Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

It's why cooked eggnog is safe (and delicious).

I'd be interested in knowing how much alcohol you'd have to put in uncooked eggnog to render it safe. The recipe in The Joy of Cooking suggests 4 to 6 cups (a liter to a liter and a half) for 18 servings. That seems like rather a lot from a drinking standpoint, but maybe not that much from a sanitizing standpoint considering that there's also 2 cups (half a liter) of heavy cream and a pound (half a kilo) of sugar.



You can mix the egg and alcohol first, let it stand and kill the bacteria, and only then add the rest of the ingredients.

(I've never made eggnog so not sure if the recipe demands a different order.)


Thank you for the light bulb moment. Joy says to do exactly this "to dispel the eggy taste". I suppose that's more appealing than "to kill any bacteria that might make you ill".


For eggnog and other recipes that necessitate raw eggs, one can always use pasteurized eggs. It is easy to DIY if you have an immersion circulator. If not, some stores sell them now.


Rubbing alcohol is typically 80%+, so I'm not surprised if weak beer levels of alcohol are ineffective at sanitation.


Alarmingly enough, that's a liter of /liquor/ the recipe calls for. Ars picked up on the importance of mixing the eggs with it first to have a high concentration of alcohol for sanitation before adding the other stuff.




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: