How To Remove Chalaza From An Egg?- Quick Hacks

Introduction

Imagine you’re about to make yourself some scrambled eggs. And then you find a white string moving around the yolk. Yeah, that’s the chalaza of the egg. 

Do you find it gross and want to remove it from the egg? We’re here to help you.

So how to remove the chalaza from an egg?

You can remove the chalaza from the yolk itself using an egg separator. Using the edge of an eggshell will also do the job. Furthermore, you can remove it with a chalaza removal tool or a tweezer. You can also get the string out with a fork or a whisk while beating the egg. If nothing works, pass it through a strainer. 

There’s a lot more you don’t know yet. Head over to our piece to perfect the art of removing chalaza from an egg.

How to Remove Chalaza? 

The chalaza is a pair of white strings in an egg that actually identify the freshness of it. But most people like it removed from the egg. Removing the chalaza can be a little tough because of the consistency of the eggs. 

Eggs are generally pretty sticky. So you know how hard it can get to pick out tiny things from it. 

Chalaza From Egg Yolks- How To Remove That String?

Suppose you just want the egg yolk for whatever you’re cooking. Yolks are mostly used for making puddings and other recipes like that. 

Whether you’re thickening ranch dressing with the yolk. Or you’re making a dessert. 

So it’s quite important to leave the chalaza out of the yolk.  This will help avoid a rough texture.

However, there are few different ways you can remove it.

Use An Egg Separator

If you’re aiming for the yolk, use an egg separator to remove the chalaza. All you need to do is just separate the two parts. 

Just simply place the separator on top of a bowl or a glass and crack an egg into it. The whites including the chalaza will fall down the separator while the yolk remains. The end result will be a chalaza-free yolk which you can be used for cooking.

By the way, our top choices of egg separators are listed down below-

1. Egg Separator Egg Yolk White Filter Food Grade Egg Divider Stainless Steel
2. OXO Good Grips 3-in-1 Egg Separator
3. Egg White Egg Yolk Separator Divider Tool

Use The Edge Of An Egg Shell

The edge of an eggshell works wonders when removing the chalaza from the egg. Especially if it’s the yolk you’re removing the chalaza from. 

Separating the egg yolk may remove the chalaza already. But you might still find white parts stringing in the yolk. Don’t worry you can still remove it.

Take that eggshell you were about to throw out to the bin and do your magic. Just use the edge of the shell to pick out the chalaza.

Use A Food Brush

Food brushes can be quite useful. Not just for brushing oil into a pan or egg white on top of your pastry. But you can also use it for removing the chalaza from an egg. You may be wondering how you can do that. 

Here’s the thing-

In the case of chalaza in the yolk, it’s easier to remove. This is because the yolk isn’t as sticky as the white. So you just use a food brush and brush it away from the yolk. 

Now there’s one thing you need to keep in mind. Don’t use a big food brush that we generally use when cooking or baking. Use a smaller one (8.15’’ x 1.30’’) if you want the chalaza to stick to the brush. 

This might take a while but you’ll get it out. So don’t stress over it too much.

Pinch it

There’s another method that you can follow in order to remove the chalaza from the egg. However, you might find it gross or icky. This is because you’ll need to use your fingers to pinch the white string out.

When the yolk is resting on your fingers, it’s time to remove the chalaza. Pinch the chalaza out from the yolk. It might be a little tricky but you’ll succeed after a few tries.  

However, be aware because you might break the yolk. And if you do, it’ll slip and mix with the whites.    

Which One To Pick?

If you’re wondering which methods would be the best for you, we’ve got you covered. Scan through the table to get a brief idea of the methods. Now you can decide which one is best for you –

Methods	Ease	Time required	Cost	Effort Required
Egg separator	Easiest and most convenient	Takes no time at all	Cheaper than a food brush	Hardly takes any effort. Can be done in 1 try
Eggshell	Pretty convenient	Might take a few seconds	No cost at all	It will do the work in 2-3 tries
Food brush	Easy to remove	Might take a few seconds	Cheap but more expensive than a strainer	Should be done in 1 try
Pinching	Can be a little difficult	Might take a minute	No cost at all	Might take 3-4 tries

Chalaza From Egg Whites- How Do You Get Rid Of It?

