How Long Can Cooked Egg Dishes Be Kept in the UK?

Food Standards Scotland recommends eating prepared dishes containing eggs as soon as possible, or cooling promptly, refrigerating and eating within two days.

United Kingdom · Official food safety sources

Food Standards Scotland recommends eating prepared dishes containing eggs as soon as possible, or cooling promptly, refrigerating and eating within two days.

Examples need correct identification

This covers cooked dishes containing eggs that were cooled and stored correctly; it does not grant the same period to raw egg mixtures or products with specific earlier use-by instructions.

When does the period start?

Use the preparation time. Changing the container or reheating the meal does not automatically restart the two-day window.

Reheating does not prove safety

Repeated warming can increase opportunities for bacteria to grow. Follow the dish-specific cooking and reheating advice.

UK date and time calculator

Cooked egg dishes — two-day guideline

Enter the preparation time. The UK reference is two days for correctly cooled and refrigerated cooked egg dishes.

Date and time when this period started I confirm the food was cooled promptly, handled correctly and stored continuously at 5°C or below.

Confirm the conditions and calculate the UK guidance window.

This is a maximum guidance period, not a use-by date or food safety certificate. If storage history is uncertain, do not rely on the calculated time.

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Official UK sources: Food Standards Scotland — Food storage ↗