A method of pasteurizing in-shell chicken eggs, which allows the internal contents of the eggs to remain raw, includes the steps of (a) exposing the in-shell eggs 1 to a heat source having a higher temperature than a pre-selected pasteurization temperature, (b) maintaining exposure of the in-shell eggs to the heat source until the internal contents of the in-shell eggs reach equilibrium with the pasteurization temperature, (c) exposing the in-shell eggs to a second temperature lower than the pasteurization temperature, (d) maintaining exposure of the in-shell eggs to the second temperature until the outer albumen of the in-shell eggs has cooled to a temperature of less than 53C and the inner albumen has cooled to a temperature of no less than 53C, and (e) repeating steps (a) through (d) until a previously identified log level required to inactivate the targeted pathogen is achieved. The heat source may comprise liquid water or gaseous air delivered by spray heads 3. The second temperature may be provided by l
