Ramen Eggs! Here’s how to make them, soft-boiled to perfection and seeped in a marinade that’s brimming with flavor. We’ll tackle a simple method and a fancier method too.
Ramen eggs has become a ramen topping essential – but they can be great on top of rice, a standalone snack…the list goes on!
What you’ll need:
6-10 Eggs (any eggs will do)
Soy Sauce (1/2 Cup)
Water and Ice
Optional (Fancier Method):
Mirin (1/4 Cup)
Cooking Sake (1/4 Cup)
Sugar (2 Tablespoons)
Negi (Spring Onions)
Ginger
Katsuobushi (Bonito Fish Flakes)
Shiitake Mushrooms
Ramen Eggs, Part 1: Boiling
Before boiling your eggs, it helps to poke a hole at the bottom each one. This can be done with a needle if you don’t have a hole poker. Doing this will make the eggs easier to peel later on.
After this, gently (so they don’t crack) place your eggs in boiling water. Boil for 6-7 minutes. This boiling time will depend on your stove, the pot you’re using, and also how runny or firm you want the eggs. Feel free to experiment – for me, closer to 8 minutes is perfect.
After boiling your eggs, cool them down in an ice bath immediately after for a few minutes. This will stop the cooking process, allowing for that beautiful soft-boiled consistency. Now on to peeling! Use the same ice water to assist you (or running water under a faucet).
Part 2: Marinating the Eggs
This is where you can go simple or fancy. Most simple – add 1/2 a cup of soy sauce (any soy sauce will do) and 2 cups of water to a Tupperware or bowl. Toss your eggs into this marinade and let the eggs soak in the flavors for 24+ hours in the fridge.
But if you want to get fancier, add the 1/4 cup of mirin, 1/4 cup of cooking sake and 1-2 tablespoons of sugar to this marinade. Doing this will provide a more complex flavor (along with sweetness from the sugar and mirin).
To get even fancier, the aromatics highlighted at the beginning can help. Chop up your negi, ginger, and shiitake mushrooms into smaller pieces. Boil the cooking sake and mirin for a few minutes in a pot first (same amounts). Then add the above chopped up veggies and the soy sauce. At the end, add the water.
There you have it – a more complex marinade! Do the same thing – toss in your eggs and let them rest in the fridge for 24 to 72 hours. Note that a longer time will result in the flavors seeping in a lot more, even turning the eggs brown (I also used a darker soy sauce).
Here you can follow the recipe in video form, if that's more your style!
This marinade that you’ve made can be used for soaking pork chahsu (ramen toppings) or even as seasoning in a stir fry. In other words, you don’t need to toss it!
Finally, cut your eggs in half or serve them whole. A fishing line actually works better than a knife (for a cleaner cut)!