Ajitsuke Tamago, or seasoned egg, is my third favorite part of ramen, with the first being broth and the second being noodles. This egg features a lusciously jammy yolk surrounded by a tangy, brackish egg white, accomplished by a short boil and then brining. After experimenting, I’ve found the best cook time for a large egg is between six and seven minutes, as five minutes creates a runny egg white and eight minutes sees the yolk begin to harden. Start with room temperature eggs and have an ice bath handy to stop the cooking process. Eggs should be brined for a minimum of 4 hours, and I would recommend a maximum of 24, as after that the brine begins to encroach on and toughen the yolk. Overnight works great.
If you have made chashu (braised pork belly) to top the ramen, use the leftover braising liquid, after removing the fat cap, to get an even more layered flavor when you brine the eggs.
Ingredients
6 large eggs
½ cup soy sauce
½ cup mirin
¼ cup sake
1 tbsp brown sugar
3-4 garlic cloves, diced
2-3 whole scallions, sliced
1-2” ginger, peeled and diced
Prepared ice bath for cooked eggs
Instructions
Make the Brine
Combine, soy, mirin, sake, sugar, garlic, scallions, and ginger in a large bowl or instead, if available, use the chashu braising liquid. It contains the same ingredients as the egg brine with the added pork flavor from the time spent braising the meat.
Cooking the Eggs
- For easier to peel eggs, while they are still in the carton, use a tack or safety pin to poke a small hole in larger top of the shells. Bring water to a simmer in a large saucepan.
- One at a time, gently add the eggs.
- Optional: During first minute, stir the eggs to evenly set the yolk toward the middle of the egg.
- Remove the eggs at 6-7 minutes, and place directly into an ice bath to stop the cooking.
- Peel eggs, place into brine, cover, and refrigerate for 6-12 hours.
Note: Especially if the eggs are farmer’s market fresh, use a steamer to gently cook them for 6 to 7 minutes. This makes them easier to peel.