Chinese Tea Eggs

Undoubtedly the idea of tea and eggs in one product will be a deterrent to most Western people. Don’t knock it til you try it, though - for one, tea is not the dominant flavour, and two, they are delicious. One & a half billion people can’t all be wrong, right? (Although I do draw the line at scorpions and century eggs.) They’re sold on the street all over China, and in convenience stores in Taiwan, and you can find them simply by following your nose - the fragrant spices used in soaking are unmistakeable. 

Pretty, right? Basically, you boil the eggs, crack the shells and then soak them in spices overnight. When you’re done, peel them and find a uniquely beautiful marbled pattern in each one. You can eat them as you would normal boiled eggs - as is, in salads, with ramen... you could even make some scrummy deviled eggs out of them.

Even pretty while soaking!

Ingredients:

2 - 6 eggs

1 cup soy sauce

2 tea bags / 2 teaspoons tea leaves (I used Five Roses, because it’s my favourite. You can use whatever you like)

1 cinnamon stick

2 star anise

1tsp sugar

Optional extras: Orange/lemon rind, Szechuan peppercorns, cloves, fennel, etc

Method:

1. Boil the eggs for about 3 minutes.
2. Remove eggs from water, leave to cool.
3. Once eggs are cool, gently crack the shell with the back of a spoon. The more cracks you make, the more marbled the eggs will be. Be careful not to make any big holes in the shell, or you’ll just end up with brown splodges.
4. Empty about half of the water from the pot, add the rest of the ingredients.
5. Bring to a gentle simmer and add the eggs. Simmer for about 10 minutes. Make sure you watch the pot, as soy sauce tends to overboil very quickly.
6. Remove from heat and transfer everything to a large bowl. I recommend using a black bowl or a cheap one you don’t care about - this mixture can stain. Also make sure you wipe up any spills immediately.
7. Cover bowl with clingfilm and leave overnight. The longer you leave the eggs in the mixture, the darker the marbling will be - I left the one on the left in for about 24 hours. The one on the right was in for about 8.
8. Remove, rinse and peel, revealing the pretty marbling. If you like the spice mixture you used, you can freeze it and use it again.