CHAPTER XV.PRESERVING EGGS FOR WINTER
It was deemed advisable to add a few words in this little booklet in regard to collecting eggs when they are cheap, and storing them away for the part of the year when eggs are high priced. During the months of March, April, May, and June eggs are the cheapest on the market, due to the fact that the birds are all laying during these few months, and consequently,the supply far exceeds the average demand. If we pay fifteen cents for a dozen of eggs in April, or May, and then in December we pay sixty cents or more for the same product, then it can easily be seen that it is a paying proposition to store some of these cheap spring eggs for winter use. We will now take up the method of storing these spring eggs for our December breakfast.
To make this process about 100 per cent efficient, it is best to candle the eggs first, before storing them away. This process of candling has been explained in a previous chapter. If the air cell, at the blunt end of the egg is small, then we may be sure that the egg is of recent origin. If the contents look clear, and the yolk is not loose, inside the shell, then we need have no fears as to the edibility of the egg. One very good way, for one not accustomed to candling, is to examine a few in front of the light, and then break a few in a dish, so as to get the proper relation fixed in mind. If we can secure eggs that are infertile, we will not have to throw out hardly any eggs in this process.
In preparing to preserve our eggs for winter,there are several methods used by people who follow this practice. Some just pack the eggs in sawdust in a box or barrel, but this method is not always reliable. There are two standard ways of preserving these eggs. One is in using waterglass, and the other is the use of lime water solution. Both methods are reliable, but the first named method seems to be the more popular of the two. In either case, earthen crocks or wooden pails are the best containers. Neither of these solutions affects them. A three gallon container is large enough to preserve ten dozen eggs. For this sized container, about six quarts of the solution will be necessary.
We will discuss the waterglass method first. Procure the amount of waterglass that you will need for this year at a drug store. Use this at the rate of one pint of waterglass to nine pints of water. Before mixing the two liquids, boil the water, and let it cool. Then mix the two liquids, in the proportion stated, and place in container. Then add the eggs, (about ten dozen to this mixture), and store in a cool place. Be sure that there is about two or threeinches of the solution above the eggs, and add a little water occasionally to replace the water lost by evaporation.
The lime solution is mixed a little differently. Slack about two pounds of quick lime in a small quantity of hot water. After this has slacked, add it to about two gallons of water, and then add one pound of salt. Stir this in a thorough manner, and then allow the mixture to settle. There will then be found a sediment in the bottom of the solution. Pour off the clear liquid, and use this as the preservative material. Then keep the same as directions given for the waterglass preparation. In this manner, one can have table eggs the year round at a reasonable price.