Question:
Hello. I always crack the eggs in a separate bowl to check for blood in the yolk which would then be thrown out if there was blood. What if we boil eggs? If they are hard boiled, how can we possibly tell if there is blood in the egg. We normally eat hard boiled eggs without thinking about this.
Shabbat shalom and thank you
Answer:
Thank you for your question.
The reason we check for blood spots in eggs is because there is a possibility that there is blood inside it. Essentially, since most eggs do not have blood spots in them, there isn’t an obligation to check them, however the Rema in Shulchan Aruch Y:D (66-8) says minhag is to check them nevertheless. Therefore, when opening raw eggs, and the yolk is easily visible we do check the eggs. The Rema does however say, that there is no need to check cooked eggs because we rely on the basic halacha that there is no need to check them. This is especially true nowadays when most of our eggs are unfertilized, (called safna me’ara) that blood spots are uncommon. Even if there would be some blood in those eggs, it isn’t from a chicken that is forming, rather from a burst blood vessel, and technically only the actual blood spot has to be thrown out.
Therefore, the common minhag is not to check hard boiled eggs, there were certain tzaddikim that did check their hard eggs. It is interesting, that there are pious individually that do check hard eggs, the widespread minhag however is like the Shulchan Aruch says, that we don’t have to check hard boiled eggs. Therefore, what you were doing until now is just fine.
Best wishes
Sources:
שו”ע יו”ד ס’ ס”ו סע’ ח’, שולחן ערוך יורה דעה הלכות דם סימן סו סעיף ח “מותר לאכול ביצים צלויות אף על פי שאינם יכולות ליבדק. הגה: וכן א”צ לבדוק הביצים אם יש בהם דם, דסומכין על רוב ביצים שאין בהם דם (הגהות מיימוני וארוך) ומכל מקום נהגו להחמיר כשעושין מאכל עם ביצים ביום, שרואין בהם אם יש בהם דם”. וע”ש ביד אפרים שכן נהג האריז”ל, וכן בברכי יוסף ס’ ס”ו אות ט’ שלא מוזכר בשום פוסק שצריכים לבדוק ביצים מבולשים, בכף החיים שם, וכן אומרים שהחזו”א לא הקפיד ע”ז. אמנם ע’ אורחות רבינו ח”ג עמ’ ע’ שהסטייפלר כן בדק ביציו. וכן ע’ Journal of Halacha and Contemporary Society vol. 40 pg. ftnt. 27 שאומר שר’ משה פיינשטיין זצ”ל בדק ביצים מבושלים.
