[Street Food] - Tea Egg with Recipe

Tea egg is another great street food that originated from the Chinese (Click here to read more about street food!). I use to go to Philly's Chinatown to purchase these for 2 for $1! Sadly, the place that used to sell these no longer exists.

But, don't worry! You can make it yourself by following the recipe below. Another option is to check out Bian Dang, a Taiwanese food truck, the next time you visit New York!

Lo Shui Package

Ingredients:

• 10-12 Eggs
• 4 bags of Black Tea bags (it's called "Red Tea" in Chinese) or 1 tablespoon of Black Tea leaves
• 3 teaspoons of salt
• 3 tablespoons of soy sauce 
• 2 teaspoons of sugar
• 1 liter of water
• 1 bag of Lo Shui package (on the package it says "Spice for Spiced Food") or 1 tablespoon of Chinese 5 spice powder
• The Lo Shui package can be found in most Chinese supermarket. The package shown on the right was brought from Asian Supermarket for $0.78. The place is located at 11th and Race Street, Phila, PA 19107, next to the restaurant called Joy Tsin Lau.

Tools:

• 1 Pot
• 1 Coffee filter (needed only if using tea leaves)
• 1 Large spoon (used to scoop the eggs out)
• 1 Large Bowl

Directions:

Pot with Tea Egg and sauce

1. Rinse the eggs thoroughly.
2. Boil 1 liter of water with the 10-12 eggs together in a pot.
3. When the water is boiling, add 1 teaspoon of salt. Then, switch the gas to low and let it boil for 15 minutes.
4. Now, turn the stove off and leave the egg in the pot for 5 minutes.
5. Take the eggs out and put them into an empty bowl with cold water.
6. While the eggs are cooling down, take this time to make the sauce. Take the tea bags (or tea leaves wrapped in coffee filter), soy sauce, sugar and Lo Shui package and boil it together in the water that was used before.
7. As the sauce is boiling, take this time to gently crack the eggs without removing the shell. This will let the egg soak in the sauce.
8. After the sauce is boiled, carefully place the eggs into the sauce and let it boil again.
9. When the sauce with the eggs reaches the boiling point, switch the gas to low and boil it for another 45 minutes before turning it off.
10. Now, take the tea bags/tea leaves and Lo Shui package out of the pot. But, leave the eggs in with the sauce overnight to let the sauce seep into the eggs. The longer it's seeped, the more intense flavor and color it'll be.

Congratulations! You have successful made the tea eggs! The eggs can be eaten hot or cold--it's all up to you. Enjoy!