8 Easy Ways To Safely Pack & Store Eggs For Camping

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Figuring out how to pack and store raw eggs for camping is easier than you think.  The best way is the way that works best for your camping situation.  Below are 8 easy ways to safely pack & store eggs for camping.

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Storing Eggs While Camping

Eggs are a great source of protein to bring on your next camping trip.  It can seem tricky to safely store eggs since they are so fragile, but there are actually several options you can choose from.

Here are the 8 different ways to pack eggs for camping on your next trip:

1. Egg Carton
2. Airtight Container
3. Water Bottle
4. Room Temperature (Fresh eggs)
5. Dehydrated Eggs
6. Hard-Boiled Eggs
7. Liquid Egg Whites
8. Freeze In Plastic Bag
9. Bonus: Oil Eggs

Storing eggs straight in your cooler or cracking them into a water bottle are usually the most popular methods to store eggs while camping.  The other methods give you more options if you prefer to store eggs in another way.

How To Safely Store Eggs

If you’re packing store-bought eggs on your camping trip, they need to be kept at 40 degrees or below for safe consumption. They also need to be kept dry so bacteria doesn’t start to grow on them.

Eggs can only be above 40 degrees Fahrenheit for less than two hours. So for your camping trip you need to make sure you’re able to keep them cool for long periods of time.

Egg shells are also porous, so you need to make sure they aren’t submerged in water at the bottom of your cooler for long periods of time. The water could seep into the egg shells and cause bacterial growth.

Overall, you need to make sure your eggs stay dry & somewhere between 32-40 degrees during your camping trip for safe consumption.

1. Egg Carton

Storing eggs in an egg carton is the most obvious way to store eggs for camping.  You can put the egg carton directly in your cooler (or camping fridge) to keep them cool.

You want to make sure your cooler is at least 40 degrees to keep your eggs fresh.  You could do this with ice packs or bags of ice, but just make sure you have enough to last your whole trip.

One down-side about storing your eggs in the egg carton in a cooler is that they could get wet.  You need to make sure your eggs stay at the top of the cooler and are never submerged in water.

If they are soaking in water for periods of time, then there is a risk for bacteria growth on the eggs.

If you’re worried about the eggs soaking in a wet cooler, you might choose to use an insulated bag with ice packs instead to store your egg carton of eggs.

2. Airtight Container

A safer option would be to store your eggs in an airtight container so they don’t get wet in the cooler.

This could be a Tupperware or a mason jar (just be careful not to break it).

To keep the fragile eggs from cracking, you could wrap them in paper towels or bubble wrap in the container.

This would be a great way to have fresh eggs ready to be cracked to make breakfast. (Check out this post on the different ways to cook while camping).

3. Water Bottle

One great way to store eggs while you’re camping is in a water bottle.

Before your trip, crack as many eggs as you think you’ll need into a water bottle with a lid.  Then, you can put your water bottle into your cooler to stay cool during your whole trip.

The water bottle could be a disposable plastic bottle, a blender bottle, or any other bottles you have at home that have lids.

This is a safer option than storing in the egg carton because there won’t be a risk of the eggs growing bacteria from being submerged in the water melt.

Bringing your eggs in a water bottle is a great way to pre-scramble your eggs for an easy breakfast.

You also don’t have to deal with disposing of the egg shells while you’re cooking recipes with your delicious eggs either.

4. Room Temperature – Fresh Eggs

Another option if you want to bring eggs with you while camping is to buy fresh eggs.  This type of egg has a protective coating on it that allows them to stay at room temperature for longer periods of time.

The shelf life of farm-fresh eggs at room temperature is at least a few weeks, if not longer.

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This would be a great option if you’re camping somewhere with moderate temperatures.  Then, you don’t have to worry about the eggs staying cold or getting too hot while sitting out.

This might not be a good option if you’re camping in a climate that gets to hot temperatures over 75 degrees during the day, or if the eggs would be in direct sunlight for long periods of time.  You’d run the risk of food poisoning if your fresh eggs are too hot for too long.

5. Dehydrated Eggs

Dehydrated eggs is a classic when it comes to camping and backpacking.  They are easy to pack because they do not require refrigeration. (Check out this post for the best canned & non-perishable foods for camping).

All you need is bag of dehydrated eggs and a bit of water. Then, you’ll just add water to the powdered eggs and you can whip up any meal you want. 

This is a good option if you’re worried about having a cool place for your eggs or if you don’t have room to pack whole eggs during your trip.

6. Hard-Boiled Eggs

If you’re looking for easy ways to eat eggs during your trip without having to cook them, then boiling the eggs is a great option.

You can prepare a batch of hard-boiled eggs before your trip and store them in an airtight container.

You can even remove the shells before the trip to make for a quick snack or meal while you’re out camping.

Hard-boiled eggs do need to be kept at a cool temp, but at least you don’t have to worry about cracking raw eggs or cooking them while you’re out.

7. Liquid Egg Whites

Another way to store eggs for camping is to buy a carton of pre-cracked liquid eggs (egg whites) from the grocery store.

This carton can be used each morning to make yourself eggs, and then placed back in your cooler.

The same rules apply here.  You’ll need to ensure the eggs stay at a cold temperature.

This will save you from cracking eggs before or during your trip while you’re cooking.

8. Freeze In Plastic Bag

Cracking your eggs into a Ziplock bag before your trip is an easy way to store them for camping.

You can crack them and whisk them, or crack them directly into the bag and leave the egg yolk intact.

Then, freeze your plastic ziploc bags for ready-to-cook, pre-cracked eggs.  Freezing the bags will help to keep the eggs fresh for longer during a long trip.

They’ll slowly thaw over time in your cooler over the next 24-48 hours, so plan accordingly if you need to cook them right away.

For a quick thaw, just place the bag in a bowl of cold water for 10-20 minutes.

You can also choose to store them in plastic bags without freezing them.  This works just as well.

This method is great because you can meal plan out your eggs in each bag.  You can have one bag filled with several eggs for an omelet.  Or you can have a bag filled with just one egg to put in your pancake mix.

Bonus: Oil Eggs

Another old trick to preserving eggs is to rub the shells with oil.  Mineral oil is the most common oil used in this method, but you can use other food oils like avocado oil.

The oil fills in the porous shell and helps to protect the inside of the egg from going bad.

Some people have used this method and were able to keep their store-bought eggs at room temperature for several days to weeks without them going bad.

Do your own research and decide if this route is the best option for you.

Conclusion

It is always a good idea to plan ahead when packing and storing eggs while camping.  You need to make sure you know that you’ll be able to keep the eggs fresh for the duration of your camping trip.

Again, here are the 8 ways you can choose to store your eggs while camping:

1. Egg Carton
2. Airtight Container
3. Water Bottle
4. Room Temperature (Fresh eggs)
5. Dehydrated Eggs
6. Hard-Boiled Eggs
7. Liquid Egg Whites
8. Freeze In Plastic Bag
9. Bonus: Oil Eggs

Regardless, you need to make sure your eggs stay below 40 degrees and don’t soak in water for long periods of time (if they’re still in the shell).  The safest way to pack and store eggs while camping is whichever way works best for your camping situation.  

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