Bored with the same old fried, poached, boiled, or scrambled eggs? Try some of these unusual egg dishes on for size!
Tea Eggs
These are a savory treat, commonly served in China as a late-night or afternoon snack. They are so common that 7-11 stores stock them, and according to Wikipedia sell 40 million tea eggs a year.
To make a tea egg, you essentially hard boil an egg, lightly crack the shell, then marinate the egg in a tea concoction for a few days. The tea stains the egg brown in a craquelure sort of pattern, as well as giving it a complex taste.
The tea marinade is the key in this recipe. The classic recipe is black tea, plus a dash of Chinese five-spice powder, and a dash of soy sauce.
Century Egg
Another Chinese treat, this is basically a fermented egg. Raw eggs are buried in a mixture of clay, ash, salt, lime, rice hulls, or other high-alkaline substances. The alkalinity raises the pH of the egg, which "cooks" the proteins. (It's not unlike a ceviche.)
This process turns the egg white a sort of tobacco brown color, and turns the yolk dark green. It also lends the entire egg a creamy texture. The smell is redolent of ammonia, but those who have tried them swear that the egg itself does not taste like pee.
Salted Duck Eggs
This is a brined egg, one which has been cured by soaking in a salt mixture for a few weeks. At the end of the process, the egg is typically given a quick hard boil to set it up. The taste is, as you might imagine, quite salty. I understand it is the delicate, creamy texture which is the main appeal of salted duck eggs.
Duck eggs are used for this process, because their yolks are far larger than those of chicken eggs. The yolk turns a brilliant orange color and becomes somewhat gelatinous, and is considered "the good part."
Balut
Perhaps the king of all Weird Egg Recipes, this dish almost seems more like a dare than a recipe. To make balut, you take a fertilized egg and let it develop a baby chick. Cook, and serve with a dash of vinegar.
This delicacy of the Philippines and Southeast Asia is a high water mark for gross food. Few cultures approve of eating a fetus. I first heard about it during a particularly memorable sequence on Destination Truth. Balut has also been featured as a challenge food on The Amazing Race, Fear Factor, and Survivor.
Orange Julius Addition
It wasn't so long ago that Orange Julius offered the addition of a raw egg for a small extra fee. That's right: in the 1980s, we added raw eggs to our blended Orange Julius drinks. ON PURPOSE. Can you believe it?
The raw egg was said to add protein, and to make the drink more frothy. I get a little sick just thinking about it now.
Tea Eggs
These are a savory treat, commonly served in China as a late-night or afternoon snack. They are so common that 7-11 stores stock them, and according to Wikipedia sell 40 million tea eggs a year.
To make a tea egg, you essentially hard boil an egg, lightly crack the shell, then marinate the egg in a tea concoction for a few days. The tea stains the egg brown in a craquelure sort of pattern, as well as giving it a complex taste.
The tea marinade is the key in this recipe. The classic recipe is black tea, plus a dash of Chinese five-spice powder, and a dash of soy sauce.
Century Egg
Another Chinese treat, this is basically a fermented egg. Raw eggs are buried in a mixture of clay, ash, salt, lime, rice hulls, or other high-alkaline substances. The alkalinity raises the pH of the egg, which "cooks" the proteins. (It's not unlike a ceviche.)
This process turns the egg white a sort of tobacco brown color, and turns the yolk dark green. It also lends the entire egg a creamy texture. The smell is redolent of ammonia, but those who have tried them swear that the egg itself does not taste like pee.
Salted Duck Eggs
This is a brined egg, one which has been cured by soaking in a salt mixture for a few weeks. At the end of the process, the egg is typically given a quick hard boil to set it up. The taste is, as you might imagine, quite salty. I understand it is the delicate, creamy texture which is the main appeal of salted duck eggs.
Duck eggs are used for this process, because their yolks are far larger than those of chicken eggs. The yolk turns a brilliant orange color and becomes somewhat gelatinous, and is considered "the good part."
Balut
Perhaps the king of all Weird Egg Recipes, this dish almost seems more like a dare than a recipe. To make balut, you take a fertilized egg and let it develop a baby chick. Cook, and serve with a dash of vinegar.
This delicacy of the Philippines and Southeast Asia is a high water mark for gross food. Few cultures approve of eating a fetus. I first heard about it during a particularly memorable sequence on Destination Truth. Balut has also been featured as a challenge food on The Amazing Race, Fear Factor, and Survivor.
Orange Julius Addition
It wasn't so long ago that Orange Julius offered the addition of a raw egg for a small extra fee. That's right: in the 1980s, we added raw eggs to our blended Orange Julius drinks. ON PURPOSE. Can you believe it?
The raw egg was said to add protein, and to make the drink more frothy. I get a little sick just thinking about it now.
Photo credit: Flickr/FotoosVanRobin