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What's the difference between a Large Grade A egg, and a Double AA egg?

I'm always stumped how egg producers get away with selling smaller eggs as "large eggs" in my state...and yet Double AA Large eggs are only slightly larger?

Does this really make any difference in recipes? Which works better?
For frying? For hard boiling? Soft boiling?

Please enlighten us about this...
(or is it just deceptive advertising, like McD's asking if you want a Large or Super-sized drink, eliminating the adjective "small" from their volcabulary?)

O my captain asked in Other-Food & Drink 5 months ago | Report

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2 Answers

  • 2008_0522stuff0016_small
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    A and AA are voluntary gradings of quality, not egg size. Egg size is determined by weight. So, in theory, AA eggs are fresher and higher quality than A eggs; B eggs are used in industrial purposes. The "in theory" comes from whether the eggs were stored properly. Let an AA egg sit on the shelf in a refrigerator for awhile and it'll become an A egg as moisture evaporates through its pores.

    Assuming the eggs are stored identically, an AA egg is a better choice for poaching as it will hold together better in the cooking liquid. An A egg is better for hard boiled eggs because it will peel more easily.

    Griffin answered in Other-Food & Drink 5 months ago | Report
    2 comments by O my captain and RacerX…
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  • Subcultureoftwo_small
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    Sacrelicious

    Griffin's right, it's a quality issue. The rating is a measure of the proportion of thick albumen to thin, which is most easily guessed at by holding it up to the light. A high-quality egg has a small air cell, and the yolk doesn't move around as much. That means more thick albumen, and therefore thicker, higher quality egg whites when you cook. The rule of thumb is that the air cell should be about the size of a dime. In a cracked egg, you can see the difference if you look at them from the side, since thinner, low-grade eggs tend to sprawl (http://www.vdacs.virginia.gov/poultry&egg/images/egg-stds.gif).

    Eggs take in air as they age, and the quality degrades accordingly.

    They also factor in external characters. Eggs with abnormal shells or staining get graded B, although I can't imagine that that would impact the taste.

    Whether I could personally taste the difference at all...unlikely. I think. More likely if the egg is it's own fried thing, less likely if scrambled or put into a cake.

    Sacrelicious answered in Other-Food & Drink 5 months ago | Report
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