# How long can pickled eggs last

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-pickled-eggs-last/434887>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [January 24, 2008, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-pickled-eggs-last/434887 "2008-01-24T22:59:55Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![gnagtcha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c68b51/32.png) [@gnagtcha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnagtcha)\
**Post date:** [January 24, 2008, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-pickled-eggs-last/434887/1 "2008-01-24T22:59:55Z")

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I have a friend who gives me a big jar of pickled eggs ( homemade ) every Christmas and normally I go through them fairly quick. This year I was’nt into them as usual and I still have 4 left. The last time I ate one of them was a little over a week ago. No ill effects.

I was just wondering, what’s the time limit on things that are pickled?

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**Author:** ![Pullet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Pullet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pullet)\
**Post date:** [January 24, 2008, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-pickled-eggs-last/434887/2 "2008-01-24T23:37:47Z")

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How long ago did you open them?  
How have you kept them since they were opened?

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**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\
**Post date:** [January 24, 2008, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-pickled-eggs-last/434887/3 "2008-01-24T23:47:57Z")

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Months, at least, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it were years. Even raw eggs are good for a month or more (the flavors might shift a bit, but they’re still wholesome). Hard-boiled eggs last longer than raw ones, and pickled boiled eggs will last longer yet.

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**Author:** ![Cillasi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/71e660/32.png) [@Cillasi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cillasi)\
**Post date:** [January 24, 2008, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-pickled-eggs-last/434887/4 "2008-01-24T23:50:40Z")

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Pickled eggs last a good long time (months). The eggs will tend to get stiffer and stiffer until they are no longer palatable, but they’ll still be okay to eat.

[QUOTE=gnagtcha]  
I have a friend who gives me a big jar of pickled eggs ( homemade ) every Christmas and normally I go through them fairly quick. This year I was’nt into them as usual and I still have 4 left. The last time I ate one of them was a little over a week ago. No ill effects.

I was just wondering, what’s the time limit on things that are pickled?  
[/QUOTE]

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**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\
**Post date:** [January 25, 2008, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-pickled-eggs-last/434887/5 "2008-01-25T00:36:49Z")

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A thousand years?  
[http://www.ichef.com/recipe.cfm/recipe/Thousand-Year-Old%20Eggs/task/display/itemid/74678/recipeid/74341](http://www.ichef.com/recipe.cfm/recipe/Thousand-Year-Old%20Eggs/task/display/itemid/74678/recipeid/74341) 🙂

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**Author:** ![gnagtcha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c68b51/32.png) [@gnagtcha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnagtcha)\
**Post date:** [January 25, 2008, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-pickled-eggs-last/434887/6 "2008-01-25T00:43:46Z")

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Thanks, guys.  
Grabbing one of the last four right now.

And, Pullet, I opened them Christmas day and kept them in the fridge in a sealed container