Are My Eggs Beaten?

November 26, 2007 10:55 PM

I completely forgot, and left a sealed box of Egg Beaters on my counter for about 5 or so hours. Are they still safe to use?

Normally, I would just eat the things, but I got the worst case of food poisoning in my life a few weeks ago, and it turned me into a wimp.

posted by aflores to food & drink (17 comments total)

Yeah, I'd toss them. 3 bucks isn't worth the potential sickness imho.
posted by iamabot at 10:56 PM on November 26, 2007

According to the Egg Beaters site, they are pasteurized, so they should be safe. But, as iamabot pointed out, if you're worried about it, toss them.
posted by amyms at 10:58 PM on November 26, 2007

Huh, although the suckers are nuked prior to packaging...maybe you're ok as long as they haven't been opened.

http://www.eggbeaters.com/products/faqs.jsp
posted by iamabot at 10:58 PM on November 26, 2007

Here's the relevant part of their FAQ:

"Do you have to be careful handling and cooking Egg Beaters?

Unlike traditional whole eggs, all egg alternative products are pasteurized, eliminating the threat of serious illness or death by salmonella poisoning. This means people can safely eat Caesar salad dressing, protein shakes or other foods that traditionally contain uncooked eggs that would otherwise increase their risk of exposure to dangerous salmonella bacteria."
posted by amyms at 10:59 PM on November 26, 2007

Thanks. I visited their website, and completely missed the FAQ. For the record, I was planning on baking two cakes, ergo the Egg Beaters.
posted by aflores at 11:05 PM on November 26, 2007

Well, you could cook them. Wouldn't that take care of the issue?
posted by schroedinger at 11:06 PM on November 26, 2007

I got the worst case of food poisoning in my life a few weeks ago

Now's your chance to do something with that hard-earned immunity!
posted by IvyMike at 11:49 PM on November 26, 2007

I would eat these without a second thought. Like, it literally would not have occurred to me to question it. I think my line would have been overnight or +/- 10 hours. I highly doubt you have anything to worry about.
posted by loiseau at 1:11 AM on November 27, 2007

When it doubt, throw it out.
posted by firevoice at 3:54 AM on November 27, 2007

5 hours? Pffft, they're fine.
posted by mkultra at 5:36 AM on November 27, 2007

They are probably OK, but I would still throw them out, considering you got food poisoning recently. Be good to your tummy!
posted by bitteroldman at 5:55 AM on November 27, 2007

they're ok. eggs last a long time (weeks) without refrigeration, i imagine sealed egg beaters would last longer.
posted by sid at 6:35 AM on November 27, 2007

Seconding sid. Eggs are fine kept at room temp for a long long time. I used to buy eggs all the time during my time as a peace corps volunteer in Africa with no refrigerator and let them sit out in my 80+ deg. kitchen for several days with no problems.
posted by i less than three nsima at 6:57 AM on November 27, 2007

AskMe threads about food always turn out the same way: 50% of people letting you know that you'll be sick and you should throw it away, the other 50% saying "as long as a dog hasn't crapped on it, I'd eat it."
posted by proj at 8:22 AM on November 27, 2007 [2 favorites has favorites]

I'd eat them. Think about it: eggs can sit for many hours in the hay(?) before the farmer picks them up after the chickens lay them. They're sitting at room temp in the chicken coop. Egg Beaters are pasteurized, so they can last even longer away from refrigeration. Scramble and enjoy.
posted by HotPatatta at 9:04 AM on November 27, 2007

The FDA says that the odds of salmonella'd eggs are like 1 in 20,000. And that's further reduced by the way eggbeaters are prepared. And the chances of THOSE egg beaters having salmonella AND it growing because of sitting on the counter is pretty low.

Eat the eggs and go buy some lottery tickets.
posted by iamkimiam at 9:42 AM on November 27, 2007

They're fine - eggs are kept out on the counter in many countries for around a week at a time.
posted by dkleinst at 11:20 AM on November 27, 2007