Tea Eggs are savory hard-boiled eggs with intricately marbled surfaces. You will find a steaming crock-pot full of these at every 7-11 store in Taiwan. Pair one with a green apple for a nutritious mid-day snack packed with protein, iron, and vitamins A, B and D.
THE SIMPLE VERSION:
- 6-12 eggs
- 3/4 cup of soy sauce
- 3 tbs black tea leaves or 3 tea bags
- 3 cups water
DIRECTIONS:
1. In medium pot, cover eggs with cold water, bring to boil then simmer for three minutes.
2. Run cool water over eggs until they cool, then take the back of a butter knife or spoon and tap each egg all over to crack shell [do not remove the shell - the more cracks you create in the shell, the more beautifully marbled the tea egg.]
3. In medium pot combine water, soy sauce and tea and cracked eggs. Bring to boil, then simmer for anywhere from 40 minutes to 2 hours, then remove from heat, cover and leave eggs to steep for anywhere from three hours to overnight. The longer they steep and simmer the more flavorful they will be.
4. Drain and store in tupperware or plastic bag peeled or as is. The soy-sauce/tea solution can be frozen and re-used. The tea-eggs will keep refrigerated for a week, and can be served hot or cold, plain or with drizzles of soy-sauce and sesame oil.
FANCYPANTS ADD INS:
1 cinnamon stick, 1 tbs cloves, 3 star anise, 1 tbs tangerine zest, 1 teaspoon sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 tsp allspice or Chinese five spice powder.
NUTRITION:
Calories: 77 Protein: 6g Fat: 5g Carbohydrates: 1g
