E for Eggs

“Remember, people will judge you by your actions, not your intentions. You may have a heart of gold, but so does a hard-boiled egg.” – anonymous

More at https://www.getcracking.ca/article/egg-quotes-and-proverbs

Humans have consumed eggs since the beginning of human time. First as hunters and foragers, and then domesticating birds. 

There is historical evidence that wild fowl were domesticated in India by 3200 B.C. And in China and Egypt chickens were domesticated and laying eggs for human consumption around 1400 B.C. 

According to food historians, eggs were used for making bread and cakes in ancient China, Egypt and Roman cities. 

All birds and reptiles lay eggs. But not all eggs are consumed by humans. Cultural factors and economic conditions impact each society’s choices. Also, what is locally available plays a role in such choices.

Eggs from chicken, duck, emu, goose, guinea fowl, gull, ostrich, pelican, pheasant, pigeon, quail, turkey etc are commonly consumed by people all over the world, the most commonly eaten eggs being those of the domestic chicken. 

Are eggs (fertilized or non-fertilized) vegetarian food? The answer is whatever you want it to be, based entirely on your perspective. If you are a vegetarian who would like to eat eggs, sure, it is vegetarian as it does not contain animal flesh. Definitely not vegan though.

Eggs are cooked in many many ways… boiled, half boiled, fried, half fried, baked, poached by themselves, and a ton of ways with other ingredients, some of them rather complex and involved. Quiches, custards, macaroons, meringue… the list goes on. Each culture and society have their own popular egg dishes; shakshuka and scotch eggs come to mind enticingly; balut is something I would like to forget even having seen.

The U.S. produces about 75 billion eggs a year, about 10 percent of the world supply. 

Egg consumption in the US grew exponentially when commercial egg farms took over egg production from small farms, in the early 1960s. Today commercial farms have flocks of 100,000 laying hens and some over 1 million. However, the tide is turning again with a growing preference among consumers for free-range hens raised on antibiotic free natural diets. 

The question has always been raised… are eggs healthy to eat? While they are faulted for their high cholesterol content by some, others point out that there is no direct link between dietary cholesterol and blood cholesterol and there are other benefits to consuming eggs. We have seen scientific research moving from one end to the other over the years.

Eggs have been the object of much socio-religious symbolism and tradition. They are associated with magical beliefs, symbolizing rebirth and new life, and are believed to ensure fertility.

Egg Drop Soup

Ingredients

  • 8 cups chicken stock
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup sweet corn kernels
  • 1 cup thinly sliced Napa cabbage
  • 5 medium sized mushrooms, thinly sliced
  • 2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
  • 1 inch piece ginger, minced
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 tsp corn starch
  • 1/2 tsp dried shrimp, crushed (optional)
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Scallions for garnishing

Note: This will produce a dark soup. If you would like a lighter colored soup, replace the soy sauce with dry white wine or sherry.

Directions

  • Add chicken stock, ginger, garlic, sweet corn kernels, and dried shrimp (if using) to a large pot along with salt and pepper, and bring to a boil. Lower heat to let the pot simmer for 20 minutes, adding a little water to keep the quantity the same.
  • Add the sliced cabbage and mushrooms and continue to cook for two minutes.
  • In a small bowl, whisk together 1 tsp of the cornstarch with soy sauce. 
  • Whisk eggs with the remaining teaspoon of cornstarch.
  • Whisk soy sauce-cornstarch mixture into soup until well combined. 
  • With the soup on a low simmer, pour in the egg-cornstarch mixture in a thin stream, slowly stirring the pot to keep the soup moving.
  • Let the soup cook for 10 seconds more to let the egg fully set.
  • Serve garnished with scallions.

Tidbyte

Crocodile eggs have a high lecithin content. Consuming these eggs may help lower blood cholesterol, prevent Alzheimer’s, and improve memory. It can also reduce your risk of hypertension and heart disease, along with treating fatty liver and diabetes.
Printed somewhere on the internet, that unquestionably reliable source of dependable information!

8 thoughts on “E for Eggs”

    1. Though I’ve seen ostrich farms around here, haven’t seen the eggs for sale yet. Read somewhere that the shell of the ostrich egg is so strong a grown person can stand on it without breaking it!

      ~Ria

    1. Do you think gator eggs will be the same? Good solution for Floridians to control their gator population! 🙂 🙂

      ~Ria

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