Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Salting Chicken Eggs with Brine solution

Having tried different methods, I find soaking the eggs in wet brine solution is by far the best and most sucessful. It is really easy as there is no cooking skill involved. All that is required is dissolve some salt in water and one month later.....viola salted eggs. Cost wise it is cheap....price of ordinary eggs and some salt.

As we don't eat a lot of salted eggs, I salt about 5 at a time in a small plastic container.To salt the eggs, use whatever available sized container you have as long as the eggs stay submerged by the brine.

This lot was actually salted for mooncakes but I haven't got around to making the mooncake yet (too busy playing armchair golf !). Thank goodness I don't adhere to a strict festive calender ! Hard boiled salted eggs goes well with rice porridge.

homemade salted chicken eggs

Ingredients
1 cup water to ¼ cup salt (ratio)
large chicken or duck eggs

plastic or glass container

½ tsp szechuan peppercorn per 1 cup water (optional)


Method
1. To work out how much liquid you need, place your eggs in your chosen container. Pour cold water into the container. Drain the water out to a measuring jar to work out the salt ratio.

2. Dissolve the salt in hot water. Leave to cool.

3. Pour the salt water into the jar to completely cover the eggs. Add the szechuan peppercorn (optional).

container holds 5 salted eggs
4. Label and keep in a cool place for at least 1 month.

5. Remove eggs and store in the fridge. Use as required.

harm tan ~ salted eggs
Note :
1. Sea salt or ordinary salt can be used.

2. If you add szechuan peppercorn, the salted eggs will taste peppery. Omit if you want plain unflavoured eggs.

Tip
1. Make sure the eggs are totally submerged when the lid is shut. If it floats, add a plate of some sort (not metal) to help keep it down.

2. I use the biggest eggs I can buy as I prefer big egg yolks.

45 Comments:

Tricia said...

Hello! I am making this ask I am typing this! I made this about a year ago ... I wasn't successful.

I am trying your method now (since I have been successful with your recipes) ... hopefully this would work better!

Got a question, does it have to be a "dark"? I am using a transparent tupperware and I'm going to store it in a cabinet.

BTW, I made your Mui Choy Kau Yoke again ... this is one of my most requested dish from my hubby!

Thanks for sharing your recipes!

Sinner said...

Hi Tricia,

You know me by now....I don't post anything that I am not 100% happy with ! I have used this method many times and always comes out with good salty eggs.

Doesn't have to be a 'dark' container. Any will do. For me that container fitted and submerged the 5 eggs perfectly. I just put it away in one of my kitchen cupboards out of the way.

So glad your husband like the mui choy kau yoke. As we speak I am cooking assam babi :)

ann low said...

I really enjoyed reading your blog. Have never try to make salted egg before, must try this one day. Thanks for sharing.

Anonymous said...

Hi Sinner,

Like Tricia, I tried to salt the eggs on my own 2 years ago but it wasn´t successful. I´m going to try your method now and will keep you posted if that works out for me this time. Hopefully it will work out coz I miss salted eggs so much. I don´t trust the ones sold in the Asian shops here (imported from China??)

warm wishes
purplegirl

Sinner said...

Hi purplegirl,

They now have those pre-hardboiled salted eggs sold in Asian shops. I do wonder how they keep it 'fresh' ! Not cheap either.

Hope to hear from you after a month. You have to be patient and not take it out to eat before the month is up or it won't be salty enough. Finger crossed.

Sinner said...

Anncoo, thanks for dropping by.

Asan said...

Hi, I made some last month and the yolks were golden and oily but when boiled, the yolks are almost always on one side of the eggs so not pretty and centered like yours. Any idea why?

Made chicken and beef balls the past week successfully. Thanks!

Sinner said...

Hi Asan,

I believe the trick could be in the boiling. I usually only boil one salted egg to eat with my porridge. Since it is in a pot by its lonely self, the egg gets plenty of space to roll around thus giving it a chance to center its egg yolk before the 'white' hardens.

Does that sound logical ;)

Anonymous said...

Hi Sinner

What eggs do you use? The yolds are so beautifully red!!! My salted egg yolks are yellow.

SD

Sinner said...

Hi SD,

Those were just ordinary large chicken eggs bought from the supermarket. Not free range.

I have a feeling it has something to do with the egg as I have salted some smaller sized eggs before and their yolks were not as orange as this lot. Needless to say I was very happy with the eggs :)

Anonymous said...

Hi Sinner,

Ok done, have salted the eggs yesterday and it´s sealed sitting quietly in a corner in my basement. I shall be patient and wait for it to ´ripen´. When the eggs are ready, how do I keep them? Do you boil one salted egg each time you wanted to eat it and store the rest of the unboiled salted eggs in the fridge? If stored in the fridge, how long can I keep them? Or do you recommend that I boil all the salted eggs and then keep them in the fridge.

cheers
purplegirl

Asan said...

