Last Updated on March 20, 2024 by Share My Kitchen
This salted egg recipe uses the brine method (salt water) on fresh duck eggs. It is a great way to preserve your duck eggs and it is very easy to prepare. Salted eggs are an important part of many Asian savory dishes or desserts. They take less than 20 minutes to prepare before cooling and curing, and the results are well worth it!
Why Does This Salted Egg Recipe Work?
Homemade salted duck eggs are delicious because they are easy to make and are also an integral part of plenty of delicious recipes. And it only takes two ingredients: eggs and salt, and a little patience.
Salted eggs are great when used as part of a meal. In Thailand, boiled eggs are usually served with rice soup (khaotom – Khaawtm), while fried eggs are typically accompanied with steam rice and another spicy meal. As an example, rice soup could be served with a salted egg, and have some stir-fried water spinach, long bean stir fry with bacon, and/or Thai garlic pork. This combo is great for breakfast and dinner.
You can also use boiled salted eggs in a Thai egg salad. You just need to replace the boiled eggs with boiled salted eggs. Or stir-fried squid with some salted egg. For desserts, the yolks are used to make salted eggs yolk sauce (to top shaved ice and bubble tea) as well as salted egg yolk cream/lava custard or filling for Chinese steamed buns, Chinese pastries, baked buns, and other dishes.
Different Ways to Cook Salted Eggs
Boiling: Just put your salted duck eggs and water in a saucepan and let it boil over medium heat. This approximately takes 8-10 minutes. As mentioned before, boiled salted eggs can also be enjoyed with rice. However, salted eggs should be boiled before being incorporated into other recipes. Uncooked salted eggs, therefore, are not usually incorporated into recipes.
Frying: Another great way to enjoy salted eggs is by frying them. They can be fried like normal eggs. Just add some oil into your frying pan, crack the egg, and fry until it’s cooked. However, the yolks will remain hard. Fried salted eggs taste great when served with steamed rice and a curry such as Thai Chicken Panang or a spicy stir fry like Thai Basil Chicken.
Salted Egg Recipe Step-By-Step Instructions
Step 1
Rinse eggs under running water. Then, dry with a kitchen towel. Check for dirt and other debris and remove them.
Step 2
Next, add the water and salt into a saucepan, and heat the mixture until cook until the salt is fully dissolved. Once it has boiled, let it cool completely.
Here are Some Quick Tips:
- You might use a kitchen sponge to remove dirt from the eggshells. This will prevent the brine from going bad.
- You could prepare the brine ahead of time to speed up the process.
Step 3
Transfer the egg to a glass container and pour the cooled brine over them. But make sure the brine covers all the eggs when they are not floating. Also, you need to have some brine left in this step.
Step 4
Pour the leftover brine into a plastic bag and tie it with an elastic band to secure it.
Step 5
To stop eggs from floating, place the brine bag over them. This will ensure that each egg is cured and becomes equally salty.
Step 6
Seal the lid and store it at room temperature for at least two weeks.
Here’s a Quick Tip:
You can try one egg and cook it if you aren’t sure that 14 days are enough to make your eggs too salty. The eggs will become saltier the longer they are left to cure.
Storing
After 2 weeks of curing your eggs, discard the brine and wash the eggs. Then, keep them in the refrigerator for approximately a week. If you plan to fry them, it is important to have them as soon as possible. However, if you have a lot of eggs and want to keep them for a longer time, you can boil them. Boiling salted eggs can be kept in the refrigerator for approximately one month.
Salted Egg Recipe Card
Equipment
- Saucepan
- Glass jar with a lid – large enough to hold 10 eggs and the brine
- Plastic bag
- Elastic band
Ingredients
- 10 duck eggs
- 4 cups water
- 1 cup rock salt
Ingredient Notes
Salt: You may use rock salt as it feels more family-friendly. Many Thais use rock salt to make salt water when making salted eggs. But you can also use fine table salt to make your brine.
Eggs: In Asia, they usually use fresh duck eggs to make salted eggs. Chicken eggs may also be used to make salted eggs, but it isn’t as common. Duck eggs are preferable since their shells are harder and less likely to break. Keep in mind that if you break just one egg in a glass container, it will all go bad. Their yolks are larger and richer than chicken eggs.
Instructions
- Rinse eggs under running water. Then, dry with a kitchen towel. Check for dirt and other debris and remove them.
- Next, add the water and salt into a saucepan, and heat the mixture until cook until the salt is fully dissolved. Once it has boiled, let it cool completely.
- Transfer the egg to a glass container and pour the cooled brine over them. But make sure the brine covers all the eggs when they are not floating. Also, you need to have some brine left in this step.
- Pour the leftover brine into a plastic bag and tie it with an elastic band to secure it.
- To stop eggs from floating, place the brine bag over them. This will ensure that each egg is cured and becomes equally salty.
- Seal the lid and store it at room temperature for at least two weeks.
Notes
- You might use a kitchen sponge to remove dirt from the eggshells. This will prevent the brine from going bad.
- You could prepare the brine ahead of time to speed up the process.
- You can try one egg and cook it if you aren’t sure that 14 days are enough to make your eggs too salty. The eggs will become saltier the longer they are left to cure.
- After 2 weeks of curing your eggs, discard the brine and wash the eggs. Then, keep them in the refrigerator for approximately a week. If you plan to fry them, it is important to have them as soon as possible. However, if you have a lot of eggs and want to keep them for a longer time, you can boil them. Boiling salted eggs can be kept in the refrigerator for approximately one month.
