← Nouns Cooking · Japanese

Ingredients

• 4 large eggs, straight from the fridge
• 1 l boiling water
• 200 ml cold tap water
• 100 ml Dashi powder or stock
• 1½ tbsp Soy sauce
• ½ tbsp Mirin
• 1 Spring onion, finely sliced, to serve

Method

1. Simmer the sauce ingredients for 1 minute, then let it cool.
2. Bring 1 l water to a rolling boil in a medium pot, turn off the heat and pour in the 200 ml cold water. The water should now be around 80°C (175°F).
3. Gently lower in the cold eggs, cover with a lid and leave them off the heat for 13–15 min. Do not open the lid.
4. Lift the eggs into a bowl of cold water for 1 minute to stop the cooking.
5. Crack each egg into a small bowl: the white should be milky and soft and the yolk thick and jammy. Spoon over the sauce and top with spring onion.
6. Eat with rice for breakfast, or slide one onto udon, gyudon or curry.

Tips

• Use no more than 4 eggs and a pot that holds the heat well; too many cold eggs drop the temperature too far.
• The yolk is not fully cooked, so use very fresh eggs and avoid serving to anyone who should not eat runny eggs.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Just One Cookbook Japanese Cooking 101 RecipeTin Japan