Thanks, sinner...seadragon from Home Cooking Club suggested spinning the eggs, too...will try that and see.

I used supermarket eggs before and the yolks were pale yellow. The last batch, I did get organic eggs as suggested by Lily Ng and all the yolks are bright orange. I an in the US.

Sinner said...

How many eggs did you end up making, purplegirl ? As it only take 1 month to salt the eggs, I don't usually make more than I can eat in a month. That way your salted egg will always be fresh.

I store mine in the fridge. I dare not say how long you can keep homemade salted eggs as I don't have them around for more than a few weeks.

It would be better to leave them unboiled in the fridge. Then you will have more options as to how you eat the eggs. Some days you might want to steam some with mince pork or for some other dishes other than just hardboiled.

Sinner said...

Hi Asan,

Free range egg yolks can be quite orangey too. I guess it all depends on the breed of chicken and what their diet consist of.

Organic, freerange or duck eggs here are way too expensive :(

Anonymous said...

Hi Sinner,

I salted only 5 eggs because I don´t eat it often too. Ok at least I know I can keep it for a few weeks and not like I have to eat them all within 1 week! Actually after salting it for 1 month, will the eggs be hard (as in it´s not runny)? Would you mind to share with me how to make the minced meat with salted egg? I haven´t tasted this dish before but it sounds yummy to me. I need more ideas on how to use up the salted eggs :) Many thanks again.

cheers
purplegirl

Sinner said...

Hi purplegirl,

Thought I better get my act together and crack open those eggs to make my mooncake. The haam darn was even better looking than I expected. Just like a bought one !

If you crack open a raw salted egg, the white will be just like an ordinary egg - runny. The yolk will be round and quite solid.

Have you steamed normal eggs with mince pork before ?

If you can get crabs at your place, you can always cook crabs with salted eggs. We had that in Sg and thought that was quite a nice dish.

natalie said...

yum- love salted eggs with rice porridge- the yolk part is my favorite! my mom used to make salted eggs all the time when i was little, to keep on hand to eat with the porridge. every now and then when i'm craving it, i just go to the asian supermarket and get a small pack of the pre-made ones!

pigpigscorner said...

Wow they look great! I've never thought of making this myself, sounds really easy!

Anonymous said...

Hi Sinner,

I do hope my harm tarn will turn out to be a pretty orangy color like yours. Keeping my fingers crossed! Yes, I have steamed minced meat with egg before...the silky smooth type of steamed eggs. Hmmm....steam eggs with harm tarn...sounds quite yummy and worth trying it out.

Yucks, I don´t like the version with crabs and salted egg. I tried it back home in KL this year and I don´t know how to appreciate it. I still prefer my good ol sweet n sour chili crabs :)

I still do not have the courage to attempt to make my own mooncake although I have bought a few mooncake moulds moons ago!

Sinner said...

Hi purplegirl,

I hope yours will turn out orangy too but then colour is not important as long as it taste good.

Oh good...you have steamed mince pork with egg before. The next step after you have prep your egg with pork (omit the salt) in the steaming dish, is crack a salted egg into it. Take out the yolk and cut into 4-8 pieces. Spread the yolk around and with a fork, swirl the salted egg white all over the dish to spread it around.

You and my OH can shake hands ! He was not too taken with the crab and salted egg either. ha ha

I am only making mooncake because I manage to buy readymade lotus paste when in Sg. That made it heaps easier and more convenient. Only made 7 medium ones - all for myself. Yum - can't wait till I can sink my teeth into it !

SimpleAnn said...

I have been making home-made salted eggs since I moved to Turkey few years ago. It's hard to get them here. I brined the eggs for 41days as I was told that eggs brined less than 41days are toxicated. Don't know how true that is but I have since faithfully brine them for 41days :p

Rgds, Annie

Anonymous said...

Hi Sinner,

Many thanks for the tips on the steamed dish with salted egg. Will definately try it out later when my salted eggs mature :)

Ooo, homemade mooncakes are always much tastier than store-bought ones. Here at where I live, good mooncakes are very hard to find. Luckily I am not a mooncake fan so I don´t miss out much.

cheers
purplegirl

Jennifer said...

sinner,

Color of your salted eggs loos so nice...think it will taste even better with a bowl of hot porriage...the more i look the more i want to make it...Do you use room temperature eggs or eggs from the fridge?

Jennifer

Sinner said...

Hi Jennifer,

Go on, salt some. At least you will know they are safe to eat with no lead or any unnatural stuff used. Oh yes....yum with a bowl of hot rice porridge.

