Cooking with Eggs • Serve eggs and egg-rich foods immediately after cooking or refrigerate and use within three to four days. • If a recipe calls for eggs at room temperature, immerse them in warm water for a few minutes. • To prevent toughness, always use moderate heat and controlled cooking times for eggs. • Don't eat cracked eggs or eggs that have been out of the refrigerator for more than two hours. • A greenish ring around a hard-cooked egg yolk is due to either overcooking or high iron content in the cooking water. This can be avoided by using proper cooking time and temperature, and by rapidly cooling the cooked egg in cold water. • Use very fresh eggs to prepare poached eggs with a compact oval shape. • Cook scrambled eggs over medium-low heat for fluffy, thick eggs. • Add water to omelettes instead of milk. The water will turn to steam producing a light, airy omelette. • Use a glass or metal bowl instead of a plastic bowl for meringue. The greasy film on a plastic bowl can prevent foaming. • The egg yolk and white separate best when they are cold. • Egg whites will beat to a better volume if they're allowed to stand at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes before beating. • Unless otherwise specified, most recipes are written using large eggs. One large egg = ¼ cup or 4 tablespoons or 50 mL.   Egg Handling and Food Safety Eggs should be stored in an egg carton. The carton protects the eggs and prevents them from absorbing strong odours and flavours of other foods through the thousands of tiny pores in the shell. Eggs should not be stored on the refrigerator door, but in the main body of the refrigerator to ensure they keep a consistent and cooler temperature. Eggs can be eaten for a short time after the Best Before Date, if they have been kept refrigerated. However, keep in mind that the best before date indicates the length of time the eggs will maintain their Grade A quality. After the Best Before Date, eggs should be cooked thoroughly (for example, used for baking or hard cooking). Leftover raw egg whites and yolks should be put in airtight containers and stored in the refrigerator immediately. To prevent yolks from drying up, cover them with a little cold water. Drain the water before using. Hard Cooked Eggs in the shell or peeled, will keep for one week in a covered container in the refrigerator. • Blood spots are occasionally found on an egg yolk. Contrary to popular opinion, these tiny spots do not indicate a fertilized egg. Rather, they are caused by the rupture of a blood vessel on the yolk surface during formation of the egg. These eggs are fit to eat. The spot can be removed with the tip of a knife, if you wish. • The stringy strands of material in the egg are called chalazae, which hold the yolk in place. A cloudy egg white is a sign of freshness, not age, because of the high carbon dioxide content when the egg is laid.   Egg Nutrition There are no nutritional differences between brown eggs and white eggs. • Eggs contain all nine essential amino acids, making them a complete protein food. • Eggs are one of the few foods that naturally contain vitamin D. • The egg yolk is the major source of the egg's vitamins and minerals. • One to two eggs provide one serving from the Meat and Alternatives group in Canada's Food Guide to Healthy Eating. Canada's Foood Guide to Healthy Eating A balanced lifestyle includes eating from the four food groups. Canada's Food Guide to Healthy Eating recommends the following number of servings from the four food groups every day. Recognizing the nutritional value of eggs, Canada's Food Guide to Healthy Eating includes a serving of 1 or 2 eggs as part of the Meat and Alternatives food group   What are Omega 3 Enhanced eggs and how do they benefit me? Omega-3 fatty acids are essential dietary nutrients that we must get from food since our body can't make them. Research indicates that Omega 3 (a polyunsaturated fatty acid) may play an important role in the prevention of coronary heart disease by lowering serum cholesterol, triglyceride and low density lipoprotein levels (LDL, “bad fat”). They are also beneficial for brain and eye function, infant development, and a healthy immune system. Egg producers feed the hens a diet high in flax seed, which is a good source of omega-3 fatty acids. The fatty acids are then transferred into the egg. As a result the fat profile of these eggs is slightly different than regular eggs. Omega-3 enriched eggs have a higher level of unsaturated fat and omega-3 fatty acids. The total fat content remains the same   Chicken Food Safety Whole chicken Storage of Chicken - recommended maximums Type Refrigerator Freezer Ground chicken 1 day 2 - 3 Months 2 - 3 days 12 months Chicken pieces 2 - 3 days 6 months Cooked chicken 3 - 4 days 2 - 3 months Never defrost chicken at room temperature. The preferred method for thawing chicken is in the refrigerator, allowing 6 - 9 hours per pound. Frozen chicken may also be thawed in the microwave, but should be cooked immediately after thawing.   Handling and Cooking Chicken Wash cutting boards, utensils, work surfaces and your hands thoroughly before and after handling raw meat and poultry. Never put cooked meat or poultry on surfaces used to prepare raw products. Cook chicken to the proper temperature. Whole chicken at 180°F (83°C) Chicken pieces at 170°F (77°C) Ground chicken at 175°F (80°C)   What to do if the freezer quits? Whole chicken and chicken pieces can be safely refrozen if they are still full of ice crystals. If whole chicken or chicken pieces have thawed completely, but are still very cold, the chicken should be cooked, then may be refrozen or stored in the refrigerator for 3 - 4 days. If the product is no longer cold, it must be discarded - especially ground chicken. Once ground chicken has thawed, it must not be refrozen. It may be cooked if it is still cold, and then refrozen.   