So You Bought Too Many Eggs
It is possible that while stocking up to stay at home, you have acquired too much of one item. I did it with eggs. It all happened so quickly: I was at a local store buying a normal amount (four pounds) of butter, when a spirit (and A.A. Newton ) suddenly prompted me to add five dozen eggs to my cart.
I eat a lot of eggs and I use a lot of eggs in my recipes, but – even for me – it was too many eggs. Fortunately, I have ways to deal with such problems.
Strategy # 1: Watch Them
In addition to too many eggs, I also bought a bucket of cottage cheese, some excellent jaw bacon, and a bunch of shallots. Turns out it was all very clever because these things can be used to make sous vide egg bites , which are better than anything you can buy at Starbucks, which you shouldn’t be doing anyway. (They are also great for any vegetables in your refrigerator that are on the brink of death.)
Another of my favorite sous vide egg projects are tomaoyaki-style omelets , which use four eggs at the same time and serve equally well hot or cold. Just whisk them with soy sauce, mirin (if you have one) and a little sugar, then place in a freezer bag for 20 minutes at 170 ℉ before chopping into small two-bite-sized pieces.
Strategy # 2: Boil, Then Season
I love the egg-flavored moment, whether it’s miso jerky or soy sauce . Miso eggs are perhaps the simplest; all you need is miso, an ingredient that will stay in your fridge almost forever. Simply gently wrap the hard-boiled eggs in a fermented soybean paste and refrigerate for four hours. Carefully remove the miso – save it for another use – and enjoy the salty, slightly nutty sun-dried egg.
For soy sauce eggs, also known as ” ramen eggs, ” you need some soy sauce, mirin, and sake (or a sake substitute made from one part rice wine vinegar to three parts water), and some sugar. Cook the eggs to the desired doneness — I boil six minutes for softer eggs and seven and a half for a denser yolk — then refrigerate for 15 minutes before dipping in the soy sauce mixture overnight.
Strategy # 3: Do Something Unexpected
You might be a little bored right now, and one of my favorite ways to get rid of boredom is to set it on fire with your kitchen torch. Brulee eggs may seem like overkill , but that’s why they are so good. They are sweet, savory, tasty, slightly charred, and very easy to make. Boil one for six minutes, then peel it when it’s cool enough. Cut the egg in half and sprinkle with a pinch of salt and a light coat of sugar. Light it over low heat until it is caramelized and bubbling, then let it cool for about a minute before putting it in your mouth.
Another fun project, especially if you have too many yolks, is sun-dried egg yolks that can be grated like cheese on top of your favorite foods. A little waiting, but this is inactive time; All you have to do is mix 1 cup sugar with 1 ¼ cup kosher salt, gently press the yolks onto the mixture, and store in a resealable container for about four days in the refrigerator. When they become hard, wash off the excess salt and sugar with cold water, then dry them in the oven at 200 degrees for an hour. Rub them over salads, pasta, or anything else like cheese.