Contributed by Rachael, Ancesister @ Ancestreats.

Hard-boiled eggs have a certain place in my refrigerator because they’re a perfect snack for grazers. With everyone hanging around the house–quarantining–I thought to jazz up some eggs. That’s where this recipe came from.

Originally, I had wanted pink pickled eggs like my grandmother would’ve made in her kitchen. But in this “use what you have” kitchen moment, I didn’t have beets that make the eggs distinctively pink. What I did have was soy sauce. The outcome was a batch of sweet and salty, semi-hard-boiled eggs that are very nice for snacking, plate garnish, and for topping off salad and soup.

Ingredients:

8 eggs

3/4 cups soy sauce

2 T rice wine vinegar

1 T sugar

1/4 cup water

**Additional flavorings that could be infused in the marinade, if you have them available: chopped scallions, freshly grated ginger, 5 spice powder (or make your own: cinnamon, cloves, fennel, star anise, and Szechwan peppercorns), nutmeg, and licorice.

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Ordinarily, when I make a batch of hard-boiled eggs, I keep them in the boiling water for 12 minutes (I am at high-altitude), then remove them to a chilled water bath before peeling the shells. The yolks become solid and opaque, which makes them easy to slice for egg salad, or easy-to-pop-in-one’-mouth-finger-food. HOWEVER, with this recipe, I didn’t want the yolks to become that firm.

Here, I kept the boiling bath time to 6.5 minutes. This produced semi-translucent yolks that had a creamy texture more comparable to the inside of a chocolate Cadbury cream egg, or fudge. The firm whites absorbed the marinade color and flavors. When sliced open as in the photo above, you can see how the marinade penetrates. The eggs in my photos were cut open after 18 hours. The longer you keep them in the marinade, the saltier and darker they become. And maybe, that’s exactly what you are craving right now.

Preparation:

First, find a container to hold the eggs you wish to marinate. I used a tallish plastic container with a snap-on lid. You could also use a mason jar or used pickle jar*. You definitely need a lid to avoid splashing and spills in the fridge.

Place the eggs in the saucepan. Fill it with cold water to a level just above the shells. Bring the water to a boil and keep it rolling for 6-6.5 minutes.  Remove the pan from the heat. Carefully pour out the hot water into the sink. Refill the pan with the coldest water you have, and add ice if you have some. Chill for at least 30 minutes.

While you are waiting for those eggs to cool off, make the marinade:

Combine the soy sauce, vinegar, sugar and water (and any infusion flavors as listed above) and boil it in another saucepan for 5 minutes.  Remove from heat. Cool in the pan while you peel off the egg shells.

Peel and rinse off all the eggs. Place the eggs inside the marinade container. Pour in the marinade. Cover and gently shake up so all the eggs get covered. Refrigerate overnight. The longer they marinate, the darker and saltier the eggs will get. Give them a swoosh every few hours to move the eggs around and insure they get access to the marinade.

*COOK TIP: don’t throw away glass jars from store-bought condiments and specialty items. Reuse them to house your sourdough starter, homemade quick pickles, small batches of homemade condiments like mustards or salad dressings, and other tidbits, like the olives that came from a can that you didn’t finish at one sitting.