# Eggcentric Behaviors, or How Do You Purchase Your Eggs?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [May 9, 2003, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188 "2003-05-09T19:55:53Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)
#### Post date: [May 9, 2003, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/1 "2003-05-09T19:55:53Z")
There I am. Buying eggs. Got a sleepover this weekend and so as I frequently do, I’m buying an 18-pack. This question doesn’t just apply to the bulk buyers, however.
I picked up the first carton, and checked the eggs. One was cracked. I’ve always made it a habit to take that one bad egg (heh) and put it into another carton, where I’ve already FOUND a cracked egg. This way, I get to have a full carton of uncracked eggs, and the rest of that carton that had the one bad egg doesn’t go unpurchased.
I got such a look from a fellow shopper. I mean, a LOOOOOOK. A look that said, " Oh gosh look at that man tampering with the eggs, he’s moving things around and behaving in a manner not consistent with Egg Buying Guidelines".
Doesn’t it make sense to do as I do, so that eventually yeah, there’s a carton full of cracked eggs? The alternative is potentially 18 cartons - each with one cracked egg.
What do you do? Do you move on to another carton, hoping against hope that you will find one that is pristine? Do you abandon a whole carton for one cracked egg? Why was I given the Evil Eye here? Did I break an unspoken rule of supermarket shopping? Should I be suffused with humiliation and regret, tinged with dismay and an aching need to go back and undo what I have wrought?
Cartooniverse
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### Author:  [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)
#### Post date: [May 9, 2003, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/2 "2003-05-09T20:02:56Z")
So you foist off not one but TWO broken eggs on a shopper who isn’t as carefull checking the eggs as you are.
Real nice.
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### Author:  [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)
#### Post date: [May 9, 2003, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/3 "2003-05-09T20:07:23Z")
Harumph. I would alledge that every shopper checks their eggs and so in chosing to move my bad one to a carton with already bad eggs in it, I’m in fact CONSOLIDATING the badness into one truly wretchedly evil carton.
No? 🙂
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### Author:  [@XJETGIRLX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XJETGIRLX)
#### Post date: [May 9, 2003, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/4 "2003-05-09T20:10:05Z")
I’m with you **Cartooniverse**. I go through and grab two cartons, and take all the bad ones from the first and switch 'em out with the second. If I don’t like any of those, sometimes I’ll sort through two or three cartons to create my ‘perfect’ carton of eggs.
My husband looked at me like I was crazy the first time we bought eggs together. Just one of my quirks I guess. Glad to know I’m not the only one.
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### Author:  [@X\_Slayer\_ALE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/X_Slayer_ALE)
#### Post date: [May 9, 2003, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/5 "2003-05-09T20:22:04Z")
I check the carton for bad eggs. If one is cracked but not stuck on the carton with its innards spilled out, depending on the availability of cartons, I _may_ switch the one bad egg.
If its stuff is all over its cell, I go for a new carton. Tell you why.
First of all: I am not scooping that stuff into another carton.
Second: I am not placing a good egg into that stuff because it hardens like super glue and you cant get the new egg out
Third: you know what part of the chicken eggs pop out of. No matter how much they clean it, its not one hundred percent clean. The germs dont multiply without food, so as long as the eggs are in their carton dry, theyr safe. Add the yolk and albumen to the shell and germs can grow again. That means its now in that carton.
Lose the carton if the eggs are smashed. get a new one. Let the grocer sort them out. Hopefully he cleans the eggs he transfers, but at the very least he gets a new and cleaner carton. If the grocer doesnt clean the eggs before transferring them into a new carton, its really a good idea to make sure the germs dont have food to grow with on the way to your home in your warm car.
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### Author:  [@Zenster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zenster)
#### Post date: [May 9, 2003, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/6 "2003-05-09T20:25:13Z")
Another vote for consolidating the evil eggs into a single carton-like unit. Even though I eggspect people to disagree with me on this, anyone who doesn’t know well enough to inspect their eggs before purchasing them deserves to get multiple cracked ones. Besides, it’s eggsactly that sort of experience that’ll learn 'em to always check (get it _check_?) for cracked ones.
I buy mine at this eggstra tiny little shop that serves as an outlet for a poultry ranch in the Central Valley. I pay all of $1.[sup]39[/sup] for a dozen Jumbos. These suckers are eggstremely big and they barely fit onto my refrigerator’s shelf. I often find double yolks and their overall quality is eggceptional.
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### Author:  [@UrbanChic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UrbanChic)
#### Post date: [May 9, 2003, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/7 "2003-05-09T20:34:45Z")
Heh, this reminds me of the egg purchasing customer in _Clerks_.
I just open the carton, ensure there are no cracked eggs and place it in my cart. Now they sell eggs at my farmers’ market so I’ll be purchasing mine there.
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### Author:  [@susan\_foster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan_foster)
#### Post date: [May 10, 2003, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/8 "2003-05-10T04:19:19Z")
If I open a carton with a cracked egg, I get an entire new carton - no idea why, I just do.
