Karl’s Ramen Eggs

Adapted from a Just One Cookbook recipe

Wife Jan is teaching the Anthropology of Food this semester. She had gotten to the English introducing curry to the Japanese and she thought “Japanese curry, yum!” The Japanese have made this dish their own—it is much milder and sweeter than an Indian curry. I wanted to make an “authentic” version, so I adapted a Just One Cookbook recipe. Many Japanese top their curry with a boiled egg.

Karl’s Ramen Eggs

Nami uses a simple boiled egg to top her curry. I decided to adapt her recipe for seasoned ramen eggs. Dark soy sauce gives a much smokier flavor than regular Japanese soy sauce. Making the sauce more of a teriyaki seasoning seemed the next logical step.

Karl’s Ramen Eggs

Ingredients

2-6 large eggs

Marinade

1-2 Tbs. dark soy sauce
1-2 Tbs. mirin
1-2 Tbs. sake
½ Tbs. fresh ginger, grated
½ tsp. sugar

Directions

1. Put a wire rack in a small pan and add enough water to come up to the rack.

2. Bring the water to a boil and add the eggs.

3. Cover the pot and steam the eggs for 6 minutes.

Tip: This gives you perfectly very soft boiled eggs—egg whites set with the yolks still fairly fluid.

Note: Boiling eggs in the water can give you unevenly cooked eggs. By steaming the eggs, they are surrounded by steam at an even temperature—212º F at sea level, when you put a loose lid on the pot it will raise that temperature by a few degrees.

4. Rinse the eggs in cold water and then put them into a bowl of ice water to cool completely.

5. By quickly cooling the eggs, the egg white shrinks and pulls away from the membrane just under the shell, making them much easier to peel.

6. Remove the egg shells under a stream of running water and place them in a sealable plastic bag.

7. Mix the marinade ingredients and pour it over the eggs.

8. Press out the air and seal the bag.

9. Refrigerate the eggs for at least two hours, but up to six is better.

10. Remove the eggs from the sauce and cut them in half along the long axis.

11. Use the eggs as a topping for ramen or Japanese curry.