Chinese Tea Leaf Eggs
Tea eggs are one of my favorite dishes and traditional lucky food to make for the Lunar New Year. These hard-boiled eggs are subtly flavored with anise and have a deep brown hue from black tea and soy. The marbled patterns from the cracked shells make these quite attractive. Store unpeeled eggs in a tightly sealed container in the refrigerator for four to five days. Recipe courtesy of Mom.
water
3
cups
black tea leaves
2
tablespoons
soy sauce
1
tablespoon
black soy sauce
1
tablespoon
tangerine zest
1
tablespoon
cinnamon stick
1
(2 inch) piece
star anise
2
pods
salt, divided
1 ¼
teaspoons
eggs
8
large
 Combine 3 cups water, tea leaves, soy sauce, black soy sauce, zest, cinnamon stick, star anise, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a large saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 3 hours.
  Meanwhile, place eggs and remaining 1 teaspoon salt into a medium pot; cover with cold water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from heat, drain, and cool. Tap cooled eggs with the back of a spoon to crack shells; do not remove shells.
  Remove the saucepan from the heat. Add eggs and let steep for at least 8 hours, or for a richer flavor, up to 1 1/2 days.
