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Feb 21, 2012

DIY: Salted Eggs







I'm a simple girl at heart ... GIRL?! *Ahem* ... Let me rephrase that ....

I'm a simple person at heart.
I like simple things.
I'm comfortable in jeans and a t-shirt.
I wear very minimal make up and that's if I have to.
I like the simple things in life (but I need the air conditioner. If you live in this part of the world, you would too)
And, I like simple food ... most times.

Mum used to make me eat rice congee/porridge when I was sick .... I hardly get sick, but I'd still developed a dislike for congee. I call it "Sick Food". But mum knows me too well and she'd include two halves of a hard-boiled salted duck egg, some braised soy beans/peanuts in soy sauce and some pickled mustard greens. And I'd be happily swallowing 2 bowls of congee ... ok, maybe I wasn't thaaaat sick.

So, when I saw this Homemade Salted Eggs post at Sonia's, I knew I had to make these, or at least try to, at least once ... just to know how.
Not that it's expensive to buy from the shops or there's any difficulty getting them, it's just a condiment that's also getting pretty popular these days. The restaurants have come up with the latest craze .... salted egg yolk everything. There's salted egg yolk pumpkin, crab, fish, shrimp, chicken, vegetables .... all of which I love!
Oh, wait .... this is turning into something not so simple after all , whoops.
Secret's out ... I need to make those dishes for myself at home! That's my weakness ... food. Makes you wonder why I have to keep getting new jeans every so often.

Well, I tried the recipe and it turned out really well, except that I thought it was a lot saltier than what I'm used to. Maybe I'll try to reduce it by a few days.
I'm very happy with it and this won't be a one time experiment. In fact, I've already started on the 2nd batch and I'm also trying it out with chicken eggs.

[Here's the update: I have been asked about making this with chicken eggs and fortunately I had a batch ready yesterday. Honestly, don't even bother with chicken eggs. It's nothing as good as duck eggs. Salted chicken eggs tastes just like regular hard-boiled eggs dipped in a little salt. Duck eggs (esp the yolks) have a very rich milky flavor. My suggestion for those who can't get or have difficulty getting duck eggs is to use goose eggs ... assuming that's an easier find. *shrug*.
Unless maybe, you're adventurous enough to try it with ostrich eggs ... tell me about it if you do.]

For Sonia's step by step guide and more beautiful pictures, click here.
I've reduced the recipe by half for this round since it was suppose to be a test batch. Besides, I didn't have a container large enough to fit too many eggs.



INGREDIENTS


8 duck eggs
200g coarse salt
500 ml water



METHOD


Wash eggs well and dry with a soft cloth or paper towels. (Do not soak eggs).
Place salt and water in a pot and boil until salt is completely dissolved.
(*Note: I've found that not all the salt could dissolve but that's ok. Read on ...)
Leave to cool. (You'll notice the salt starting to crystallize around the pot. That's when you know the salt to water ratio is correct). Strain.
Place eggs in a large, clean glass jar, add the salt water solution.
(Make sure the eggs are completely submerged. To help the eggs stay submerged, I'd filled a small plastic bag with air, sealed it and placed it on top before replacing the jar lid).
Store in room temperature for 14 days.
Boil eggs for 10 mins before serving.


FYI: The traditional way to get rid of the shell after it's boiled is NOT to peel the egg as you would with a normal hard boiled egg but to cut the egg in half, lengthwise, then scoop out as you would an avocado.








50 comments:

  1. When I saw Sonia's post I wondered about chicken eggs. Looking forward to hearing how the chicken ones turn out. I'd be curious to try.
    Yesterday reference was made to '70-89' age group, today you're a girl. Lets see what tomorrow will bring:)

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    1. I just had the salted chicken egg for dinner and it was no way as good as the duck's egg. It was quite bland and tasted just like a normal hard boiled egg with a slight saltiness. Maybe next time I'll try flavor the brine with some spices .... hmmm.
      Yeah, I'm curious about what I'm gonna be tomorrow too! :D

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  2. I've vacillated between wanting to try this and not for years. For some reason I thought (without ever looking up the procedure)that it would be much harder than this. Thanks for the push!

