1000 year old eggs

I’m not quite sure why you would make these yourself- they cost about a dollar at any asian market.

Maybe if you live in the middle of nowhere, with a bunch of white people, and can’t tell the difference between Japanese and Chinese food.

Or maybe you watch too much Martha Stewart and mine your own slate for the kitchen chalkboard.

Recipe below.

PRESERVED DUCK EGGS (Thousand Year Old Eggs)
Yield: 12 servings

• 2 c tea, very strong black
• 1/3 c salt
• 2 c ashes of pine wood
• 2 c ashes of charcoal
• 2 c fireplace ashes
• 1 c lime*
• 12 duck eggs, fresh

*Available in garden stores and nurseries.

1. Combine tea, salt, ashes and lime.
2. Using about 1/2 cup per egg,
   thickly coat each egg completely with this clay-like mixture.
3. Line
   a large crock with garden soil and carefully lay coated eggs on
   top.
4. Cover with more soil and place crock in a cool dark place.
5. Allow to cure for 100 days.
6. To remove coating, scrape eggs and
   rinse under running water to clean thoroughly.
7. Crack lightly and
   remove shells.
8. The white of the egg will appear a grayish, translucent
   color and have a gelatinous texture.
9. The yolk, when sliced, will
   be a grayish-green color.
10. To serve, cut into wedges and serve with:
    • Sweet pickled scallions or any sweet pickled vegetable
    • Sauce of :
      • 2 T vinegar
      • 2 T soy sauce
      • 2 T rice wine
      • 1 T minced ginger root.

Copied from Recipe Cottage

Possibly originally from “The Regional Cooking of China” by Margret Gin and Alfred E. Castle, 101 Productions, San Francisco, 1975.

I recommend slicing them and serving them over very smooth (“silken”) and very cold, fresh tofu. Sprinkle green onions or scallions, soy sauce, and bonito flakes.