Every egg holds a secret. Crack them open to discover fascinating facts about nature's most perfect food.
The kiwi bird lays the largest egg relative to its body size of any bird. The egg can weigh up to 25% of the mother's body weight — the human equivalent of giving birth to a 4-year-old.
Source: Guinness World Records; New Zealand Department of Conservation
animalsAncient Egyptians incubated eggs in large mud-brick ovens called 'Egyptian ovens,' some holding up to 4,500 eggs at a time. The technique dates to at least the 4th century BCE.
Source: Encyclopedia Britannica — 'Incubation'
historyA single large egg contains 6.3 grams of protein — split almost evenly between the white (3.6g) and the yolk (2.7g).
Source: USDA FoodData Central
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animalsAn ostrich egg weighs about 1.4 kg (3 lbs) and is equivalent to roughly 24 chicken eggs. Despite being the largest bird egg, it's the smallest egg relative to the bird's body size.
Source: San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance
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animalsCrocodile egg sex is determined by incubation temperature, not chromosomes. Eggs incubated at 31.6°C (89°F) produce males; temperatures above or below that threshold produce females.
Source: Journal of Experimental Zoology, 1994
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animalsThe kiwi bird lays the largest egg relative to its body size of any bird. The egg can weigh up to 25% of the mother's body weight — the human equivalent of giving birth to a 4-year-old.
Source: Guinness World Records; New Zealand Department of Conservation
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cultureIn Japan, raw egg over hot rice (tamago kake gohan, or TKG) is one of the most popular breakfast dishes. Japan's egg food safety standards are strict enough to make raw consumption routine.
Source: Japan Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
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cultureThe White House Easter Egg Roll has been an annual tradition since 1878, when Rutherford B. Hayes opened the White House grounds to children after Congress banned egg rolling on Capitol grounds.
Source: The White House Historical Association
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cultureCentury eggs (pidan) are a Chinese delicacy made by preserving duck or quail eggs in a mixture of clay, ash, salt, and lime for weeks to months. The yolk turns dark green and creamy.
Source: Oxford Companion to Food
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cultureBalut — a fertilized duck egg with a partially developed embryo — is a popular street food in the Philippines and parts of Southeast Asia. It's typically eaten with salt and vinegar.
Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica — 'Balut'
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historyHumans have been eating eggs for at least 6 million years. The earliest evidence comes from fossilized eggshell fragments found alongside early hominid remains in Africa.
Source: Encyclopedia of Food and Culture, Scribner
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historyThe ancient Romans crushed eggshells in their plates after eating to prevent evil spirits from hiding inside them.
Source: Pliny the Elder, Natural History (77 AD)
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historyThe phrase 'don't put all your eggs in one basket' dates back to at least 1605, when Cervantes used a version of it in Don Quixote.
Source: Miguel de Cervantes, Don Quixote (1605)
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historyAncient Egyptians incubated eggs in large mud-brick ovens called 'Egyptian ovens,' some holding up to 4,500 eggs at a time. The technique dates to at least the 4th century BCE.
Source: Encyclopedia Britannica — 'Incubation'
historyTap to crack
cultureThe tradition of egg tapping (hitting hard-boiled eggs together to see whose cracks first) is a competitive sport in parts of Europe, the Middle East, and the American South.
Source: Atlas Obscura — 'Egg Tapping Traditions Around the World'
cultureShowing page 1 of 10 — 115 facts total
The Weekly Scramble
One fact — One joke — One recipe.
The Weekly Scramble
One fact — One joke — One recipe.