Introducing “Century eggs”, an ancient Chinese food preserved with lye. What is it made from? Why is it called “Salted Eggs”? It has a unique smell. You should eat it in moderation to avoid residue.
Century eggs or junk eggs (皮蛋) are a form of processed eggs for consumption by the Chinese people that has been around since ancient times. The Chinese call them Heima or Jihai, which is believed to be a distorted pronunciation of the Chinese word for “wrapped in ashes” or “eggs wrapped in ashes”. Using the alkaline process is considered a form of food preservation. It can be done with duck eggs, chicken eggs, and quail eggs. It is a Chinese food that people in สมัคร UFABET วันนี้ รับเครดิตฟรีสำหรับสมาชิกใหม่ Asia have known for hundreds of years. According to history, it has been done since the Ming Dynasty of China (1368-2186).
It is a very popular food in China and later spread to other countries in Asia, including Thailand. It is popularly used to make century egg salad, century egg stir-fry, century egg porridge, etc.
How to make century eggs
In ancient times, the method of making it was not very complicated. It was to use duck eggs and coat them with wood ashes mixed with soil. During the Ming Dynasty, it was developed to use wood ashes mixed with lime, salt, sodium carbonate, mixed with tea leaves, and then used to coat duck eggs and leave them in a container for about 30-50 days, then you will get century eggs.
The main principles of making century eggs, no matter what the recipe, are the same. That is, you must always use a base substance or ingredient, or what people call alkaline, such as lime, sodium carbonate, or sodium hydrocarbonate, to make alkaline water. This alkaline water slowly seeps through the tiny pores in the egg shell into the egg white and yolk, causing a chemical change. This causes the egg white and yolk to change into a solid state similar to jelly. Adding tea water changes the color of the egg from brown to yellow.
This is because certain enzymes change the sulfur in the protein in the eggs into hydrogen sulfide and ammonia. This is the distinctive smell of century eggs, which we will smell immediately when peeling the eggs, but after a while the smell will evaporate. In addition, hydrogen sulfide also plays a part in making century eggs a dark brown color. In fact, the main principles for making century eggs are the same, differing only in minor details.
Making century eggs in the present day
- It is made by applying an alkaline substance to ashes and other substances. It takes about 35-50 days to apply the substance before you can get century eggs.
- Soaking in alkaline solutions, sodium carbonate solutions, lime and many other substances will take only 10-12 days.
Other ingredients are also used in making century eggs, such as salt to enhance the flavor of the eggs and to help them last longer. Tea leaves or tea water are used to darken the color of the eggs and make them look more appetizing.
Although century eggs are delicious, the benefits of century eggs are that they should not be eaten raw. While they are rich in minerals, protein, and calcium, just like regular eggs that have not gone through the preservation process, they should be eaten with vegetables so that the dietary fiber in the vegetables can help reduce the absorption of cholesterol in the eggs. However, they should not be eaten in large quantities or too often because lead poisoning may occur. In addition, it also reduces calcium absorption, leading to calcium deficiency, which can lead to bone decay.