Many people enjoy having hard-boiled eggs as a healthy snack, especially when not preparing other foods. The hearty nutrition from an egg can help sustain your appetite for quite some time. But what if you accidentally left your hard-boiled eggs out overnight? Are they safe?
Despite the debate about whether or not hard-boiled eggs can safely be left out overnight, as with most cooked foods, they should not be left out longer than two hours. When temperatures rise above 40°F-140°F, harmful bacteria, such as salmonella multiply, rendering the eggs unsafe for consumption.
To discover how long you can leave hard-boiled eggs out of the refrigerator, if at all, is a subject that has had quite a bit of controversy. Read on to learn more about safety tips surrounding the consumption of hard-boiled eggs.
Tip: Check out Today’s deal on the Instant Pot Pro XL 11-in-1. (It’s 50% off on Amazon!!)
How Long Can Boiled Eggs Sit Out?
Boiled eggs, like other foods, are highly susceptible to harmful bacteria growth when they have been left at room temperature for an extended period.
Most food safety experts agree that boiled eggs left out for more than two hours should not be eaten and instead should be tossed out.
When eggs are boiled, the shell’s integrity is sometimes compromised due to the heat applied through the boiling process.
This removes the protective layer to keep the egg safe from bacteria. Since this protective layer is removed, the eggshell is not sturdy and risks being cracked.
Once the shell is cracked or has holes in it from the boiling process, the egg inside is exposed to the outside air, which can carry harmful bacteria searching for a host.
Boiled eggs, and any other food that is sitting out, can collect these bacteria, which then multiply, thus compromising the safety of the egg.
The FDA, or Food and Drug Administration, recommends that once the eggs have been boiled, you should immediately put them in an ice bath to shock and cool them down quickly.
Once the eggs have cooled, they should be put in a container and placed in the refrigerator if you are not using them directly.
Many countries outside the United States do not refrigerate eggs, whether raw or boiled. This is because the processing is different in the United States than in some countries.
In the United States, eggs, like other dairy products, are processed to remove the protective layer. This is done through a scrubbing process designed to remove contaminants and bacteria from unsanitary farming conditions.
When the eggs are scrubbed, this also removes the protective layer that eggs have naturally, and thus they have to be refrigerated for safety purposes.
In other countries, this process is not done the same way, and eggs are often kept out of the refrigerator even after they are boiled.
How Can You Tell if a Hard Boiled Egg Has Gone Bad?
When a hard-boiled egg has gone bad, they typically give off a robust sulfuric odor that is most obvious when removed from the shell. Although there can be other signs when an egg has expired, such as its appearance and taste, most people notice the odor first.
In most cases, the odor from a boiled egg that has gone bad may not be evident at first glance since the smell is most likely contained within the shell.
The aroma is often more widespread if the exterior has been cracked or has holes from the cooking process.
To check to see if a hard-boiled egg has gone bad, you will most likely need to remove it from the shell and perform a few simple experiments to ensure its safety.
Once you have removed the outside, you should discard the egg if you smell a foul odor since it is most likely rotten.
Secondly, if you do not smell a foul odor immediately, you may want to look at the appearance of the egg. You can do this by examining the outer shell, then once you have removed the shell, look at the egg itself.
Cutting it open may be necessary to determine if any discoloration likely indicates that it has gone bad.
Finally, if the smell and appearance seem normal, you may want to take a small bite to determine whether the taste is typical.
Since you are trying to see if it has gone bad, you may not want to take a huge bite. Just a tiny nibble will be enough to let you know if the hard-boiled egg tastes as it should.
It may be essential to note that the best rule of thumb for hard-boiled eggs is that you should discard them immediately if you leave them out overnight.
If they have been in the refrigerator for more than a week, you should probably throw them away as well.
What Happens if You Eat a Boiled Egg That Has Gone Bad?
When it comes to eating a boiled egg that has gone bad, many people do not experience any illness whatsoever. With other people, symptoms after consumption of a rotten egg are inevitable.
Eating a boiled egg that has gone bad may result in various types of illness or infection, usually depending on the individual’s health and certain risk factors. Salmonella infection is the common culprit of eggs that are rotten and have been consumed in most cases. This infection typically results in nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and fever.
For the best prevention of such unpleasant experiences, it is recommended that you consistently keep an eye on the eggs you have boiled.
In most cases, hard-boiled eggs can last up to a week or sometimes longer if they have been refrigerated. However, there is always a risk, so you should ensure that the eggs you consume are still good.
Since the illness comes from Salmonella infection and other bacteria that live in rotten food, you should be extra careful to stay hydrated, especially if you are older than 65 or if your immune system is compromised.
If you think you have eaten a boiled egg that has gone bad, there is not anything that you can do to prevent unpleasant side effects. However, there are things you can do to take care of yourself.
Keep in mind that food poisoning symptoms have to run their course, but you can keep yourself hydrated and make sure someone is around to keep an eye on you if you need medical attention.
How Long Do Hard Boiled Eggs Last in the Fridge?
As long as the shell is intact, hard-boiled eggs can be stored in the fridge for up to seven days. With the exterior removed, boiled eggs will only keep in the refrigerator for five days. This is because when the eggs are boiled, the protective layer of the eggs is cooked off.
Most people know that raw eggs are safe in the refrigerator for 5-6 weeks. This is typical because the eggs purchased in the grocery store are protected from bacteria with a coating on the shell.
Once you boil the eggs, the heated water dissolves this protective layer, thus making it more susceptible to harmful bacteria to enter through the cracks and other porous areas of the shell.
Refrigerating the boiled eggs after they have cooled down can slow down the process of bacterial growth for up to a week, in most cases.
Many people eat these boiled eggs in the fridge for 2-3 weeks; however, the Food and Drug Administration recommends only seven days maximum.
If you have eggs in the refrigerator for longer than a week, you are putting yourself at risk for various food-borne illnesses.
Some people peel their hard-boiled eggs after cooking and then store them in the refrigerator. As long as they are stored in an airtight container with a wet paper towel to keep them from drying out, unpeeled boiled eggs can last for about five days in the refrigerator.
Boiled eggs that have been peeled last less time in the fridge because they are without their protective shell that keeps them safe and moist. In most cases, boiled eggs exposed to air will dry out after a certain amount of time.
Overall, it is not recommended that you keep hard-boiled eggs from the refrigerator overnight to avoid food poisoning.
Like other foods, once cooked, they should be refrigerated within two hours to prevent harmful bacteria from growing and causing the food to go bad.