Marbled Tea Eggs
By: Ai Pheng Yeap
Published: Monday, August 19, 2013 - 5:49am

Ingredients




8 eggs
3 cups water
2 black tea bags
5 tbs soy sauce
1 tbs dark soy sauce
1 cinnamon stick
2 star anise
½ tsp five-spice powder
1 tsp cracked black pepper corn
2 strips dried mandarin peel (optional)
1 tsp sugar

Preparation

1 Wash the eggs and place them in a pot. 2 Cover eggs with water then bring to boil for about 10 minutes or until eggs are fully cooked. 3 Pour the hot water out and rinse eggs with cold water. 4 Tap gently on shell of each egg with the back of a spoon. Make sure the shells are cracked all around. Do not peel the eggs. 5 The cracks will let the spiced tea seep through the shells and flavour the eggs. This will also create the marble effect. 6 Slowly place the cracked eggs and all marinade ingredients into the slow cooker pot. Let it slow cook for 8 hours or overnight. If you do not have a slow cooker, put the marinade ingredients, cracked eggs and water enough to cover eggs into a regular pot. Boil and turn heat to low. Let simmer for about 2 hours or longer. 7 Serve warm or let eggs sit in marinade for a few more hours or overnight to develop a darker marble effect and deeper flavour. 8 Tips: The longer you leave the eggs in the spiced tea, the more flavourful the eggs become. 9 Eggs can be left to sit in the marinade for 24 – 48 hours in the fridge.

About

Marbled tea eggs are commonly sold in Chinese herbal shops or in tea shops in Malaysia and is more often eaten as a snack as it is very portable and convenient. Eggs symbolise new life and rebirth, and is an ancient symbol of fertility. They also represent fertility and wealth in the Chinese culture. Some refer eggs to golden nuggets mainly because of the golden yellow yolk. This tea egg is special and beautiful with its marbled effect created from the cracked shells simmered and marinated in spiced tea for hours to flavour the egg.