initially put the warm contents in a glass jar and watch it for a while - to see if any condensation forms. I do that with everything I dry. With the egg (flakes) there is still a sheen on them (from the egg fats) but they are dry, rock hard. After I powder up those flakes tomorrow - (got a blender today!) - I'll jar them again to watch for moisture. Doubt there'll be any but I'd want to be sure. Also, recall that after rehydrating what ya have is raw eggs - which are bound to be cooked before consuming anyway.

Also -



- also, the jars are vacuum sealed for the shelf, and re-sealed every time one is opened.

Here's how I seal the jars by hand -

Fill contents up as near to the top as possible (to reduce airspace)
Clean rim, lid placed on (a used lid works here, too)
Put the appropriate sized Food-saver jar thingy on it
Attach the Brake Bleeder to the hole in the top of ^^ (gotta hold it in place while pumping)
Pump it till the needle stops moving (at least 15-20lbs)
Unhook the bleeder, take off the thingy, and voila !
Sealed jar, easy peasy. :)

The powdered dried raw egg can be reconstituted and used wherever eggs are called for: in baking, flapjacks, or just scrambled up :cool:

Here's where I bought the:
Food saver jar sealer thingys: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09T3C5F7W?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details
Brake bleeder: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07LFPJQMY?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details
And while I'm at it - here are the silicone mats. I really like them. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08NVRVVPF?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details

Slippy- thanks for the suggestion re Oven Canning - but the reason to dehydrate raw is to still have raw after hydrating. Time in the oven would 'cook' the egg powder. Which... would then be like dehydrating scrambled eggs. Which you could do! Make a bitchin omlet on the stove with all the fixins, put it on a tray and dry it. :thumb:

[StratBastard]

How are you sure they are dried to prevent bacteria growth? Eggs/chickens are sort of touchy foods but I've eaten my share of raw eggs chased with a beer, never got the Scutters.....

I never tried eggs but have done all sorts of vegetables and spices. A little too moist and you get mold and crap growing. But I've got things 10 years old still fine, really dry.

I'll watch this thread, thanks MG, and test pilot PO

I was a bodybuilder for 25 years, and drank 6 raw eggs every morning. Never had an issue once.

[MountainGirl]

Food Saver Jar Sealer Thingy=Oxygen Absorber? If so, brilliant idea MG! That makes sense and will eliminate the over cooking that would occur with oven canning. :beerchug:

Fun little project too!
:biglaugh:

I never thought about an Oxygen Absorber; no reason to not add one in, to catch whatever O2 is left after the jar is vacuum sealed. Thanks!

Oh yeah - one other little tip if you're going to vacuum seal powder. Lay something inside the jar on top of the powder (paper towel, coffee filter, muffin paper) because as the air is being sucked out of the jar - some of the powder can be pulled up under the rim of the lid and cause a weak seal.

[Inor]

MG - Is there any particular brand of break fluid you prefer over the others for the eggs? Or just whatever is cheapest?

[MountainGirl]

Inor - :mocking:

[Chiefster23]

MG! The manual vac tool for sealing the jar lids……. Is it a quality tool? Perhaps PO can chime in too on the quality of the hand pump.

[MountainGirl]

MG! The manual vac tool for sealing the jar lids……. Is it a quality tool? Perhaps PO can chime in too on the quality of the hand pump.

He probably could... especially as ALL of his tools are of the highest quality. :eyebrows:

Now you guys knock it off! I've got more egg updates coming. :)

[MountainGirl]

UPDATE RE METHOD -

You can tell from the pic what I changed.

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About 10 seconds of mixing blended them better, made for easier pouring on the trays, and the incorporated air made a difference in drying - it actually eliminated needing to break up the eggs at hour 12.

Dozens #3 and #4 are in the dryer now: still 4 eggs per tray, push the liquid to the sides and corners. If you set up your rack and mat right next to the unit - you can lift them in without spilling.

