Kerry Washington reacts to 'terrible' early acting clip of her eating raw eggs: 'I blacked out'

"That's how you know I was, like, a very poor college student who really needed money."

Kerry Washington is going back to her roots — raw eggs and all.

During her Tuesday night visit to Jimmy Kimmel Live, the UnPrisoned actress revealed that while she "came out of the womb a very dramatic child," she didn't start getting paid to act until the age of 12 or 13.

Host Jimmy Kimmel was quick to respond, reminding her of her unglamorous beginnings with a throwback video from one of Washington's earliest acting gigs. In it, she demonstrated an important Spanish vocab word… by eating a raw egg.

"Huevo means egg," a young Washington says in the video, holding up an egg. Next, she attempts to crack it on her forehead, succeeding after a few tries. Then she drops the contents directly… into her mouth.

Related: Kerry Washington reveals why she decided to stop playing 'the white girl's best friend'

While the live audience reacted with horror, Washington couldn't help but laugh. "It's so terrible," she said. "That's how you know I was, like, a very poor college student who really needed money."

When asked how many takes she had to suffer through the ordeal, Washington replied, "Honestly, I think I blacked out it was so traumatic. So I don't remember. But I know I had a spit bucket, so I didn't have to swallow the eggs."

Kimmel responded with disbelief. "What kind of a maniac decided you need to crack the egg on your head and eat the egg raw? It seems like we could have learned huevo just by [you] holding up the egg."

Despite her trauma, Washington came to the video's defense. "But don't you remember it now because of that shocking video?" she pointed out before adding, "Huevo."

Sign up for to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more.Entertainment Weekly's free daily newsletter

Kimmel then presented another video of Washington from the same series, this time teaching viewers the Spanish word for cheese.

"Queso is cheese,” says a young Washington, before grabbing a chunk of cheese from a plate. The kicker comes when she bites into it and a very noticeable crunching sound follows. "Mmm, cheese."

Back on Kimmel's couch, Washington responded, "Why the crunchy sound?! Why is the cheese crunchy?"

She then joked of her performance, "The thing is, though, you can see the seeds of brilliance. Because I made the cheese look delicious. And I'm sure it wasn't."

Kimmel quipped, "Well, you would know. You're the only one who crunched on that cheese."

This isn't the first time Washington has reflected on that particular acting credit. Last year, she participated in TikTok's "things I ate and survived" trend by sharing the same clip of her cracking an egg into her mouth.

After her stint in the world of food-based educational videos, Washington began emerging in Hollywood projects throughout the '90s and early '00s. She racked up credits in films and TV series like Save the Last Dance, She Hates Me, Boston Legal, and Mr. and Mrs. Smith, but she got her big break with Scandal in 2012. Just last year, Washington admitted that she has made several attempts to leave the industry behind — only to be reeled back in by an alluring new project.

"I have spent a lifetime trying to not be an actor," she told W magazine. "I am always quitting this business, and then right when I decide that I'm done is when something extraordinary comes across my desk."

Related: Kerry Washington says she was asked to shoplift for a role: 'I cased the joint 2 days in a row'

She added, "I was really, really done with this business right before I read the script for Ray. I was really, really done with this business right before I read the script for The Last King of Scotland. I was entirely done with this business before reading the script for Scandal. This is what happens again and again."

Watch Washington revisit her history with raw eggs and crunchy cheese in the video above.