Making homemade egg nog that's safe (2024)

FAQs

How come you don't get Salmonella from eggnog? ›

If a recipe calls for folding raw, beaten egg whites into the eggnog, use pasteurized eggs. It has not been proven that raw egg whites are free of Salmonella bacteria. If you purchase eggnog from your local grocery store, the eggnog has been prepared with pasteurized eggs. You do not need to cook it.

Choose The Right Spirit

While brandy is the most traditional alcohol to pair with eggnog, according to traditional recipes, you can also use a mixture of dark rum and Cognac. If you like your eggnog with more of a kick you can also add bourbon, but we recommend sticking to rum and Cognac to preserve the 'nog's flavors.

“While there are different eggnog recipes, most eggnog will typically contain high amounts of fat from cream and milk, and added sugar for sweetness,” said Cohn. The American Heart Association recommends that people consume no more than 5% to 6% of calories from saturated fat every day to support heart health.

Combine eggs and half the milk as indicated in the recipe. (Other ingredients, such as sugar may be added at this step.) Cook the mixture gently to an internal temperature of 160 °F, stirring constantly. The cooking will destroy Salmonella, if present.

Consuming raw eggs puts you at risk for contracting salmonellosis, a foodborne illness from Salmonella bacteria that can cause diarrhea, fever and stomach cramps. Salmonella can be on the outside of an eggshell but also inside the egg itself.

How to pasteurise eggs. The trick is to add an acid, like lemon juice of white wine vinegar to your eggs. This will allow the eggs to be heated up to the pasteurisation temperature (140°F or 60°C), thus killing the harmful salmonella bacteria.

Pasteurized shell eggs are heated in warm water baths using controlled time and temperature, to destroy any bacteria that might be present, but the process does not cook the eggs. Any process used for eggs in shell pasteurization has to be approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Bottom line: Eggnog and egg white co*cktails made with pasteurized eggs are safest, but alcohol can prevent the growth of bad bacteria like Salmonella. So you can safely sip your eggnog this holiday season, knowing the only reason you might regret it the next day is because you had one glass too many.

After giving it a good shake, you can strain and serve right away, or shake it again with ice if you prefer your eggnog extra chilled.

Rum is the classic alcohol to splash in a glass of eggnog. This pairing is so iconic that rum is often listed in many traditional eggnog recipes. If you'd like to add rum to your mugful, opt for a golden or dark rum.

Why do I feel sick after drinking eggnog? ›

Thickeners may cause digestive upset in some people. Several of the dairy products contain high fructose corn syrup as a sweetener. The majority of the eggnogs we looked at had more than one of these ingredients.

Eggnog can be considered a higher potassium and phosphorus food. Due to these nutrients, this drink food may be limited for those with kidney disease who are on a low potassium, low phosphorus diet.

“The most recent estimates indicate that about three out of every 10,000 eggs is positive for salmonella,” Schaffner said. “This means the risk from any individual egg is low, but of course the more eggs you combine, the higher the risk.” Pasteurization is one of the keys to avoiding salmonella poisoning from eggnog.

Most commercially available eggnogs are pasteurized, so the risk of falling ill from uncooked eggs is pretty minimal. They have been cooked and held at 160 degrees Fahrenheit to ensure that foodborne illnesses, such as salmonella, E. coli, listeria and campylobacter, are no longer present.

Bacteria such as Salmonella need time to grow (replicate) so how quickly you eat the food and whether it's refrigerated before and after really matters. Very small numbers of bacteria in raw eggs are unlikely to cause food poisoning because human stomach acid will overpower it.

Wash hands, utensils, equipment, and work surfaces with hot, soapy water before and after they come in contact with raw eggs and raw egg-containing foods. Cook eggs until both the yolk and the white are firm. Scrambled eggs should not be runny. Casseroles and other dishes containing eggs should be cooked to 160° F.

He warns that the most concerning issues with eggnog come from the milk and cream. “The risks from raw dairy are more well established,” Schaffner said, adding that they can also lead to other bacteria including listeria, e. coli and campylobacter. “Don't count on alcohol to kill the bacteria,” declared James E.