A turkey egg is a powerhouse. It’s about 50% larger than a chicken egg, with a much thicker shell. That shell is a beautiful speckled tan or light brown, dotted with little freckles like a bird version of a 1970s countertop.
Inside, the yolk is rich and creamy. The flavor? Egg-cellent, if you’ll pardon the pun. It’s a bit more intense and earthy than a chicken egg, thanks to the turkey’s diet and lifestyle. Some people say it tastes like a “super egg.”
So, why don’t you see turkey eggs in the grocery store? That’s where the plot thickens, my friend. It’s all about economics, and not the fun kind involving piggy banks.
Why You Never See Them at the Store
Here’s the simple, slightly frustrating truth: turkeys are lazy layers. A good chicken will lay an egg almost every single day. A turkey hen? She’s more of a “once in a while, if I feel like it” kind of lady. She only lays about two eggs per week, maybe 100 in a whole year.
That’s a terrible business model. Farmers who raise chickens can get rich quick. Farmers who raise turkeys for eggs would go broke faster than you can say “omelette.” Turkeys also take way longer to start laying—about seven months compared to a chicken’s five.
Turkey Hen Egg Laying at Christy Calvin blog
Plus, those big, thick shells are a pain to transport. They break easily, and a cracked turkey egg is a sad, expensive mess. So, farmers decided, “Let’s just sell the turkeys for meat and let the chickens handle the egg business.” Smart, but a little unfair to the turkeys, don’t you think?
