You're storing your eggs wrong

Food experts have weighed in on the worst place to store eggs. Photo / Getty Images

Most fridges have a designated rack in the door with holes for your eggs, so it would be logical to assume that's the best place to store them.

But experts have revealed that the fridge door is actually the worst place to keep your eggs fresh to make them last as long as possible.

The fridge door is the warmest part of your fridge, so your eggs will become rotten much quicker than if you store them in the main part of your appliance.

The reason why eggs will go off quickest when stored in the fridge door is because that is the part of the fridge that is subject to the most extreme temperature fluctuations, Vlatka Lake from Space Station told The Sun.

When you open and close the fridge, the items in the door will become warmer than they would if stored in others parts of the appliance.

But for those who don't keep eggs in the fridge, there's no need to feel smug as keeping them chilled is still the best way to store them.

Vlatka said: "The general consensus is to store eggs in the fridge, but not in the egg racks commonly found on the fridge door.

"Egg racks are susceptible to changes in temperature due to the fridge door opening and closing and can cause your eggs to go rotten more quickly."

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Vlatka is not the first to dish out this advice.

Good Housekeeping also warns against keeping eggs in the fridge door, saying the best way to store them is to keep them in their original box on the middle shelf to prevent temperature changes and contamination.

The British Egg Information Service advises that for "optimum safety" eggs need to be stored in boxes at a consistent temperature below 20C (68F) away from strong-smelling food as eggs easily absorb odours.

It says: "Try to avoid moving them too often between very cold and very warm temperatures such as between a hot car and fridge, or fridge and hot kitchen.

"Best practice is to store eggs in the fridge - that way the temperature is always at a constant and your eggs will be fresher."

Dr Stuart Farrimond wrote on the topic in a new book debunking common food myths called The Science of Cooking.

He said that keeping eggs in the fridge door could ruin some egg-based dishes, such as meringues or fried eggs, as the shaking of the door when you open the appliance should destabilise the whites.

Dr Farrimond says you can use eggs straight from the fridge for boiled or scrambled eggs, but if making poached or fried eggs, or cakes and meringues, you should use eggs at room temperature.

Keeping them at room temperature will prevent eggs from becoming stringy when making poached or fried eggs, and for cakes, this will allow the proteins to unwind and mesh together more easily for a slightly finer and more even crumb.