How do you like your eggs? Scrambled? Hard boiled? I like mine over easy. I also like a lot of salt. I'm a salt-aholic who dips French fries in salt, not ketchup. So when I eat a hard boiled egg, I use a lot of salt.
I've mentioned before that I'm half Filipina and yet know next to nothing of my culinary culture. Filipinos are known for their balut - the embryonic duck eggs they eat. Turns out they also preserve duck eggs in salt. A few Asian cultures do so, each with a different method. The method I'm using here is not really Filipino, but Chinese, I think. But it is an easier method than making a mud slurry to encase the eggs in like the Filipinos do.
I'm going to be making a recipe that uses these salted eggs as a garnish and so I figured I'd make the eggs first, since they take three weeks. I used chicken eggs this time, but will use duck eggs next time. The duck eggs are supposed to have a richer yolk.
The finished eggs were very salty. It all depends on how long you leave them in the saline. I think next time I might only let them sit for two weeks before testing them. I then hard boiled them. When I peeled them I found the whites to be salty and soft. I was not able to peel any without them coming apart. The yolks were nowhere near as salty as the whites. Considering how I salt my eggs normally, these are a nice and different alternative.
I asked Jun from Jun Blog how he eats/uses them. He said he likes them in a salad with heirloom tomatoes, a bit of arugula, and olive oil drizzle. He also has them for breakfast with fried rice. I found this salted egg salad recipe and a mention of salted egg ice cream that I think I will try. Apparently the salted egg gives the ice cream a flavor kick. After all, good ice creams do use egg in them.
By the way, the other Filipino food blog I recommend is Burnt Lumpia.
By the way, the other Filipino food blog I recommend is Burnt Lumpia.
Salted Eggs
1 part salt
4 parts water
sichuan pepper corns
1 tbsp brandy or whiskey
Eggs
Boil all ingredients except eggs on the stove until the salt is dissolved. Let the liquid cool. Place eggs in mason jar, pour in the salt water, seal. Place in your pantry for 2-3 weeks. To check if they are done, remove an egg, cook it, and taste it. You may decide that the rest of the eggs need a few more days.