When I want to salt the eggs, I usually take it out from the fridge in the morning. By the time I get round to salting them later in the day, they will be at room temperature.

tigerfish said...

I like this with congee :)
Best!

Tricia said...

I just tasted the eggs!!! It was delicious!! I couldn't wait ... just boiled 2 and tasted it(nibbled)!

I didn't get the bright orange yolk. Mine was bright yellow!!

Can't wait to taste it with some jook tomorrow!

As always, love your recipes!

Thank you!

Sinner said...

Hi Tricia,

Is it one month already? My goodness how time flies !

I guess I am lucky I can get eggs that have darker yolks. The next time you eat/buy eggs, make a note of the colour. If that particular brand has darker yolks, then buy those for salting. Your yolk will then turn out darker ie more orangey.

So glad that it came out well :)

Anonymous said...

Hi Sinner,

My salted eggs are ready! Yippee! I boiled one yesterday to eat it with porridge but it didn´t taste salty enough for me (unlike the ones back home in Msia). It just tasted a little saltish to me but not really like the taste of a salted egg. Hmmm....I wonder what went wrong. Should I have left them soaked for a longer period?

warm regards,
purplegirl

Sinner said...

Hi purplegirl,

Your tastebud must be saltier than mine ! Have you thrown away the brine yet? If you still have it, leave the eggs in for another 10 days.

Or else for the next lot, add more salt to the point it does not dissolve anymore. Then leave the eggs in for 40 days. That should make the eggs really salty.

Anonymous said...

Hi Sinner,

Yeah I guess I love my salted eggs really salty :) Unfortunately I have thrown away the brine but I will note down your tips on adding more salt to the brine in my next attempt and brine them longer. My egg yolk doesn´t look orangy in color at all. It looks like the usual cooked egg yolk. Hope I have better luck next round.

cheers
purplegirl

madimomi said...

My large salted eggs were ready in just 3 weeks. They looked just like yours. Thank you for sharing your recipe!

Sinner said...

Hi madimomi,

So glad your salted eggs turned out golden as well.

Thanks for the feedback.

Lyn said...

I'm really looking forward to trying this as we've recently been given some freshly farmed eggs. You said to label and keep in a cool place for at least 1 month. Was wondering if I could keep it in the fridge or does it have to be kept out of the fridge during the 1 month period.

Sinner said...

Hi Lyn,

Might pay to keep it in a cupboard somewhere for the 1 month period. Keep it in the fridge after it is salted.

We are always fighting for more space in the fridge so it makes sense for me to stow it somewhere else. You really wouldn't want a container sitting in the fridge occupying premium space for a month - it would get annoying after a while. lol

lordsnipe said...

Do you reuse the brine over and over again? Or do you make a new batch after each month?

Sinner said...

I have never reused the brine. I make a fresh batch whenever I want to salt eggs.

Patricia Ng said...

Hi Sinner,
It has been quite sometime since your last posting. Are you ok? Would like to have more of your recipes. They are great. Thank you.

Sinner said...

Hi Patricia,

Not to worry, I am fine. Taking a long break from blogging to catch up on my other 'hobbies'.

So happy to know you like the recipes. Thank you for your concern. Take care. :)

Unknown said...

To keep your eggs submerged in the brine,
scrunched up a plastic bag and put it on top of the eggs.

Cheers,
Nat

sookiemac said...

Hi sinner, after the success of the beefballs (I actually bounced one off the floor to show off, lol), I now have packed 5 large eggs I have collected from my "girls" into a 1 litre Fowlers Vacola jar using the plastic lid. Can't wait! P.s. Tonight we are trying your steamed pork in black bean sauce. :)

Sinner said...

Hi sookiemac,

I can well imagine the beefball bouncing away !! lol

I am sure your "girls" gives you big orangey yolks. You are so lucky.
Would love to hear the result in a months time. Hope you and your hubby like the steam pork.

Sarah-Jane said...

Hello! I'm Sarah-Jane, and I would like to know the nutritional value of these eggs, per egg...are they more calorific than duck eggs? Which is healthier, salted duck of chicken eggs? Thanks!

lishapisa said...

i like your cute orange container .I made some salted eggs and turned out great but the yolk is not as pretty as your . I enjoy adding Shao xing
Wine it gives the eggs a lovely flavor. Love love it with congee !
Thanks!

Unknown said...

Hi, I am Natalie. May I know how to prevent black spot (fungi) on the surface of the salted eggs if putting them in the fridge is not an option? Thanks!

Zubba said...

Do do you boil the eggs first and then salt them with/without the shell, or do you salt uncooked eggs in the shell and then boil them a month later?

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