I haven’t even sent samples of this soap down to the shipping department and I can already hear the cries of intrigue, revulsion and curiosity about today’s project. Eggs? In soap? Why would ANYONE be so crazy as to want to add an egg to the soap?!
Well, adding eggs to soap may or may not be crazy, but allow me to explain the reasoning behind this. Eggs are a combination of water, fat, and protein. This means egg soaps are a bit like a lanolin soap. Very luxurious and gentle feeling. One thing I hear frequently about lanolin soaps it that people feel like there is no need to add lotion to their skin afterward! I heard this about egg soaps too! Don’t believe me? Request a sample of this soap in your next order!
| Ingredients Coconut Oil Hydrogenated Soybean Oil Olive Oil Large Chicken Egg Water Lye (Sodium Hydroxide) |
Equipment Scale Microwave Safe Container Spoons Pipettes |
Recipe:
| Recipe in Grams 170 grams Coconut Oil 142 grams Hydrogenated Soybean Oil 142 grams Olive Oil 1 large Chicken Egg 178 mL Water 65.5 grams Lye |
Recipe in Ounces 6 oz Coconut Oil 5 oz Hydrogenated Soybean Oil 5 oz Olive Oil 1 large Chicken Egg 6 oz Water 2.31 oz Lye |
Recipe in Percentages 37.5% Coconut Oil 31.25% Hydrogenated Soybean Oil 31.25% Olive Oil Q.S. Chicken Egg(s) Q.S. Water Q.S. Lye |
Weigh all of your oils save for 1 oz of Olive Oil to be held in reserve. Heat those oil gently until liquid. Mix your lye and water together creating your lye solution. Allow both mixtures to cool. It is imperative that you soap at a lower temperature when using eggs. They are a temperature sensitive ingredient. (We don’t want partially cooked egg strands in our soap!) In the mean time, mix the egg with the 1 oz of reserved Olive Oil. Mix well until they are cohesive.
Once your lye solution and oils are to about 110º to 120ºF in temperature, mix the two together. When a light trace has been achieved, add your egg mixture. Mix well. Pour your soap into a mold and allow to sit for at least 24 hours. Cut your soap into bars and allow to cure. (Not sure if your soap is fully cured? Get these cool cure cards in your next order for free!)
Notes: I cut my egg soap two days after making. Let’s just say that as excited as I was about this soap, I got a little distracted by my job. Hmn… I wonder how that happened? 😉 Once I finally cut my soap, I was surprised at the soft green of the center of my soap. There also was faint odor. It smelled, well, slightly eggy. Fifteen minutes after cutting the soap, I went back to smell it so as to better describe it to you. I was surprised at how much the odor had dissipated. So if you are worried about that smell sticking around, it won’t. I will be sending 20 samples to the shipping department, so if you want one, tell us in the comments field on your next order! I am reserving the two bars shown in the photos so we can talk about color changes when the soap is fully cured.
Finished Soap
Weighing Oils
Weighing Oils
Weighing 1 oz Olive Oil
Adding 1 egg
Ready to make soap
Mixing Egg and Olive Oil
Adding Lye Solution to Oils
Mixing Soap
Soap at light trace
Adding egg mixture
Pouring soap into mold
Finished soap in mold
can you add a fragrance to cover the egg smell?
Rhonda,
You certainly could add a fragrance to this soap but I don’t think it is “required” to cover up the egg smell. The egg smell dissipated fairly quickly. Within 2 hours of cutting the soap, I had a very difficult time detecting the egg smell. If you want a scented egg soap, go for it. If you want a plain bar, feel free to leave it unscented. You are in complete control. Does this help?
yes, thank you
i’m thinking the faint green is similar to the green one sees around the yolk of the egg if you cook it too long (boiled eggs). this is a reaction of hydrogen/sulfur in the egg with iron in the yolk…. just a guess that this might be it. will be interesting to see change over time. why add the egg? nourishing?
Barb,
Tina and I were talking about the color today. It is certainly reminiscent of over boiled eggs. The reason people add eggs to soap is because it is believed to boost lather and create a more conditioning soap. It is somewhat akin to using lanolin in soap.
Does this help?
Taylor
Thank you for this post. I’ve been interested in and curious about making egg soap for a while. One thing I wasn’t sure of (that you have clarified ) was how/when to add the egg. The other is proportions; if making a larger batch would a one egg to one batch, or a one egg per pound of oils be best?
Thanks,
J.
J,
You could certainly use almost any proportion you would like. I wouldn’t use any more than one egg per pound of oils, but you can always use less. Does this help?
Best,
Taylor
Yes, thank You! Long as I have an idea of what is safe to play with.
Thanks again for the post, and now the advice!
J.
You are welcome! Let me know how your soap turns out!
It’s been over a month, does it still have the green ring? Can I add an egg to any soap recipe? Mine are all lard based. Something to do with some of my extra eggs in the summer. I’m looking forward to trying this.
Michelle,
Once you cut the soap, the green ring disappears in just a few hours. This is what one bar of that soap looks like today.
