Tea eggs are one of my favorite dishes and traditional lucky food to make for the Lunar New Year. These hard-boiled eggs are subtly flavored with anise and have a deep brown hue from black tea and soy. The marbled patterns from the cracked shells make these quite attractive. I eat them chilled and sliced in quarters as a side dish, appetizer, or snack. Recipe courtesy of Mom.
Ingredients
- water : 3 cups
- black tea leaves : 2 Tbsp
- soy sauce : 1 Tbsp
- black soy sauce : 1 Tbsp
- tangerine zest : 1 Tbsp
- (2 inch) piece cinnamon stick : 1 piece
- star anise : 2 pods
- salt, divided : 1.25 tsp
- eggs : 8 piece
Metric Conversion
Stages of cooking
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Combine 3 cups water, tea leaves, soy sauce, black soy sauce, zest, cinnamon stick, star anise, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a large saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 3 hours.
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Meanwhile, place eggs and remaining 1 teaspoon salt into a medium pot; cover with cold water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from heat, drain, and cool. Tap cooled eggs with the back of a spoon to crack shells; do not remove shells.
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Remove the saucepan from heat. Add eggs and let steep for at least 8 hours.
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