Susan
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### Author:  [@Syntropy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Syntropy)
#### Post date: [May 10, 2003, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/9 "2003-05-10T04:31:29Z")
Zenster, quick aside…where in sili valley do you find eggs for $1.39/dz jumbos? I have to go to Union City farmer’s market, and even there, they are $2.25/dz
How I check them: I grew up on a farm, and learned this from my mom. If the egg as been fertilized, or if it is just plain too old, the yolk will rattle if you shake it slightly. Which I do, much to the puzzlement of other shoppers…
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### Author:  [@Syntropy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Syntropy)
#### Post date: [May 10, 2003, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/10 "2003-05-10T04:32:55Z")
HAS been fertilized…
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### Author:  [@Zenster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zenster)
#### Post date: [May 10, 2003, 7:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/11 "2003-05-10T07:39:26Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Maureen \*
> Zenster, quick aside…where in sili valley do you find eggs for $1.39/dz jumbos? I have to go to Union City farmer’s market, and even there, they are $2.25/dz …
Here’s a [map](http://mapsonus.switchboard.com/bin/maps-maponly/usr=~3ebcaa53.b7b7a.6f46.5/c=1/refsrc=SB.twp/isredir=1/) link to the place. I don’t know it’s name, only the location. It’s in the same strip mall as **Su’s Mongolian Barbecue**. Say hi to Ruth for me, she’s the Christian hindu gal behind the counter. The eggs are all of a day or two old. Sadly, they are always refrigerated. I wish I could get them unrefrigerated, but there’s some niggling health code statute preventing that.
Be sure to stop in for lunch at the Won Ton House. It’s one block North up El Camino and their sizzling rice soup is superb. They make some killer spare ribs in black bean sauce and have a sizzling seafood platter that is rather nice too.
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### Author:  [@Mariemarie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mariemarie)
#### Post date: [May 10, 2003, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/12 "2003-05-10T14:21:54Z")
I always check the carton of eggs before I buy them.
Sometimes the cashier will open the egg carton, and if there are any broken ones, send someone to get you a new carton. This only happens in the customer-service-intensive grocery stores, though.
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### Author:  [@MissGypsy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MissGypsy)
#### Post date: [May 10, 2003, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/13 "2003-05-10T20:32:35Z")
It has never occurred to me to switch a cracked egg to another carton, but it certainly makes sense. I believe I’ll convert, now. What a good idea…
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### Author:  [@kniz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kniz)
#### Post date: [May 10, 2003, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/14 "2003-05-10T20:54:16Z")
It seems to me that this assumes that there are lots of cartons with one cracked egg. Also am I supposed to hunt around for that carton that has been used to collect the rejects? At Krogers, there are very few cracked eggs, so I just take another carton. At the store down the road, I say “Hey, Johnny this carton has a damn cracked egg in it.” 😉
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### Author:  [@milroyj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/milroyj)
#### Post date: [May 10, 2003, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/15 "2003-05-10T20:54:31Z")
> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Zenster \*
> **Say hi to Ruth for me, she’s the Christian hindu gal behind the counter.**
Just out of mild curiousity, how can one be a Christian Hindu?
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### Author:  [@LolaCocaCola](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LolaCocaCola)
#### Post date: [May 10, 2003, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/16 "2003-05-10T20:57:12Z")
Sometimes the cracked egg is stuck to the carton, so I usually search for a pristine egg carton without the mixing and matching.
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### Author:  [@lorinada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lorinada)
#### Post date: [May 10, 2003, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/17 "2003-05-10T21:16:29Z")
I have done the consolidation thing for years. I always figured it was the sensible thing to do.
[hijack] Our Kroger always has several cartons with cracked and even smashed eggs. The boxes of crackers have an awful lot of crumbs and chips in them, too. I hate Kroger. But there’s not a whole lot of choice in my neighborhood. [/hijack]
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### Author:  [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)
#### Post date: [May 10, 2003, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/18 "2003-05-10T23:16:08Z")
If I saw you do that, **Cartooniverse** I woulda cried \*fowl \*.
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### Author:  [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)
#### Post date: [May 10, 2003, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/19 "2003-05-10T23:45:31Z")
I do the exact same thing, **Cartooniverse**. I’m not buying broken eggs. I don’t see anything wrong with it at all.
And as **LolaCocaCola** said, if it’s really cracked and stuck to the carton, I move on to another carton. I’ll even touch each egg to make sure it moves. Sometimes they’re cracked on the bottom and the egg oozes out and you can’t tell till you try to pick it up.
It amazes me when I see people pick up egg cartons and put them in their carts without even checking to see if there are any broken eggs. :eek:
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### Author:  [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)
#### Post date: [May 11, 2003, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/eggcentric-behaviors-or-how-do-you-purchase-your-eggs/174188/20 "2003-05-11T01:08:41Z")
I’ve grabbed an entirely different carton and I’ve also consolidated - depends on my hurry and how many cartons are in the cooler. And my mood. I’ve never had anyone give me the evil eye.
The _real_ question is why is **Cartooniverse** having a sleepover and none of us were invited. I thought we were all friends here. sheesh… 😛
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