    I spent a month in Thailand eating congee for breakfast every morning.... I was so glad to see scrambled eggs when I got home :)

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    1. Hello, Toby. Congee for a whole month?!?! Well, I guess if you have to, you have to :)
      Thanks for dropping by.

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  3. Hi Ping, wah... salted eggs, I want 2 pieces. Your salted egg looks good, I like the yolk. :)
    You can try bitter gourd with salted egg, it taste good.

    I'd try using chicken eggs to made and it turn out good too.
    Have a nice day.

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    1. Me too! I sometimes just dig out the yolks to eat and give the whites to somebody else :D
      Yes, bitter gourd and salted egg yolks are a great favorite in my household. I've also tried it with brussels sprouts ... very good too!

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  4. I loved salted eggs when I was in china, thank you for posting a recipe! :) Looks beautiful and delicious.

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    1. Hi, Kiri. You're very welcome and thank you. Hope you enjoy making them at home!

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  5. OK Ping-did you have to come up with an impossible egg hunt?
    How in the world would I get duck eggs, unless I google to find a farm here, in the area to see if they raise ducks, to try to buy some "golden eggs"! Those yolks are so golden and lovely; chicken eggs will NOT do, so please DO feel guilty for enjoying them, while I'm here feeling sad that I can't even buy fresh duck meat, other than frozen...and a whole duck frozen, costs and "arm and a leg"...so enjoy your duck egg, my dear!

    Actually, I'm not envious, just a little sad. As a kid, growing up in Ohio, I still remember eating duck eggs, and duck livers, and have roast duck for special occasions, from my aunt's farm, in "Amish country, in Burton Ohio"...those were the good old days, although I grew up in Cleveland, but Burton was not that far!

    Ping, I finally posted the awards that I received from you, and will do my best to pay it forward. Thanks again:DDD
    xo

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    1. Awww ... really? You can't get fresh duck eggs? Let me ask my sis inlaw, maybe she knows and I wonder if she can send some to you. Egg hunt it is... Easter's coming! :D
      So sorry that you can't get fresh duck there.... pros and cons of living in a modern city versus farm county.
      Thanks for paying forward the awards ... very generous of you. I'm so laidback in those. Each time I think I have to do that for the next post, I forget.

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    2. Hi again, Elisabeth. I was just replying to Charles and a thought came to me ... you can try this out with goose eggs ... if you can find those. I'm thinking that's a more popular bird for westerners than duck. But maybe if there are no farms around, there won't be too many poultry choices except frozen ones and those can't lay eggs. Ostrich eggs?

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  6. Ping, I left you a long comment...hope it went through, although I know you have to approve of it first, but I didn't see any indication as to mentioning it! (not repeating my comment)

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    1. Oh, sorry, it wwas about 3 am my time when your comment came through. Didin't see it til this morning. Was still in zzzzland :D

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  7. These are fascinating--love the deep color in the yolks!

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  8. Ah, what fun - I love eggs, I think I'd love to try this, although I'm stuck as to where I could get duck eggs from to be honest. I don't think I ever saw them for sale *anywhere*. I'd love to try it with chicken eggs, as you are - at a guess I'd think they probably need to be soaked for less time - maybe 10 days or so, since they're smaller, and less salt used maybe... will have to experiment. Thanks for sharing the fun recipe Ping :)

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    1. Hi Charles! Looks like we're both having eggs at the same time. Great minds? :)
      Oh yes, I'll need to do an update for the chicken egg ones. As I was telling Mr 3 Cookies above, it turned out ok but wasn't as good and flavorful as the duck eggs. You might as well just hard-boil an egg and dip it into salt. Duck eggs have a richness, esp in the yolk, that's quite lovely. Perhaps you can try it out with goose eggs. Do let me know when you do coz it's not easy for me to find goose eggs here and it'll be a good suggestion to the folks who can't get duck's eggs.

