Tea eggs are basically hard-boiled eggs infused with the flavors of Chinese tea, spices like star anise and cloves, and soy sauce.
They’re sold all over China by street vendors, especially at breakfast time. In fact, there’s a vendor just down the street from our apartment, near where the local market is. They sell for about 1 RMB a piece, or 16 cents.
They sometimes have a really cool marbled look when you peel them, as the color of the braising liquid seeps into the cracks in each egg.
Recipe Instructions
Put the eggs, water, tea leaves, star anise, cloves, peppercorns, salt, dark soy sauce, and light soy sauce in a medium pot with the lid on. Bring it to bring to a boil slowly, over medium heat.
Once the water boils, turn off the fire and let the eggs sit for about 30 minutes, till the water cools off.
Take the eggs out one at a time, and carefully crack the shells all over, but leave the shell on. This creates the marbling effect on the finished eggs.
Put the eggs back in the pot and put the whole shebang into the refrigerator overnight. This allows the eggs to really absorb the flavor of the spices, tea, and soy.
Tip: These are great if you cut them in half and lay them in a bowl of noodle soup.
Tea Eggs
Ingredients
- 12 eggs
- 4-5 cups water (enough to submerge the eggs completely)
- 2 tablespoons dry Chinese tea leaves of your choice (try to use loose tea rather than tea bags)
- 5 star anise
- 6 cloves
- 12 whole black peppercorns
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons dark soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons light soy sauce
Instructions
- Put everything in a medium pot with the lid on and bring it to bring to a boil slowly, over medium heat. Once the water boils, turn off the fire and let the eggs sit for about 30 minutes, till the water cools off. Take the eggs out one at a time, and carefully crack the shells all over, but leave the shell on. This creates the marbling effect on the finished eggs.
- Put the eggs back in the pot and put the whole shebang into the refrigerator overnight. This allows the eggs to really absorb the flavor of the spices, tea, and soy.
- Tip: These are great if you cut them in half and lay them in a bowl of noodle soup.
