GYERAN JORIM SOY-MARINATED SEVEN-MINUTE EGGS

These seven-minute eggs are beautiful—and yummy—on their own as banchan, or even a snack, sliced open to reveal the layers of color from their spicy-sweet soy marinade. They can also be added to Jang Jorim (this page), Bibimbop (this page), or any of the noodle dishes in this book. You want the chiles you use to be just a little hot, like Mexican chiles de árbol. You can make this with just soy sauce and water, which is traditional, but the brine here has more flavor and much less salt: I wanted to be able to eat the brine on rice or to braise vegetables or meats or tofu for another jorim. (A soy-only brine, by the way, will color the eggs in just 10 minutes.) You don’t have to use Korean soy sauce (ganjang) for the recipes in this book, but be sure to buy one that is “naturally brewed” rather than created in a lab and filled with caramel coloring or preservatives. With real brewed soy sauce, you taste the complexity of the soy, not just salt.

Unbalanced

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Step 1

1 Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil and prepare a large mixing bowl full of ice water. 2 Gently lower the eggs into the pot of boiling water and let them cook for 7 minutes. Remove them from the pot immediately to the bowl of ice water. Use your hand to gently crack each egg slightly against the side of the bowl as you add them. 3 When the eggs are cool enough to handle, peel them and set them aside in a clean bowl of cold water. 4 In a large saucepan, bring the soy sauce, mirin, rice wine vinegar, chile peppers, and garlic to a boil with 2 cups (480 ml) water. Lower the heat and let the liquid cook at a simmer for 5 minutes. 5 Turn off the heat and add the eggs to the pot. Remove them when the whites of the eggs have taken on color, about 1 hour, reserving the brine for another use, if desired. Alternatively, you can simply store them in the brine in the refrigerator overnight and then drain off the liquid the next day. 6 Serve the eggs chilled or at room temperature. Slice them into quarters or halves and dust their tops with the sesame seeds, if desired. They can be stored in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days.