Soy Cured Egg (Only 2 ingredients)

Soy cured egg yolks are a popular topping on rice, noodles, and just about any dish to add flavor and umami! It usually takes a few ingredients to make the marinade for soy cured eggs, but this recipe hack will give you the easiest and delicious eggs in no time. If you have been thinking of making soy cured egg yolks, this is the only recipe you need to make them with only 2 ingredients!

Soy cured egg ingredients:

You will be surprised at how delicious these soy cured eggs turn out with only 2 ingredients!

• Mentsuyu – this is the key ingredient in making this soy cured eggs with 2 ingredients. Mentsuyu or tsuyu is commonly used as a soup base for udon, however, it can be used in just about anything. It is a soy sauce base with flavors of kombu and katsuobushi (bonito flakes) which is the perfect flavors for soy cured eggs. I use the one from Kikkoman, which I will link here.
• Egg yolk – using fresh and quality eggs are key in this recipe. In Japan, it is really common to eat raw eggs because of the freshness. However, in other parts of the world it may be hard to get fresh eggs. I get my eggs at the farmers market and I make sure they are organic and pasture raised. There are also som markets that sell pasteurized eggs which means the eggs have been treated to kill off certain bacteria known to cause food borne illness. Marinating the eggs will not kill any bacteria so using quality ingredient is really important.

No mentsuyu, No problem

If you can’t get your hands on mentsuyu or you don’t want to use it, don’t worry. I have a post on how to make soy cured egg yolks using soy sauce, mirin, sake, and kombu. You can find the post here. The good thing about making the sauce yourself is being able to adjust the ingredients that go in it. It will take a little bit longer to make, however, it is an easy process and trust me it is well worth your time.

How long do I marinate it?

The longer you marinate the egg yolks, the more flavor and saltier it will become. The egg yolks will also harden as it sits in the marinade longer. I like mine to be a little runny in the center so I marinate it for a full day. Any longer than that the yolk will be a little firmer. I will suggest at least marinating it for a full day just so the flavors seep into the yolk. But after that, it really depends on how you like the texture of yolk.

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