Son In Law Eggs
Fall in love with this unique and delicious Thai 'Son In Law Eggs' dish, it has the perfect balance of sweet, sour, spicy and savoury flavours
Ingredients
- 5 large eggs (NOTE 1)
- Vegetable oil to fry
For the sauce
- 120 gm palm sugar (chopped roughly into small pieces) (NOTE 2)
- 1 lemongrass (chopped in half and bruised) (NOTE 3)
- 1 tbsp tamarind concentrate (NOTE 4)
- 2 tbsp fish sauce (NOTE 5)
- 3 tbsp water
For the topping
- 1 small eschalot (or 1 tbsp fried shallots) (NOTE 6)
- 3 cloves garlic (or 1 tbsp fried garlic) (NOTE 6)
- 2 Thai red chillies (or any small red chillies, sliced thinly)
- ½ cup coriander leaves (cilantro)
- ¼ red onion (sliced thinly)
Instructions
- Frying eschalot (shallot) and garlic - Slice the garlic and eschalot thinly. Deep fry separately on medium to high heat for one or two minutes or until golden, stirring occasionally. Don't let the garlic burn, otherwise, it'll taste bitter. Remove any excess oil by gently pressing the garlic and eschalot with paper towels. Set aside.
- Pour enough water in a saucepan to submerge the eggs by at least one inch. Bring the water to a boil over medium to high heat, then carefully lower the eggs into the water. Room temperature eggs take 5 minutes and refrigerated eggs take 8 minutes to boil for medium cooked eggs. Prepare an ice bath for the eggs by placing water and ice into a bowl. Place the eggs immediately into the ice bath once they're done. Set aside.
- Place palm sugar, lemongrass, tamarind, fish sauce and water into a frying pan. Stir to cook over medium to high heat until the sugar dissolves, and the mixture bubbles. Reduce the heat and allow to simmer for 2 to 3 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Remove pan from heat but keep the sauce in the pan to reheat up for later.
- Peel the eggs and pat them dry with paper towels. If there is any water left on the eggs, it'll cause the oil to splatter. In a wok or saucepan, pour enough oil to cover eggs, place over medium to high heat. Heat the oil to 170°C (340°F) or test the oil by placing a wooden object into the oil (chopstick, skewer or wooden spoon). The oil is ready for frying if it bubbles around the wooden object. Fry the eggs for 4 minutes or until golden, gently turn the eggs so it cooks evenly. Allow the eggs to rest for a few minutes before slicing them in half. Place the eggs on a serving plate.
- Reheat the sauce in the frying pan over medium heat until it is bubbles. If the sauce is too thick, thin it out by adding little splashes of water. It should have the consistency of syrup. Spoon the sauce over eggs and top it with chilli, onion, coriander, fried shallots and garlic. Serve the eggs with rice.
Notes
(NOTE 1) Eggs - I used large free-range eggs weighing approximately 58gm (2oz) each or 700gm (25oz) for a dozen. Son-in-law eggs are usually medium-boiled before frying, the egg whites are firm and the yolks are semi-firm.
(NOTE 2) Palm sugar is a sweetener derived from the saps of palm trees and has a beautiful caramel flavour. It's sold in supermarkets and Asian grocery shops. Make sure it's 100% pure palm sugar, as some brands combine palm sugar with regular sugar. Brown sugar is a suitable substitute for palm sugar, just use the same amount required.
(NOTE 3) Lemongrass - Cut 2cm off from the base of the lemongrass and keep 10-15cm of the stalk and cut off the remaining. Peel off 2 to 3 layers off, then cut the lemongrass in half. Smash the lemongrass a few times using a heavy object like a rolling pin. This will help the lemongrass release its flavours whilst cooking.
(NOTE 4) Tamarind paste (tamarind concentrate) is what makes this dish sour. You can find this tamarind paste in the international section in supermarkets or at Asian grocery stores.
(NOTE 5) Fish sauce - My favourite brand is 'Squid' fish sauce from Thailand, but any brand of fish sauce will work. It's sold at supermarkets in the International section or at Asian grocery stores.
(NOTE 6) Fried garlic and eschalot - Asian grocery stores sell prepackaged fried garlic and eschalot (shallots). For convenience, I would've purchased some. Some restaurants also used prepackaged ones. I wasn't able to get any because we're under lockdown, so I fried my own. Eschalots look like small brown onions but are skinny and oval-shaped, they're difficult to peel and way more expensive than other types of onions.
Leftovers - Allow the eggs to cool completely at room temperature. Transfer the eggs into a sealed container and refrigerate, it'll be good for up to 3 days.
Cooking measurements are in Australian standard spoon and cup measurements.
A Third-Party Application calculated the calories and nutritional information. Please use this as an approximate guide only.
Nutrition
Serving: 1servingCalories: 270kcalCarbohydrates: 27gProtein: 7gFat: 16gSaturated Fat: 10gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 186mgSodium: 688mgPotassium: 215mgFiber: 1gSugar: 20gVitamin A: 552IUVitamin C: 28mgCalcium: 44mgIron: 1mg