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Here's my blender - next to 3 dozen egg flakes (the test dozen and the two dried yesterday).
I'll powder those up in a couple hours. :)

20591

[Prepared One]

How are you sure they are dried to prevent bacteria growth? Eggs/chickens are sort of touchy foods but I've eaten my share of raw eggs chased with a beer, never got the Scutters.....

I never tried eggs but have done all sorts of vegetables and spices. A little too moist and you get mold and crap growing. But I've got things 10 years old still fine, really dry.

I'll watch this thread, thanks MG, and test pilot PO

The eggs are coming out fine and once MG powders them in the blender I think the consistency will be more like a regular fresh egg. At over 4 bucks for a dozen puny eggs this is turning into a great project. MG does all the work and I don't mind being the test pilot! Eating is one of my favorite hobbies! She has done her research and is a whizz in the kitchen to boot. As long as it isn't Brussel Sprouts I'll eat it. :biglaugh:

[MountainGirl]

Finally had time to start the blender step (was a little busy yesterday, lol)

A coffee filter worked Perfect! for the barrier between the egg powder and the lid.
Fold in the sides, and the round bottom sets great in the widemouth jar.
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Getting ready to vacuum seal -
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After the first powdering - we wanted to test how it worked for texture, etc, before I did the rest.
Put 1 tablespoon in a dish, covered with 1.5 tablespoons of water, let it set for about 10 minutes.
It felt just a little thick, so I splashed in a bit more water (not much) and it started feeling 'eggy'
Fried it up, shared it with PO, tasted perfect, texture perfect. Just as if I'd done that with a fresh egg. YAY!
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Seven dozen eggs, dried and powdered up into 5 pints. :)
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Only 2 dozen left to process, this round.
Might do more eggs later - first though, PO's gonna need more jerky. :cool:

[Prepared One]

MG did a great job with the eggs. When reconstituted I couldn't tell the difference. Put cheese on it and slap it between some toast and you have an egg sandwich or, mix it up a little in the frying pan and you have scrambled eggs. You can even make an omelet. Now, if she could only make them sunny side up.:biglaugh:

[MountainGirl]

Started the second round, processing 10 dozen farm fresh eggs - :)

Discovered the little tricks during the first round - and this goes fast and is soooo easy :thumb:

20738

[Mad Trapper]

Started the second round, processing 10 dozen farm fresh eggs - :)

Discovered the little tricks during the first round - and this goes fast and is soooo easy :thumb:

20738

You need to do a video on this , start to finish. I'd give it a shot but egg messes are not good...

Happy Thanksgiving to You and PO!

[MountainGirl]

You need to do a video on this , start to finish. I'd give it a shot but egg messes are not good...

Happy Thanksgiving to You and PO!

Egg messes? Dunno what those are, lol
I wish I could do a video - to show how simple this is.
Maybe PO could do one with his fancy phone and then figure out how to load it up. LOL

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family as well, MT. :)

[MountainGirl]

Second round dried! 10 dozen eggs, still in flake form, filled 2 half-gallon pitchers.

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They could be kept just fine as flakes; the only reason to run them through the blender (i.e. powdered) is for a faster re-hydration time (< 10min) - and smaller storage footprint.

Left as flakes, mixing up one part flakes to 1.5 parts water in a small covered dish for a few hours does the trick. :thumb:

[MountainGirl]

Decided to vac seal the flakes, 10 dozen in 12 pints. :thumb:

20770

Total eggs put up - 19 dozen into 17 pints. Yay! :)

[MountainGirl]

....

If you try dehydrating milk, let us know how that goes.

I have designs on starting to make my own chocolate this winter. I want to do it the right way with fermenting and drying cacao pods, then running them through a menager for a couple days. But to make milk chocolate, you cannot use liquid milk. Chocolate does not react well with any water at all. So I have been trying to figure out how to dehydrate raw milk. It doesn't look difficult, but trying to figure out quantities might be a different story.

Hi Inor - I ran across this today:

Dehydrating Whole Milk


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWkGB3lug7g

[bigwheel]

Lets clown around with pickling some. Those go good with a beer. lol. Gives interesting flatulence.
https://www.allrecipes.com/recipes/17614/appetizers-and-snacks/pickled-eggs/