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  9. oOO, this recipe will be a winner in my home. My mom hearts salted egg. And I particularly love how the yolks are so orangey in colour. You are quite right. I tend to associate porridge/congee as sick person food. LOL.. However, there are days that I do crave for simple porridge served with salted egg, fu-yi (fermented bean curd), some picked radish.. Yummm.. Have a good week Ping! huggss, Jo

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    1. Hi Jo! How have you been? Yeah, I had this for dinner last night ... and also coz I was feeling a little off :D But there were a whole lot of other condiments to go with my teeny bowl of porridge :D I certainly felt better after all that.
      Have a good week yourself. Hugs back.

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  10. I love how you educate and entertain me with each post! I've never heard of salted eggs before, but with my love of salty foods, I think I could go for these! Yours are beautiful :)

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    1. Thanks, Lizzy! Really? Don't they have these in the asian stores? Or in the Chinese restaurants? Hmm ... this is pretty common here. I'm glad it's something interesting to some folks and helpful too!

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  11. What an interesting post! Nice to read more about you, Ping! And those eggs! I LOVE porridge, of course, and even did a post about it, but I have never tried salted eggs! Looks really nice though... Don't know if i can find duck eggs though! Do you think this would work with regular chicken eggs?

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    1. Thank you! Hope I didn't scare you away :)
      I'd just updated the post about the chicken eggs version. Hope it helps. There's really no point doing it tho ... I thought it tasted boring... but then I've never liked hard-boiled chicken eggs. Maybe you can find some duck eggs in the Asian grocers?

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  12. Very interesting post. I learnt something new about eggs!

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  13. Ping, what a fascinating recipe! I love eggs and am so happy to learn new ways of cooking them. Apart from that, I am always thrilled to read such simple, sophisticated recipes. Only eggs and salt. Wow! You bet the eggs' taste and quality is crucial.
    I must check if I can buy duck or goose eggs somewhere here. Can you believe I have never had duck's eggs? (Not to mention goose...).
    Beautiful photo! (I only have hen eggs, but I know leftover rice and fried egg will be my lunch today ;-) )

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    1. Thanks, Sissi! I suppose this could be likened to the pickled eggs that the Europeans are fond of? Except that it's just slightly salty with no spice flavors, more so to taste the lovely flavor of the duck eggs. This is actually a very useful basic ingredient for many of our Chinese dishes. I hope I have some time to make and post some of them to show what they can be used for other than just with porridge. Googling would probably produce some good suggestions too.

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    2. Thank you, Ping, for the answer. I have never seen pickled eggs in my life, apart from American films where they show them in Irish pubs ;-) I suppose it's popular only in certain countries. I have been meaning to make the intriguing pickled eggs for ages, so thank you for reminding me.
      I will ask for the eggs on my market (when it gets warmer and I start going there once again).
      By the way, I have bought carrot juice today to make you cocktail (I don't have juicer). It was organic and tasted heavenly. I have emptied the bottle in 5 minutes :-) No discipline!
      I have to buy several for next time because apparently I am in urgent need of whatever carrot juice brings (let's hope I will have lose my pale complexion!).

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  14. I love salted eggs! Crave for them sometimes. So glad I had some today before I see your post. Your salted eggs looks fantastic! Better than store bought ones. Eggs aside, What I like about this post is, I get to know more about you. Now I know, you like T-shirts and jeans, don't use much make up. That's a big difference from the two Lucys. That Lucy a.k.a Quay Po is very vain. Love to dress up, put thick war paints to hide her wrinkles and sometimes put lots of accessories like a Christmas tree but then I believe they will get along very well despite the difference. Can't wait for the day for Lucy to meet Lucy. XOXO

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    1. Hi Lucy! Gosh, thanks, I'm flattered. This is actually my first time making them.
      LOL!! Yeah, looks like we're total opposites of each other. But like you said, I'm pretty sure we'd get along just fine :) Will definitely meet up soon. xo back.

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  15. Hi, thanks for the link. Like your idea to fill water in a bag to surmerge the eggs. Oh, you also tried with chicken eggs, not so nice, then I will not try it lor , hehehe..Did you get the kampung duck eggs with slight green colour or just normal duck eggs?

