The Answer:

Your answer is one. Maybe.

Female chickens, or hens, need about 24 to 26 hours to produce one egg. Thirty minutes later they start the process all over again. In addition to the half-hour rests, some hens rest every three to five days and others rest every 10 days.

Because of those well deserved rests it's easier to quantify egg production in terms of weeks and years. According to the American Egg Board, hens lay about five eggs a week. So that means your average hen lays about 260 eggs a year.

—The Editors