August 26, 2011
On Tuesday’s Egg Day, we began a 3-day experiment. We placed a raw egg into a mason jar full of vinegar and sealed the jar, setting the whole thing aside for a few days. At that point, the kids hypothesized that the egg would explode inside of the jar.
This morning, we had a look at our egg to see if it had transformed.
When Bea went to unscrew the lid, the jar made a popping sound, as if gasses had been released. Aside from the strong smell of vinegar, however, we didn’t sense any off-putting smells.
Each of the kids had a turn trying to remove the egg from the jar. This was difficult. The egg had expanded. And, it looked even larger than its new, expanded size because of the presence of the liquid. It also seemed rather squishy. I finally had to remove it with a large spoon.
The kids were amazed by the results! They were left with a bouncy, rubbery chicken egg the size of a goose egg. It had an orange tinge from the yolk still trapped inside.
They spent some time squishing it, but neither of them wanted to bounce the egg to see if it would break. So, we wished it well and deposited it back into the jar of vinegar for safekeeping. We might break it out again at Halloween, perhaps transforming it into a “floating eye” for display by the cauldron of candy we keep at the front door! Come “trick-or-treat” at our place and you can have a look!
I’m not sure what it is about them, but eggs always make for really fun experiments. I learned how to poach eggs in plastic wrap this summer, and it makes for a really fun little show. I do little kitchen games with my littlest brother and sister, and Arzak eggs would be awesome to make with them. http://kitchentangents.com/2011/07/09/lucky-peach-review-and-the-craziest-eggs-youve-ever-seen/
Wow! Fantastic idea! I could see these as the initial decor for a brunch before you take them down and cook them…though everyone’s always late for brunch, so perhaps better to have guests prep their own at table!
Having guests make their own poached eggs? That would be so cool-like a fondue almost. I think there’s enough different things to do with eggs (condiments), that a poaching party could be a success.