Three Color Steamed Eggs (三色蒸水蛋)

Three Color Steamed Egg (known in Chinese as sān sè zhēng shuǐ dan – 三色蒸水蛋) is a recent discovery for me (and for a couple of us, a rediscovery). While it’s newer to me, it’s a beloved and well-known dish that you might even see called tricolor eggs OR three steamed eggs.

The three eggs in question are beaten chicken eggs, salted duck eggs, and thousand-year-old eggs (AKA century eggs or millennium eggs—no one seems to agree on said eggs’ appropriate visual age/preferred level of hyperbole). All tossed with crispy fried shallots and a light soy sauce blend for a light and satisfying meal with a bowl of rice and veggies.

The richness of eggs x3

It’s hard to pick a favorite element in this dish. There’s the foundation of the silky steamed egg, the supple bite of salted duck egg white, the rich, sandy satisfaction of salted duck egg yolk and then the creamy umami touch of century eggs.

regular eggs, century eggs and salted duck eggs in cartons

A sprinkling of onion and scallions and crispy fried shallots balances everything out, and the drizzle of soy sauce at the end makes it much easier to reach the bottom of a bowl of rice. In short, it’s all wonderfully layered flavor and a truly special flavor.

Three color Chinese steamed egg with white rice

Ingredients and how to prepare them

I hesitate to say this recipe is “easy”. It’s easy if you have a well-stocked Asian pantry. Having said that, here are some tips for finding and preparing the necessary ingredients.

Fried shallots: Buy Maesri fried shallots if you can find them. If not, it’s relatively easy to make your own with just shallots, oil, and salt.

I have successfully used J. Kenji Lopez-Alt fried shallot recipe, but it’s an extra step. In fact, me Thought I had a jar of Maesri fried shallots, but much to my chagrin I had to go back to the homemade route at the last minute.

That said, freshly prepared fried shallots come together quickly, and if you take the time, you can even make a large batch and store them in an airtight container kept in the refrigerator to use for the rest of the dish. week.

fried shallots on a plate lined with paper towels

Salted duck eggs: Look for fresh salted duck eggs at your local Chinese grocery store.

Then come the eggs. If you’re lucky, you can find fresh salted duck eggs at your local Chinese grocery store. This is the only way to get egg whites, as usually only salted duck egg yolks are sold vacuum-packed. You can even make them from scratch using our salted duck egg recipe! It is not necessary to pre-cook the eggs. More on that in a minute.

The eggs of the century: Also known as thousand-year eggs, they are obviously not that old. They are cured in an ash mixture, which gives them their characteristic black color. They are already cooked and ready to eat out of the box.

Fortunately, they are easy to find in Chinese markets these days.

Three Color Steamed Eggs Recipe Instructions

Preparation:

Peel and cut each century egg into 6-8 wedges. They don’t have to be perfect, but you can use a piece of cotton thread to make super clean cuts.

Separate the salted duck yolks and whites. Beat the egg whites with chopsticks or a fork for 30 seconds. Carefully cut the duck egg yolks into quarters.

Now it’s time to prepare the egg mixture. Crack 3 eggs into a liquid measuring cup and note the volume. Pour the eggs into a large bowl, add the salt and beat with chopsticks or a fork for 1 minute.

Measure the same volume of water and add it to the bowl. Do the same with the broth. Add 1 teaspoon each of sesame oil and white pepper and blend until well combined.

Steam the eggs:

Evenly distribute the century egg pieces and salted duck egg yolk in a heatproof shallow dish. (A 9-inch glass or ceramic tart/pie pan works great. You can use any similarly sized Corningware, Pyrex, or ceramic dish. Just make sure it fits your steamer. We use a metal steamer, but you can use a wok with a lid and a metal steamer rack in the center. Fill water to about an inch below the rack and place the dish on the rack to steam.)

Salted duck egg yolks and century eggs in a circular dish

Place the dish in the steamer and bring the water inside to the boil. Make sure that the water in the steamer cannot bubble and touch the bottom of the pot while steaming.

You’ll assemble the dish in the steamer, so your cute egg pattern on the plate doesn’t slip on its way from the counter to the steamer.

Pour the beaten duck white evenly around the plate, around the century eggs and salted egg yolks. Then pour the egg/water/broth mixture into the baking dish through a fine mesh strainer.

pouring salted duck egg white into the dish with century egg and salted duck egg yolk

Pour the egg mixture through the strainer into the dish

Once the water in the steamer boils, lower the heat to medium.

three color steamed egg in the plate before steaming

Cover and steam for 4 minutes. After 4 minutes, turn off the heat, but keep the steamer covered. Leave to rest for 14 minutes with the lid tightly covered.

Meanwhile, prepare the sauce by mixing hot water, sugar, light soy sauce and ½ teaspoon sesame oil.

Discover the eggs. It is set to wobble slightly when touched, like Jell-O.

Sprinkle over the shallots and fried scallions (if using). Pour the sauce over and serve!