If you are an egg-lover, here is a question for you, “How do you like you egg”? Boiled, fried, poached, omlette or scrambled? It’s a tough call to pick just one, isn’t it? Eggs are one of the most versatile, delicious, and easily the most nutritious foods available to us. It’s not just we who are saying this! Even the ancient Romans and Greeks valued them for their rich taste and protein-rich profile. If you have not tried beyond a standard white egg, it’s time for you to explore the different types of eggs available across the globe.

This article discusses the many varieties of eggs and their characteristics to give you endless possibilities of cooking egg-based dishes.

What is an Egg, and Why do Eggs have Different Colors?

According to Britannica, “An egg is a content of the hard-shelled reproductive body produced by a bird, considered as food”.

In simple terms, edible eggs (suitable for humans) are those laid by female birds like chicken, quail, duck etc., primarily for multiplying their species. Eggs consist of a hard shell as the outer cover, albumen or white and yolk in the center. Although the entire egg is rich in proteins and vitamins, it is the yolk that scores high in nutritional value.

Now coming to the color of eggs, you might have noticed different colors like brown, white, green etc., in your local stores or supermarkets. Contrary to assumptions, colored eggs are no different from the standard white ones in nutritional value or edibleness. The color results from the genes of the bird species or the breed.

For instance, breeds like Plymouth rock hens lay brown eggs, while the regular leghorn chickens lay white eggs. Other breeds like Ameraucana lay blue eggs, and black copper Maran lay dark chocolate colored eggs.

Interestingly, all eggs start out white in the initial phases and get their pigment only as the egg passes through the bird’s uterine tube or the oviduct!!