Six eggs, cider vinegar and two weeks of patience make this Hairy Bikers pickled eggs recipe from Chicken and Egg. And the hands-on work takes me 35 minutes for a jar of 6, at about 80 calories an egg by my count.
“We do love a pickled egg”, they write in Chicken and Egg, calling it “an almost forgotten savoury classic” found on most pub bars. And theirs is the pub jar made at home, since the whole job is boil, brine and wait, with chilli flakes optional.
Leave the sealed jar alone for at least two weeks, because the book says a month is better before the first egg comes out. And pour the brine over hot, since the book takes it straight from a 5-minute simmer to the packed jar before sealing.
Hairy Bikers Pickled Eggs Recipe
Description
Six eggs are boiled for exactly seven minutes, cooled under the cold tap and peeled, then cider vinegar simmers with water, salt and sugar. Then the eggs are packed into a sterilised Kilner jar, the hot brine is poured over and the jar is sealed to cool. And the whole job is done in an afternoon, so all that is left is not opening the jar.
Ingredients
Instructions
- Sterilise the jar: find a jar big enough for all 6 eggs, ideally a Kilner jar. Then run it through the hottest dishwasher setting, or wash it in plenty of hot, soapy water and rinse thoroughly. Put it in a low oven at 140C/Fan 120C/Gas 1 to dry completely.
- Boil the eggs: bring a saucepan of water to the boil and gently lower in 6 eggs. Then boil them for 7 minutes exactly, take the pan off the heat, lift out the eggs and run them under cold water.
- Peel: once the eggs are cool enough to handle, peel them carefully.
- Make the brine: put 350ml cider vinegar in a saucepan with 150ml water, 1 tbsp salt and 1 tbsp sugar. Then bring it slowly to the boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar, and simmer for 5 minutes. Add 1 tsp chilli flakes or a few dried chillies for the last minute, if using.
- Pack the jar: put the eggs into the jar and pour over the pickling mixture. Then seal the jar and leave it to cool completely.
- Wait: leave the eggs for at least 2 weeks before eating, preferably a month. Then store the jar in the fridge once opened.
FAQs
How long do pickled eggs keep?
The book gives no end date, so I finish a jar within two months of opening it and keep it in the fridge from then. But unopened it lives in a cool cupboard, my choice, since the book only names the fridge for an opened jar. And the BBC page for the same recipe files the prep as overnight, which undersells the wait the method itself asks for.
What vinegar do the Hairy Bikers use for pickled eggs?
Cider vinegar, cut with water rather than neat, which is milder in the mouth than I expected from a pub jar. And the BBC page for the same recipe keeps that brine exactly and calls the result a chip shop treat. But I have not tried malt vinegar in it and cannot vouch for it, so cider is what goes in my jar.
Why boil the eggs for exactly 7 minutes?
Because the book says 7 minutes exactly, and at that time I get a yolk just set but still deep yellow. So peel them only when cool enough to handle, and carefully, since a torn white shows in the jar for a month.
What are the Hairy Bikers Scotch pickled eggs?
The next recipe along, which “began in the pub”, wraps 6 of these eggs in the meat from 600g of Cumberland sausages. Then each egg goes through celery salt and flour before the sausage, and flour, egg and panko mixed with crushed crisps after. And they deep-fry at 160C for about 6 minutes, whereas their scotch eggs from Mums Know Best start with a fresh boiled egg.
What do you serve pickled eggs with?
A pint, because the headnote says “They go down a treat with a pint” and that pubs once kept a jar on the bar. So mine go on a picnic plate with their piccalilli and their pork pie, where a sharp egg belongs. And if you are starting a jar, start their rhubarb chutney the same day, since it needs its own two weeks in the jar.
And for a third egg on the plate, their devilled eggs from Ultimate Comfort Food bring three fillings for a buffet.
