From the Rav’s Desk: Blood found in hard-boiled eggs

1. Question: [Tuesday, 15^th Sivan, 5781]

I recently cracked a hard-boiled store-bought egg and saw a reddish blackish dot on the egg and wanted to know if I have to treat it as blood and throw out the egg?

Answer:

Yes. However, the rest of the eggs in the pot remain permitted.

Explanation: The same way that we are accustomed to discard a cracked egg that has been found to contain blood so too the same applies with a hard-boiled egg. Now, while one is not required to search for blood in a hard-boiled egg, nonetheless if one sees it then he should discard it. Now, regarding the rest of the eggs in the pot, so long as they are not considered free range eggs, then one can assume that they are not fertilized and therefore the rest of the eggs are permitted even if they are in the minority [i.e. 2 eggs with spot and one without]. Furthermore, from the letter of the law even the egg that contains the black spot may be eaten after one throws out the blood spot although the custom is to be stringent and throw it out entirely.

Sources: See Michaber and Rama Y.D. 66:8 that it is permitted to cook hard boiled eggs or to roast eggs even though one is unable to check them for blood prior to the cooking. The reason for this is because the majority of eggs do not contain blood and hence one does not need to suspect for the minority of eggs and therefore check all eggs for blood. See Kaf Hachaim 66:41; Regarding whether from the letter of the law one must discard the entire egg by today’s unfertilized eggs and the law regarding its Taaruvos, see: Michaber Y.D. 66:7; Minchas Yitzchak 4:56; Igros Moshe Y.D. 1:36; Mishneh Halachos 4:96; Hakashrus 12:36