Chicken Nutrition Chicken is high in protein, low in fat and low in cholesterol, making it a good selection for a healthy diet. Our bodies require a certain amount of protein daily and the body does not store protein so we need to replenish it each day. A 3-ounce portion of chicken provides a large amount of our daily requirement for protein. Our bodies also require fat in our diet, which allows us to absorb vitamins that are fat-soluble and energy producing. But, too much fat is not healthy. Chicken is lower in fat than most other meats and over half of the fat is unsaturated fat, the type that helps lower cholesterol. The white meat is lower in fat than the dark meat of the chicken but the dark meat is higher in iron, an important nutrient for a healthy body. Shown below is a list of suggestions on how to make chicken even healthier. Remove the skin from the chicken before eating. The skin can be removed either before or after cooking to reduce the fat content by almost half. Leaving the skin on during cooking will provide juicier meat. Trim all excess fat from the chicken before cooking. Rather than using fat, such as butter and oils, to enhance the chicken's flavor, try other ingredients, such as flavored vinegars, wines, herbs, spices, or citrus fruit. Cook chicken without the use of fats by baking, roasting, broiling, grilling, or poaching. Pan fry or stir-fry in olive oil or use a fat free nonstick cooking spray.   Turkey Nutrition • Turkey is a leader in the 'lean' meat class. With the variety of fresh cuts available today, we can easily incorporate turkey into our daily menus. • Turkey is an excellent source of protein providing the essential amino aci ds necessary for the renewal and maintenance of body tissues and providing food energy. • Turkey is an excellent source of niacin, a factor in the maintenance of good health. • Turkey is a good source of phosphorous, a factor in the normal development of bones and teeth. • Turkey has fewer calories. • Turkey contains less fat. • Turkey contains less cholesterol. • The small amount of fat in turkey is mainly unsaturated   How do I safely handle turkey? Follow these simple food safety guidelines: Thaw frozen turkey in the refrigerator or cold water. Keep thawed or fresh turkey in the refrigerator. Prevent uncooked juices from dripping onto other foods in the refrigerator by placing packaged turkey on a tray. Thawed turkey may be kept in the refrigerator up to four days before cooking. Roast fresh turkey as soon as possible, but no later than the "use by" date on the package. Place raw poultry on non-porous surfaces; these are easy to clean. It is recommended to use two cutting boards, one strictly to cut raw meats and the other for cooked and ready-to-eat foods. Cutting boards should be washed thoroughly in hot, soapy water after each use and allowed to air dry or dried with fresh paper towels. Use paper towels, not cloth, to wipe off turkey and clean up juices. Combine stuffing ingredients and stuff turkey just before roasting, not the night before. Wash hands, work surfaces and utensils touched by raw poultry and its juices with hot, soapy water.   How do I store leftover turkey properly? Keep these food safety tips in mind when storing your turkey leftovers: Within two hours after roasting, remove stuffing from turkey and carve the meat off the bones, then store in refrigerator or freezer. Wrap turkey slices and stuffing separately, and refrigerate and use within three days. Use refrigerated gravy within three days. Freeze leftovers if you plan to store them for a longer period of time. Wrap in heavy foil, freezer wrap or place in freezer container; for optimum taste, use stuffing within one month and turkey within two months.   What's the best way to roast a turkey? Place thawed or fresh turkey, breast up on a flat rack in a shallow pan, 2 to 2-1/2 inches deep. Brush or rub skin with oil to prevent the skin from drying and to enhance the golden color. Insert oven-safe meat thermometer deep into the lower part of the thigh muscle, but not touching the bone. When thigh is up to temperature and if turkey is stuffed, move thermometer to center of stuffing for stuffing temperature. Make sure to follow the stuffing tips. Place in a preheated 325F oven. When the turkey is about two-thirds done, loosely cover the breast and top of drumsticks with a piece of lightweight foil to prevent overcooking the breast. Use this roasting schedule as a guideline; start checking for doneness 1/2 hour before recommended end times: Net Weight (in pounds) Unstuffed (in hours) Stuffed (in hours) 10 to 18 3 to 3-1/2 3-3/4 to 4-1/2 18 to 22 3-1/2 to 4 4-1/2 to 5 22 to 24 4 to 4-1/2 5 to 5-1/2 24 to 30 4-1/2 to 5 5-1/2 to 6-1/4 Turkey is done when the meat thermometer reaches the following temperatures: 180F deep in the thigh; also, juices should be clear, not reddish pink when thigh muscle is pierced deeply. 160F in the center of the stuffing, if turkey is stuffed. Before removing stuffing and carving, let turkey stand 15 minutes to allow juices to set and stuffing temperature to rise to 165F.   What's the best way to thaw a turkey? Refrigerator thawing is recommended. However, if short on time, submerge the turkey in cold water. Thawing the turkey at room temperature is not recommended as it could promote bacterial growth. Refrigerator Thawing: Thaw turkey in unopened wrapper, breast-side up, on a tray in the refrigerator. For every four pounds of turkey, allow at least one day of thawing. Cold Water Thawing: Place turkey in unopened wrapper, breast down and cover completely with cold tap water. Change water every 30 minutes to keep surface of turkey cold. Estimate minimum thawing time to be 30 minutes per pound for a whole turkey.
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