# How long can you save egg yolks?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-you-save-egg-yolks/783529>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [April 1, 2017, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-you-save-egg-yolks/783529 "2017-04-01T19:38:00Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![boffking](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/858c86/32.png) [@boffking](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boffking)\
**Post date:** [April 1, 2017, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-you-save-egg-yolks/783529/1 "2017-04-01T19:38:00Z")

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I am making a recipe that calls for egg whites. I often make key lime pie, which only uses the yolks. How long can I save the yolks for? Can I freeze them?

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**Author:** ![Cub\_Mistress](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea666f/32.png) [@Cub\_Mistress](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cub_Mistress)\
**Post date:** [April 2, 2017, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-you-save-egg-yolks/783529/2 "2017-04-02T02:11:54Z")

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> **[Freezing Egg Yolks | Cook's Illustrated](https://www.americastestkitchen.com/cooksillustrated/how_tos/5748-freezing-egg-yolks)**
>
> A lot of recipes call only for egg whites, but that doesn't mean you need to throw away all of the yolks.

yes you can freeze them

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**Author:** ![Barking\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Barking\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barking_Dog)\
**Post date:** [April 2, 2017, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-you-save-egg-yolks/783529/3 "2017-04-02T22:22:03Z")

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[You can cure them as well.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CiNHMYAQJw)

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**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\
**Post date:** [April 2, 2017, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-you-save-egg-yolks/783529/4 "2017-04-02T22:50:35Z")

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Two egg yolks and a tablespoon of water is a substitute for a whole egg. When I make white and chocolate cakes at work I do the white first, as the yolks aren’t used in them. Then I take the yolks and water and use them as part of the whole eggs required for the chocolate cakes.

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**Author:** ![Mr\_Downtown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Mr\_Downtown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Downtown)\
**Post date:** [April 3, 2017, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-long-can-you-save-egg-yolks/783529/5 "2017-04-03T03:54:09Z")

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I don’t typically keep eggs, so when I decide to bake something I have to go to the store, buy a dozen, and a month later throw 10 of them away. Is there some easy way for me to freeze them instead, and use a couple of those next time? Still in the shells, or do I break them into an ice tray first?