Ridiculously Tasty Soy Marinated Quail Eggs

Quail eggs? Get ready to take your taste buds on a flavor journey that you won’t forget!

Soy-marinated quail eggs are a tasty, easy-to-prepare snack or side dish made from quail eggs, soy sauce, and chili pepper. Its soft, jammy egg yolk and rich flavor make it an irresistible snack or side dish!

They can be made in less than 30 minutes and ready to eat the next day. Our simple recipe uses a few simple ingredients to flavor the delicious eggs and would make a great addition to any meal.

Keep reading for our soy-marinated quail egg recipe!

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Why Quail Eggs?

Quail eggs are known for their soft and delicate taste. They are very mild and sweet tasting. The yolks are creamy and soft and the whites are very firm, but not rubbery. They are quite delicious and so cute to look at!

Quail eggs are a very popular food in Asian cuisine. It’s used in many cultures like Korea, the Philippines, and China and is sometimes considered a delicacy. Quail eggs are utilized in Japanese cooking in a variety of ways, including Tamago for sushi or even raw!

In addition, quail eggs are often commonly used in street food cooking. They can be found in street stands boiled, skewered, or prepared in different ways. One of our favorite preparations of quail eggs is Kwek-kwek (Fried Orange Quail Eggs), which is a commonly found Filipino street food.

What are soy-marinated quail eggs?

Soy-marinated quail eggs are quail eggs that are prepared by boiling fresh quail eggs the yolks are perfectly jammy. Then, they are marinated overnight in a spicy mixture of soy sauce, chili pepper, sesame oil, and mirin. This allows the eggs to absorb all of the flavors of the marinade and become infused with it.

Soy-marinated quail eggs have a burst of spicy, umami flavor as soon as you bite into them. They have a rich, complex flavor and the texture is very tender and creamy.

Why are soy-marinated quail eggs so special?

The inspiration behind this recipe was from watching It’s Okay to Not Be Okay. In this kdrama, Nam Joo Ri’s mother would prepare braised quail eggs (Jangjorim) for Ko Moon Young. The eating scenes expressed the healing and care that Ko would experience throughout the series.

While watching these scenes, it reminded me of my Lola who would add quail eggs to arroz caldo or soups when she cooked me Filipino food. She put a lot of care into what she cooked for me, and the quail eggs reminded me of that.

We wanted to make my own version of quail eggs that appealed to both Korean and Filipino cuisine lovers, so we came up with a recipe that combines elements of both countries’ cuisines into one amazing dish. We hope you enjoy it!

While this soy sauce quail eggs recipe is very similar to the Korean braised quail eggs of Jangjorim, these are not the same dishes! Traditional Jangjorim quail eggs involve hard-boiling the eggs and braising them in soy sauce (check out My Korean Kitchen’s lovely recipe for Jangjorim here). The quail eggs in our version are cooked to be soft-boiled and then marinated in soy sauce overnight in the fridge. This results in a jammy egg that absorbs a lot of the soy sauce flavor, making it quite savory and delicious.

How to boil and peel quail eggs the fast and easy way!

Want to know the secret for peeling quail eggs quickly?

Here are our tips:

Add a splash of vinegar and kosher salt into the boiling water. The vinegar will help break down the shell and keep the egg whites from running out (in case the shell does crack). Salt helps to prevent the shell from cracking.

Use a strainer basket to hold the eggs in the boiling water so that they don’t touch the bottom of the pot and cause a crack to form. This also helps with lifting all the eggs in and out of the water instantly, and it especially helps because cook time should be quick and precise.

Place the boiled eggs in an ice bath for at least 20 minutes. This ensures that they are completely cooled down and will be easier to peel.

Make tiny cracks in the shell for easier peeling. When the shell is only roughly cracked, such as by rolling it or tapping it on the table, the large pieces of shell are difficult to take off and you may end up ripping into the egg white.

• Here’s the method: Place 5-6 quail eggs in a tupperware. Fill with water until they are submerged. Shake for about 15 seconds so the shell cracks into very tiny pieces.

We recommend starting to peel at the air bubble (you can find it where the egg is hollow to the touch.)

If the shell doesn’t peel off easily you may need to shake it in the tupperware again.

And there you have it! That may sound like a lot of steps, but once you try it, you’ll see that these steps are actually easier than the typical method and hold the key to quick and easy peeling!

Quail eggs should only take you a few seconds to peel now, as they slip right off!

Soy-Marinated Quail Egg Ingredients

• 15 quail eggs
• ¼ cup soy sauce
• 2 tbsp mirin
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 red chili pepper minced
• 1 stalk green onion (white stem only) sliced
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• 1 tsp sesame seeds
• splash of vinegar and pinch of kosher salt for boiling water

Soy-Marinated Quail Egg Recipe

Boil the eggs

1. Bring about 1 quart of water to a hard boil in a small pot. Add a splash of vinegar and a pinch of kosher salt.
2. Use a frying basket to gently place the quail eggs in the boiling water. Cook for 3 minutes.
3. Remove the eggs from heat. Place them in an ice bath for at least 20 minutes.

Peel quail eggs (easy method)

1. Place 5-6 quail eggs in a tupperware. Fill with water until they are submerged. Shake for about 15 seconds so the shell cracks into very tiny pieces.
2. Peel an egg – We recommend starting to peel at the air bubble (you can find it where the egg is hollow to the touch.) If the shell doesn’t peel off easily you may need to shake it more.
3. Rinse or dip the egg in cold water to remove any remaining shell pieces.
4. Repeat until all eggs are peeled.

Marinade overnight

1. Combine all sauce ingredients in a mixing bowl.

2. Marinate the eggs overnight in the fridge in a covered container.

3. Enjoy!

How to eat soy marinated quail eggs:

You can serve these delicious quail eggs as banchan (Korean side dishes.) Eat with kimchi, fish cake, atcharang, pickled radish, or any other banchan you like!

They taste great on top of noodles, congee, arroz caldo, or plain white rice.

They are also great for adding to any vegetable stir fry or meat dishes for an extra boost of flavor! (If you decide to add this to a stir fry, we recommend adding it right before serving so that the yolk doesn’t get overcooked.)

What is your favorite way to eat quail eggs? Leave us a comment!

Final Thoughts

A blast of umami, spice, and richness come together to make a sultry and tantalizing quail egg dish. Our recipe will leave you wanting more!

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References & Further Reading

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jang-jorim

https://onmykidsplate.com/easy-to-peel-hard-boiled-eggs/

Editor’s note: This post was originally published on July 21, 2022. It has been updated with content and images on May 11, 2023.