You can add an egg to any recipe. Just make sure you mix it into an ounce of liquid oil before adding it to your batch.
Best,
Taylor
I was just in Fargo North Dakota and went to a Tiny Store inside one of the Hospitals their. On the Shelf there was a bar of EGG WHIT Soap. The soap was very creamy looking in color. I am GUESSING that it was the egg yolk in your soap that made for the color change. This makes me think that a person could still make an egg soap using just the whites, like the bar I saw at the Hospital store, Yet, I THINK having the Yolk would be where a person might get that more Lanolin Feel to the Soap, not the White, since the Fat in the Egg is from the Yolk, not the White. I am not sure exactly why just the egg white was placed into this other bar of soap, instead of the whole Yolk. I did take a FEW notes on the packaging and it stated this: Eggwhite Soap made with Chamomile Flowers and Lecithin that is a Facial in every way, Keep on the face for 5 min before washing off. The price for this soap was $4.99 for a small 1.85 Ounce Bar! The name on the package was from a company called : Eiwit Zeep…The pictures looked Dutch with little girls in dresses and surrounded by flowers on a Blue Label. Here is MY GUESS…I guess they used the Egg White and the Lecithin made the same effect that the egg yolk would of made, but without the coloring factor turning it green. Just a thought…anyway, I saw this Blog and felt it appropriate to write about this comparison here. This ALL made for interesting learning indeed. Thank you for your Lovely Blog Post about the use of the Whole Egg. When I make it myself sometime, I will surely post back my results. I hope you and your readers have the BEST WEEK EVER!!!! 🙂
Soon after I cut my bar, the green color dissipated and I was left with a soft, straw yellow bar of soap. I can see why someone would use only the whites if they are looking for a white bar.
I am not sure why the lecithin would be added though. Your reasoning sounds as good as any. However, determining why someone added something to their soap is difficult and we all don’t follow the same logic. My advice is to worry about what you want to add to your soap and why. That is where it truly matters.
Best,
Taylor
Eggs, the yolks in particular, contain LOTS of lecithin — around 9%. Sounds like they were imitating the effect of using a whole egg, without the potential issues of odor, and discoloration.
Fifty years ago, it was not uncommon for women to “wash” their hair at home with a mixture of eggs and beer. (!!??!!) Commercial shampoos were pretty harsh, and many women didn’t use them at first.
Interesting how much excess farm products — i.e., lard, tallow, eggs, lanolin, were used in soaps.
~Honey Lady~
I have recently discovered egg soap, I created my own recipe and tempered my egg with a bit of the oil after it cooled, the smell of the milk and lye I started with was awful and looked curdled, it seems the milk fat and lye were already trying to soponify. I proceeded and cut the bars the next day the color was a beige antique look. the smell was odd but dissipated over a period of days. It now smells so luxurious I cant describe it, I added no scent to this bar. I will be trying out in approx. 2 weeks. I think it will be rich, just got a good feeling for it. most recipes I found were with whites or the yolks I threw in the whole egg and I am happy to say I will be making more soon.
Sounds like an interesting bar!
OK… Had to try it for myself… The soaps are amazing…. Both… Imean… separated the eggs and made one with egg yolks and another with egg whites.. The one with egg yolks was fine… I mean… I have scented it and even though had a greenish color after unmolding, in afew days it turn to a light pasteurise honey color which I love…. added a bit of TD in part of it so it is marbled…. swirled… however you want to call it. Did not smell eggy at all… or at least the Essential oils masked it… However…. the one with egg whites…. stunk like rotten eggs for a couple of hours…. The essential oils could not mask this smell… Crossed my fingers and waited. The smell started to fade right away and the following morning was just smelling like sage, as it was supposed to…
Fascinating, huh? I think egg soaps are really interesting and I always have to remind myself to patiently wait for the rotten egg smell to go away. The resulting soap is worth it!
This post was of great help to me in creating a (if I do say so myself) fabulous egg soap. I used two eggs in my two pound batch and the texture of the soap and feel of the skin after washing are lovely. I don’t take pictures often, and have no idea how to put one in a comment, however, if you click on the link it goes to the page in my Etsy shop where I have the soap for sale. (If someone at MMS wants to help me to get a photo up I’d be happy to send one along.)
Thank you so much for this post, feeling confident that I new I was handling the addition of the egg correctly made giving this a try much more appealing.
Grey Dove
Wow! I love your soap! Thanks for sharing your gorgeous soap with us!
So happy you like it! Thank YOU!
This sounds crazy, but now I think I must try it!
We would love to hear of your experiences!
Tina
Do you have any idea how our ancestors made soap with ashes? Thanks
Ashes were placed in a pail with soft water (rainwater because we don’t want the hard minerals from groundwater and wells to interfere with the soap making process.) The soft water was heated and the ashes were stirred into the hot water and allowed to settle overnight. The next morning, the liquid was decanted and then the solution heated or was left to evaporate until the ash (lye) solution was concentrated to float an egg midway between the bottom and top of the liquid. At that point, the solution was mixed with fats and oils and soap was made.
I hope this helps!
Andee