Huevos haminados, braised hard-boiled eggs, are one of the most ancient characteristic foods in the medieval Judeo-Spanish culinary repertoire. As observant Jews refrained from cooking on the Sabbath in Spain during the Middle Ages, eggs were slow-cooked on Friday afternoon to be offered at the Saturday brunch. In a typical kitchen of the Sephardic Jews of Spain, discarded red and brown onion skins are always saved and stored ready to make these beautiful eggs. Although the recipe is straightforward, the result is quite spectacular. Eggs are slowly braised on the stovetop in a pot on a bed of onion skins, in a water, oil, vinegar, salt, pepper and ground coffee bath. This centuries old technique imparts a unique nutty flavor and warm color to the cooked eggs. The porous eggshells become tinged with distinctive rich shades of golden brown, russet and maroon. As the shells crack when simmering, the egg whites can become marbled with patterns in similar colors, encasing creamy yolks. These eggs have just been cooked ready for the Pesah Seder tonight accompanying the Rodesli traditional delicious quajados – matza meat, chicken and vegetarian bakes. Try this ancestral technique for your Pesah Seder! Recipe in my blog or my book ”Stella’s Sephardic Table”.
Comments