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Learn how to separate eggs without any special tools! There are three different ways to separate eggs, and I’m showing you all three plus lots of tips so you can separate with success every time.
Table of Contents
How to Separate Eggs without tools
It might sound like a simple thing, but separating eggs is an essential thing in some recipes. Maybe you want to make a great meringue or egg white omelet or decadent custard – knowing how to separate eggs will make these recipes a lot easier.
Whichever method you choose, be sure to start with cold eggs. It’s a lot easier to separate cold eggs than room-temperature ones.
VIDEO: Watch how I separate eggs
How to use an Egg Separator Tool
There are tons of egg separator tools you can buy, but they all do basically the same thing: strain the white from the yolk, so the two are separated.
Honestly, I don’t think you need a special tool to do this, but if you want to try one, here are the pros and cons:
Pros: They are usually easy to use. Place the tool over a small bowl, crack the egg into the slot, and wait for the egg white to separate into the bowl. The other advantage is that you don’t get your hands eggy.
Cons: An egg separator tool only does one thing, and I’m not big on unitaskers. It’s just something else that needs to be cleaned and stored, so for those reasons, I’m not a fan!
How to separate eggs using the shells
An egg comes with its own separating tool: its shell! All you do is crack the egg and then carefully pass the yolk between each shell. As you pass it, the white will drop off, so do this over a bowl to catch it.
Pros: It’s quick and mostly effective! I like I because I can keep my hands clean.
Cons: It can be a little tricky the first few times you try it. You need to crack the egg so each shell part is big enough to hold the yolk. If you don’t get a clean crack, it can get a little messy. You also need to be careful not to break the yolk – it can get caught on the edges of shells while you’re passing it and break.
Using Your Hands to separate eggs
This is also a quick way! It’s almost a combo of the shell method and a separator tool. Cup one of your hands and crack the egg into it. Let the white slip between your fingers while you hold the yolk in your palm. You can also pass the egg to your other hand to separate the white.
Pros: It’s a quick way to separate an egg, and you don’t have to worry about the jagged edges of the shell breaking the yolk.
Cons: It’s a little messy, and if you are rough with the yolk, it can break and mix with the whites.
No matter which method you choose, the goal is to separate the yolk from the white completely – all three methods work, so it’s up to you to pick your favorite!
FAQs
Have you seen the viral video of the water bottle method? You crack the eggs into a bowl and then position the bottle over one of the yolks. Gently squeeze the bottle and release it – this will create suction that pulls the yolk into the bottle leaving the yolk behind. Well, it doesn’t always work, so I don’t recommend trying it. I have, and half the time I end up with broken yolks in my egg whites.
Use the shells as your egg separator – that’s the best way to do it!
No you can use your hands or the egg shells!
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There are three different ways to do it and I’m showing you each! Plus, tons of tips and tricks so you separate correctly each time.
