Did you guys hear about how the FDA decided eggs and their delicious yolks aren’t terrible for you anymore? I’m glad it’s official now and we can celebrate by eating tons of them!
Growing up, my parents never let me eat more than 1/4 of an egg’s yolk because of my cholesterol and the undeniable fact that I was fat. But now, I work out regularly so I feel like I can treat myself now and again. Since I’ve been missing out on yolks for such a long time, I’ve been going pretty hard. Fried, scrambled, omelettes, poached, hard boiled, you name it. We’ve been plopping them on top of our vegetarian meals for a while to give them a little extra oomph. Szechuan Tea Eggs are a fun way to cook the everyday egg.
These Szechuan Tea Eggs are something from my childhood that I love to eat. I’ve updated the recipe by adding in garlic and pepper flakes to take these humble eggs to the next level. Salty, spicy and rich, these guys are the perfect on the go snack or addition to your meal. I like to chop them up and put them on salad, slice one in half to top off a steaming bowl of ramen, or even just eat one with some Sriracha as a snack! They are also surprisingly beautiful. By cracking the shells and then simmering in them in a dark sauce, Szechuan Tea Eggs take on a fabulous marble appearance. The white egg is veined with dark salty goodness and takes on the spices from the broth.
This recipe is very forgiving. You can do it with small eggs, huge eggs, 5 eggs, 24 eggs, chicken eggs, goose eggs or whatever you desire. Traditionally, they are chicken eggs and I usually make a dozen at a time because that is what fits comfortably in my medium pot. It also makes buying extra eggs for this recipe easy. If you are worried about the saltiness of the broth, just remember that we aren’t drinking it! It’s a brine for the Szechuan Tea Eggs to soak in so don’t fret about how concentrated the broth it. The longer you let the eggs sit in the broth, the better they will be. I like to simmer them in the broth for an hour and then let them come to room temperature before storing them in the fridge to marinate overnight.
Sometimes, the eggs slip out of their shells during the marinating process, don’t worry. It just means that egg will be extra tasty!
To store the eggs, I like to remove the shell and give them a quick rinse to make sure no eggshell pieces are stuck. There is nothing worse than chomping down on a piece of chalky shell. They will keep in a sealed container in the fridge for at least a week. Some people also like to store the eggs in the liquid, essentially further marinating them in the sauce, but that turns the entire egg brown, covering up the pretty marble effect.
I mean, aren’t Szechuan Tea Eggs crazy beautiful? Especially considering that these are eggs?!
If you’re planning to make Szechuan Tea Eggs again, you can also save the liquid to use the next time. My dad does this with his world famous ribs and the technique is easily applicable in this recipe. Just make sure you bring the liquid to a boil and store it in a clean container and refrigerate right away.
Ingredients
- 1 dozen eggs
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 6 black tea bags (any kind will do)
- 3 tablespoons salt
- 3 tablespoons ground five spice (whole is also fine)
- 1 tablespoon cloves
- 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon szechuan pepper
- 3 bay leaves
- 3 crushed garlic cloves
Instructions
- Gently place eggs in a large pot, being careful not to crack the shells. The pot should be big enough that your eggs sit in one layer and they have a little room between each other.
- Fill with enough cold water to just cover the eggs. Bring water to a boil. Turn off the heat and let the eggs sit in the hot water with the lid on for 15 minutes.
- Remove hard boiled eggs from the pot, but keep the hot water. Shock eggs in an ice bath for 15 minutes.
- While the eggs cool, add the spices, soy sauce, tea bags, and salt to the pot and bring back up to a simmer.
- Once the eggs are cool enough to handle, rap the eggs to crack the shells. Don't try to peel the shell off, the goal is to create fissures for the liquid to seep into. Return the eggs to the newly spiced water.
- Simmer the eggs in the mixture for at least an hour. The longer you can soak the eggs, the better they will be!
- Eggs will keep refrigerated for a week.
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