Tea egg

Tea eggis aChinesesavory food commonly sold as asnack, in which a boiled egg is cracked slightly and then boiled again intea, and sauce or spices. It is also known asmarble eggbecause cracks in the egg shell create darkened lines with marble-like patterns. Commonly sold bystreet vendorsor innight marketsin mostChinese communitiesthroughout the world,it is also served inAsian restaurants. Although it originated from China and is traditionally associated withChinese cuisine, other similar recipes and variations have been developed throughout Asia. Tea eggs originated inZhejiangprovince as a way to preserve food for a long time but are now found in all provinces.
Fragrant and flavorful teaeggsare a traditional Chinese food. The original recipe uses various spices,soy sauce, andblack tealeaves. A commonly used spice for flavoring tea eggs is Chinesefive-spice powder, which contains groundcinnamon,star anise,fennel seeds,clovesandSichuan pepper. Some recipes do not use tea leaves, but they are still called "tea eggs".In the traditional method of preparation, eggs areboileduntil they reach a hardened, cooked state. The boiled eggs are removed from the water, and the entire shell of each egg is gently cracked all around. The cracking method is the formal feature in this traditional egg recipe. Smaller cracks produce more marbling, visible when the egg is peeled for eating. The extra water from the boiling is allowed to seep out of the eggs on its own. After about ten minutes, the cracked eggs are ready to be put into the prepared spiced-tea liquid and simmered over medium heat. This simmering allows the spiced fluid to seep into the cracks and marinate the eggs inside their shells. After about twenty minutes, the eggs and liquid are transferred to a glass or ceramic container for further steeping in a refrigerator. For best results, the eggs are allowed to steep for at least several hours. The dark color of the spiced tea gives the egg a marbled effect when it is peeled to be eaten.
Another method of making tea eggs is to boil the eggs until fully cooked inside, then remove the hard-boiled eggs from their shells and let them steep in the spiced tea mixture at low heat for a little longer. The eggs and liquid are removed from the heat and transferred to a glass or ceramic container for further steeping. This method requires a shorter steeping time than the traditional method; however, the egg is less visually appealing without the marbled effect from the traditional cracked-shell method of preparation. The eggs can be eaten at any time. The longer they are allowed to steep, the richer the flavor will be. The ideal spiced tea egg has a balance between the egg's natural flavor and that of the spices.
This form of tea egg is very similar to thesoy egg.
When the shell is peeled off, the egg has regions of light and dark brown, with a mid-brownish tone along the cracks of the shell. The yolk is yellow all the way through, though overcooked eggs will have a thin, harmless greyish layer while the core is the usual yellow. The flavor depends on the tea (type and strength) and variety of spices used. Five-spice powder adds a savory, slightly salty tone to theegg white, and the tea brings out the yolk's flavor.
In China, tea eggs are a household treat. They are also sold in stores, restaurants, and from street vendors. It is deemed a popular street food that usually costs about 2 yuan.
In Taiwan, tea eggs are a fixture of convenience stores.Through7-Elevenchains alone, an average of 40 million tea eggs are sold per year.In recent years, major producers of tea eggs have branched out into fruit and other flavored eggs, such as raspberry, blueberry andsalted duck egg.
In Indonesia, tea eggs have been adopted into nativeIndonesian cuisineastelur pindangand the ingredients have also been slightly changed. Thetelur pindangis hard-boiled eggs boiled with spices, salt and soy sauce. However, instead of black tea, the Indonesian version uses leftovershallotskins,teakleaves,orguavaleaves as dark brownishcoloring agents.Telur pindangis commonly found in Indonesia, but it is more prevalent inJavaandSouth Sumatra. Thetelur pindangis often served as part oftumpeng,nasi kuning, ornasi campur. InYogyakarta, telur pindang is often served with nasigudegor just hotsteamed rice.
Telur pindang (the Malaysian variation of the tea egg recipe) is said to have its roots in the state ofJohor, where the cuisine is most popular, but it can also be found in other parts of theMalay Peninsula. The dish even has sub-variations of the traditional Johorean recipe in many other southern regions. Telur pindang is an occasional cuisine, requiring time and resource-consuming work, and would only be served on special occasions such as weddings. Today, however, there are many commercial telur pindang suppliers nationwide.