Tea Eggs
茶鸡蛋
Tea eggs are a common street food in China. In many ways the perfect snack: healthy, quick with no utensils necessary. They are found in a big saucepan of broth by the roadside, which I’ve found is not the best way to leave them as they tend to stew in the tea and become chalky and bitter.
Cook them in any black tea, but for an unusual smoky version, try Lapsang Souchong or a rich Pu’er tea. The liquid not only imparts a delicate flavour, but also prints a beautiful pattern. Each egg an ancient globe with a tangle of brown pathways etched onto the surface.
Ingredients
6 eggs
1 tablespoon loose leaf black tea
4 tablespoons soy sauce
3 whole star anise
1 stick cinnamon
1 teaspoon peppercorns – crushed
1 teaspoon brown sugar
½ orange – squeezed
Method
1. Place the eggs in a saucepan of water and bring up to the boil. Simmer for 2 minutes.
2. Rinse the eggs under cold water and then lightly tap each egg with a spoon to crack the shells all over. Do this with every egg but be careful not remove too much of the shell.
3. Put the eggs back in the saucepan with enough water to cover them. Add the rest of the ingredients to the water and stir together.
4. Bring the broth back up to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 2 – 3 hours. The longer the better really. In China it’s quite common to leave these simmering away overnight.
5. Check them every hour to make sure the eggs are still covered with water. Top the broth up if necessary.
6. After a few hours, remove from the liquid, allow to cool and peel.