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    1. Ya, the chicken eggs were ok but not as nice as the duck eggs. Don't bother lah. I'm not sure if they were kampung duck eggs but they did have a slight greenish tinge to the shells.

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  16. Ping, I'm back again...forget the egg hunt for duck, goose, or ostrich, the farms that we have here out in the country do sell fresh eggs...just chicken eggs, and they charge $10 for a dozen.
    As far as getting duck eggs, I would have to visit my family in Ohio, and take a trip out to Amish country to get all that good stuff, including their real maple syrup!

    Thanks for trying to help out...and BTW, I was referring the Paula Deen with her type 2 Diabetes that she had for 3 years and was in denial...kept on making all those fatty, and buttery dishes and desserts...instead of educating the public about the dangers of Diabetes!
    I didn't want to leave this comment to you on my blog!

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    1. Wow! That is super expensive for chicken eggs. Anyway, sis inlaw says you can get the ready salted ones at the asian grocers and the fresh ones from some farmer's markets. But going to Ohio to get some sounds like a good idea for a nice holiday too!
      Glad to hear it's not you who's got diabetes.

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  17. Interesting to know that the traditional way of removing shell from boiled eggs is not to peel the eggs... I always peel my eggs after boiling them...Ops!

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    1. Serving them that way is how it's normally done for salted duck eggs ... not the regular eggs. Hard-boiled eggs we peel it like everyone else :D So you're ok!

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  18. Who would have thought that is how you do it! I thought the salting was happening after the cooking and not the contrary...

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    1. It's just pickling the eggs in brine really. The longer it's left in the brine, the saltier it gets.

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  19. Thats a cool recipe! I love eggs, I am actualy addicted to eggs in anyway prepared. I am glad too have found your little recipe. thanks a lot for sharing ping!

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    1. Hi Helene! Glad you like this recipe. This is mainly used as a condiment rather than eaten on its own. Enjoy!

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  20. This is completely fascinating. I am pretty sure I'd have to search high and low and even farther to find duck, goose or especially ostrich eggs, so I will just look at yours and hope to try some...some day.

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    1. Aww ... I didn't realise it's so difficult to get duck eggs over there. After so many comments telling me, I now know. I asked around and was told that some farmers markets do have them, but I guess those would be at places close to the farms and they wouldn't have too much problems in the first place. But you can get them already pickled from the asian grocers, I'm sure.

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  21. I'm with Elisabeth here about finding duck eggs or goose eggs. I can find quails eggs :) They look wonderful though and I would love to try them, I guess I will have to go visit you and try yours :) I am a simple person at heart too...so I know we would get along fine! :) Funny I just posted salt preserved lemons...okay maybe not so funny.

    Ping, have a wonderful weekend.

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    1. Hi Lyndsey! I'd just replied to Kristen above about where to get duck eggs. I hope you'll find some where you are. You're welcome to come visit whether for the eggs or not :D
      I checked out your preserved lemons. I love them! Now I'm going to visit you and your lemon tree! Eggs for lemons ... howzat? :D

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  22. that photo is just mesmerizing! the colors! amazing!

    Amanda

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  23. Your homemade salted eggs came out beautiful, Ping! I love how dark the yolk turned out. My hubby tried making salted eggs already but the yolk didn't come out as orange as yours. Do you think it depends on the variety of duck eggs used?

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    1. Hi Tina! Thanks!
      Hmm ... I was advised to use free range duck eggs (but not too sure if mine were) and also to pick the eggs with the slightly greenish tinge. I got a bunch, some with and some without ... didn't seem to make any difference. Maybe it could be the salt solution ratio? Not too sure. Sorry, not much help but this is my first 2 attempts and both times turned out ok without me being too conscious of what could go wrong :)
      I'll definitely be making some more and will update this post with any important points that I discover.

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  24. We'll try again with your salt solution ratio the next time we find good duck eggs.
    Thanks Ping!

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  25. I think I'm gonna try this as it's hard to get yolk like those in your pic!! Nice one Ping!

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  26. Great posting, I am share on my facebook page. Cheers.

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