Now that we’ve talked about the yolk, let’s move on to the white of the egg. Chances are the chalaza will stick to the yolk. Since its sole purpose is to keep the yolk attached within the egg. But sometimes the chalaza goes into the whites. And that can be a hassle to remove. 

This is because if you beat or cook the egg white, it becomes whiter. So finding the chalaza can be difficult.

However, consuming the chalaza in the egg is completely safe. But it often alters the texture of the food. This can be quite unappealing. 

Removing the chalaza from the egg white is more difficult than removing it from the yolk. This is because the egg whites tend to hold everything tightly. This  includes the chalaza if it’s present in the white. 

But there are a few methods you can use to remove the chalaza from egg whites.

Use A Chalaza Removal Tool

Yes, you actually have a chalaza removal tool. You can use this tool to easily remove the chalaza from the egg white. Now the reason why it’s so helpful in the case of the whites is that they have little claws. These have pointy edges that pick out the chalaza straight from the sticky whites. 

The chalaza removal tool looks quite like a tweezer. But it has triangular pointy edges on its side. This is what helps to pick out the chalaza right from inside the whites. 

Use A Fork

You know how you often use a fork to beat an egg. You might notice the chalaza during that time. But removing the chalaza at this point won’t be very difficult. That’s because you can just use the fork to take out the white string from the white. 

You could use a spoon here but we recommend using a fork. So that it’s easier for you to remove the chalaza. And you can remove it without mixing the egg white and the egg yolk. 

However, removing the string might be a little tough. Mostly because the chalaza might keep slipping away from the fork. But you’ll catch it after a few tries hopefully. 

Use A Tweezer

Using a tweezer to remove the chalaza from an egg might sound funny. But trust me, it works pretty well. Because a tweezer is just like the chalaza removal tool excluding the claws. 

You can just pinch out the chalaza from the separated egg white. Do this using the tweezer. Because egg whites are too sticky, the string tends to slip away easily.

That’s why using a tweezer makes things easier in this case. Because there’s no change the chalaza can slip away from the tweezer. 

Which Method To Choose?

Here’s a brief overview of all three methods that can be used. Give it a read and you’ll know which one to go for. 

Methods	Ease	Time required	Cost	Effort
Chalaza removal tool	Easiest and the most convenient	A few seconds	Quite expensive	Takes no effort. Should be done in 1 try.
Fork	Quite convenient	Might take longer	You usually have forks at home. So probably no cost at all	Might need to try 3-4 times.
Tweezer	Easy and convenient	A few seconds	Quite expensive. But it’s readily available at home.	Might take 2 tries

Chalaza From Beaten Eggs- How Do You Remove It?

Now let’s talk about how to remove the chalaza from a beaten egg. We’ve talked about how we can separate the chalaza from the yolk or the white. But what to do if you’ve beaten the egg and the white string is still there?

Chalaza is a stretchy strong string. And it doesn’t usually break down when you beat the egg. Even if you use an egg beater or hand mixer, chances are you might find it there. 

If you’ve made something chewy like cookies or brownies, you might bite into the chalaza. That’s gross right? Just like a green egg white.

So, here are a few ways to remove chalaza from a beaten egg or egg mixture. 

Use A Strainer

Once you’ve beaten the eggs, you can pass the mixture through a sieve or a strainer. This will not only give you a smooth egg mixture. But it’ll help you get rid of the chalaza from the egg. 

Now doing this can be tricky because egg mixtures are sticky. So it might stick to the strainer. But you can use a spoon to pass it through the strainer properly. 

Use A Whisk

In case you didn’t notice the chalaza before, remove it during the cooking.

As you’re whisking the eggs to beat them, try to catch the white string within the whisk. Once you get the chalaza on the whisk, just use a fork to remove it. Or you can use your finger to take it off the whisk.

This will hopefully help you remove the chalaza from the beaten egg.

Source: everydayhealth.com

You can also remove the chalaza from beaten eggs following the previously mentioned methods. You can use a tweezer or a chalaza removal tool to remove the string from the egg mixture. Or  try using your fingers to pinch out the chalaza from the egg. 

FAQs

Conclusion

Removing the chalaza can be difficult sometimes. But by now you must’ve learned how to remove the chalaza from an egg.

You can even try using everyday utensils to remove the chalaza like a tong. You just have to be careful in case you want the yolk and white separate. 

However, let us know if our detailed guide helps you remove the chalaza from an egg.