Chinese Tea Leaf Eggs
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. Store unpeeled eggs in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator for four to five days. Recipe courtesy of Mom.
Ingredients
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3 cups water
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2 tablespoons black tea leaves
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1 tablespoon soy sauce
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1 tablespoon black soy sauce
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1 tablespoon tangerine zest
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1 (2 inch) piece cinnamon stick
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2 pods star anise
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1 ¼ teaspoons salt, divided
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8 large eggs
Instructions
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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 the heat. Add eggs and let steep for at least 8 hours, or for a richer flavor, up to 1 1/2 days.
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