Nigerians often combine rice and uncooked eggs in the same pot to save cooking time, water, cooking utensils or fuel. However, food safety experts say the convenience may not be worth the potential health risks, particularly when eggs are not properly cleaned and handled before cooking.
The concern centres on bacteria that can be present on the outer surface of eggshells, including Salmonella and E. coli.
Registered dietitian-nutritionists who spoke on the issue advised consumers who want to eat both foods to cook them separately rather than placing unpeeled eggs directly into the same pot of rice.
A public health practitioner and registered dietitian-nutritionist, James Oloyede, said the practice could create an avenue for bacteria on eggshells to contaminate the rice.
Oloyede, a former Director of Nutrition Services and Health Education at the Osun State Primary Health Care Development Board, said the risk could exist even when eggs had been washed.
“Cooking egg and rice together in the same pot has been found to be a risk factor in cross-contamination of certain bacteria, especially Salmonella, that can be found on the shell of the egg even after washing with the rice that is being cooked,” he said.
The issue is not that eggshells are inherently poisonous. Eggshells are predominantly composed of calcium carbonate, a naturally occurring mineral that is also used in some calcium supplements. The concern is what may be present on the outside of the shell, particularly when an egg has been contaminated with bacteria from poultry droppings or an unhygienic environment.
According to Oloyede, the way rice absorbs water during cooking creates an additional concern. “The challenge with rice is that absorption begins to take place the moment you put your rice in the water,” he explained.
As the water warms, rice grains begin absorbing it and swelling. If contaminated water surrounds the rice, he said, microorganisms present in that water could potentially come into contact with the grains and remain present if the food is not subsequently cooked sufficiently to destroy them.
This is particularly relevant during the period when cooking water is warming but has not yet reached a temperature sufficient to destroy harmful bacteria.
Another potential problem is physical contamination. Eggshells can crack while boiling. When that happens, contents from the egg can escape into the cooking water and come into contact with the rice.
Apart from the food-safety concern, nutritionists say a cracked egg can also affect the rice’s appearance, taste and smell.
For people cooking large quantities of rice, identifying whether an egg has cracked may also be difficult until the food is nearly ready.
Washing and proper food handling can reduce contamination, but experts caution against treating washing as a guarantee that an egg is completely free of bacteria.
The safest approach is to avoid allowing the outside of the eggshell to come into direct contact with food that is cooking in the same pot.
This is why the nutritionists recommend a simple separation: boil the eggs in one pot and cook the rice in another.
That may mean using additional fuel, water and utensils, but the experts argue that preventing a foodborne infection is more important than the convenience of combining the cooking processes.
The warning has gained attention following a viral discussion on X in which Nigerians shared experiences and concerns about eating rice and eggs cooked together.
The practice itself is not new. Many households combine the foods because it is convenient, particularly when preparing meals in circumstances where fuel, time, water or cooking utensils are limited.
But the recent online debate has prompted renewed questions about whether the shortcut is appropriate from a food-safety perspective.
It should be known that Salmonella and E. coli are among the bacteria capable of causing foodborne illness.
Infected people may develop diarrhoea, abdominal cramps, fever, nausea and vomiting. Some E. coli infections can become considerably more serious, with certain strains capable of causing bloody diarrhoea and complications affecting the kidneys.
The severity of food poisoning varies depending on the organism, the amount consumed and the health of the individual.
Children, older adults and people with weakened immune systems can be particularly vulnerable to severe foodborne infections.
This makes basic kitchen hygiene important even when preparing foods that appear completely ordinary.
