Month: February 2019

Tea Eggs (茶叶蛋) and School Days

Born and raised in Guiyang, the capital of Guizhou province in Southwest China, Ling Peng stands in her kitchen in Cincinnati, Ohio and gazes at the tea eggs on the countertop. The eggs are hard boiled and distinctively marbled, much like a webbed veil.

Tea eggs marbled with tea-infused flavor

“I used to eat this in my school days,” she says. “I was maybe in fourth or fifth grade.”

She recalls her route to school, about a 20-minute walk on Qian Ling Street (黔灵西路). Ling vividly remembers the billowing steam from the open woks on the streetside, keeping the tea eggs warm . “This is a common street food,” she adds.

These tea eggs are not only flavorful — smoky, savory, and with a hint of sweet spice from having steeped in a tea-based liquid — they are also very affordable. Ling says the eggs were only a penny each in her time — in the late 1960s.

She used to buy an egg on her way to school — and sometimes on her way home — and peel the cracked shell to get to the flavor-veined snack inside. Ling is not quite sure how the “cracked” motif started in China but notes how prevalent and in vogue this look is. She quickly brings out a pair of petite tea cups bearing this very recognizable look.

Petite tea cups (forefront) bearing a smiliar “cracked” motif as the tea eggs

“Do you see?” she queries.

Ling is determined to delve into the history of this design but in the meantime, she shares her recipe for tea eggs. And in so doing, a little bit of her childhood.

Ling presenting a pair of tea eggs — one peeled and one still in shell

Click here for the recipe: Tea Eggs Recipe

Tea Eggs (茶叶蛋）Recipe

In this recipe, cracked hard boiled eggs steep in a spiced, smoky, tea-based liquid. The marbled veins that wrap around the egg give it a distinct marbled look. This recipe is courtesy of Ling Peng.

Tea eggs marbled with tea-infused flavor

The preparation method is simple but does require a long steeping period. For ease, the dry spices can be substituted with store-bought 5-spice powder.

Ingredients to make tea eggs

For the story to go with these tea eggs, click here: Tea Eggs and School Days

Tea Eggs (茶叶蛋)
Print Recipe
In this recipe, cracked hard boiled eggs steep in a spiced, smoky, tea-based liquid. The marbled veins that wrap around the egg give it a distinct marbled look.
Servings Prep Time
6 eggs 6 hours
Cook Time Passive Time
1 hour 5 hours
Servings Prep Time
6 eggs 6 hours
Cook Time Passive Time
1 hour 5 hours
Tea Eggs (茶叶蛋)
Print Recipe
In this recipe, cracked hard boiled eggs steep in a spiced, smoky, tea-based liquid. The marbled veins that wrap around the egg give it a distinct marbled look.
Servings Prep Time
6 eggs 6 hours
Cook Time Passive Time
1 hour 5 hours
Servings Prep Time
6 eggs 6 hours
Cook Time Passive Time
1 hour 5 hours
Ingredients
  • 6 each eggs hard boiled
Steeping Liquid
Servings: eggs
Instructions
Hard Boiled Eggs
  1. Put eggs in a pot and add water, enough to cover the eggs by about 2 inches. When water comes to a boil, lower the heat to a simmer and cook for 12 minutes. When cooked, drain the hot water and add cold water to quickly cool the eggs. Use the back of a spoon to gently crack the shell of the eggs. The more cracks you make, the more intricate the "marbling" in the final product. (Do not peel the shell.)
Steeping Liquid
  1. Combine all of the ingredients in a small pot and bring to a boil; then simmer for about 5 minutes. Turn off the heat. Immediately add the hard boiled cracked eggs to the liquid. Make sure the steeping liquid covers the eggs.
  2. Allow eggs to steep in tea liquid for at least 5 hours, and ideally overnight (in the refrigerator). Then lift the eggs from the steeping liquid and peel. The eggs can be eaten cold or warm.