What relationship exists between a rooster and broken egg yolks?
I regularly purchase fresh chicken eggs from a small farm located inside Richmond, Virginia city limits, about three miles from the outdoor market where they are sold. These farmers are diligent and I believe the eggs are extremely fresh, gathered less than a week before sale, kept at room temperature and handled with care. About 25% of all chicken eggs from this farm have the yolk already broken when I crack them open. (Their duck eggs have no such problem.) It's not my cracking technique because eggs from other local farms have intact yolks. Sometimes the broken yolk appears to have been attached to the inside of the shell, so that I cannot get all the yolk out into my frying pan. Now, the farm has a rooster and some of the eggs are clearly fertile; they have a red spot in the yolk. Could the broken yolks be in fact embryos, where the red spot simply is not visible?
The page Why do yolks break so easily (sometimes)? is related to this, but does not seem to answer the question about the rooster's role in broken yolks. That page does say that stress on the hen causes broken yolks; is a rooster's amorous activity sufficient to cause that level of stress?
Best Answer
One factor that can cause easily broken egg yolks is that the hens have a lack of protein in their diet.
"the farm has a rooster and some of the eggs are clearly fertile; they have a red spot in the yolk"
This is a misconception (no pun intended), because all eggs, fertilized or not, contain tiny blood vessels that anchor the yolk inside the egg. It's just that most are unnoticeable.
"Could the broken yolks be in fact embryos, where the red spot simply is not visible?"
No, by reason that the yolk is what becomes the chicken, so it's not possible that a broken yolk is also a chicken.
"related to this, but does not seem to answer the question about the rooster's role in broken yolks"
This is because of the assumption that the rooster does have a role in the broken yolks, which it doesn't.
"Sometimes the broken yolk appears to have been attached to the inside of the shell"
This is caused by the egg sitting too long in the same position so the yolk naturally migrates.
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What does it mean if an egg yolk breaks?
If the yolk is flat and breaks easily, the egg is old. If the yolk moves around easily, this means the chalazae (the thicker strands of egg white that hold the yolk in place) have weakened and the egg is aging.Does it matter if egg yolk is broken?
The Cracking TestIf the egg yolk bulges and the white is viscous and gathered tightly round the yolk, the egg is still fresh. If the yolk is flat and the egg white runny, the egg is old. The protein chains (various substances linked together) in the egg white break up over time.What do you call eggs with broken yolk?
Where I come from, that would be called 'over hard. ' As a reference, the others would be over-easy (runny yolk), over-medium (soft, slightly runny), and the over-hard would be cooked solid. Chefs will often break the yolk on an over-hard order, before flipping the egg, if it's not already broken.What is it called when you fry an egg and pop the yolk?
Sunny side up: The egg is fried with the yolk up and is not flipped. Over easy: The egg is flipped and the yolk is still runny. Over medium: The egg is flipped and the yolk is only slightly runny.Egg yolk Brioche bread | French Bread | Easy Brioche Bread | How to use only egg yolks in bread |
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