Side Dishes

Mayak Gyeran (Soy-marinated Soft-boiled Eggs)

Name: Mayak Gyeran (Soy-marinated Soft-boiled Eggs)
Prep time: 22 min
Cook time: 8 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 8 eggs
Cuisine: Korean
Ingredients: eggs 8; scallions 4; Cheongyang chili (or any hot green chili) 1; red chili 1/2; onion 1/4; soy sauce 100 ml; water 100 ml; sugar 3 Tbsp; minced garlic 1 Tbsp; toasted sesame oil 1 Tbsp; toasted sesame seeds 1 Tbsp

Boil the eggs for 7 minutes for jammy soft-boiled yolks, cool them in ice water, peel, and soak them in a soy sauce marinade with scallions, Cheongyang chili, and onion. Marinate in the fridge for at least half a day so the whites take on the seasoning.

Prep 22 min · Cook 8 min · Total 30 min · 8 eggs · Easy

한국어로 보기 (Korean version)

Steps

1
Bring water to a rolling boil, gently lower in the eggs straight from the fridge with a ladle, and cook over medium heat for 7 minutes.
Gently roll the eggs for the first minute so the yolks stay centered.
2
Transfer the eggs straight into ice water for 10 minutes to cool, then peel them under the water.
Cooling them right away stops the yolks from cooking further and makes the shells easier to peel.
3
Thinly slice the scallions, Cheongyang chili, and red chili into rounds, and finely chop the onion.
4
In a bowl, stir the soy sauce, 100 ml water, and sugar until the sugar dissolves, then add the minced garlic, sesame oil, sesame seeds, and the cut vegetables to make the marinade.
5
Put the eggs in an airtight container, pour over the marinade, cover, and marinate in the fridge for at least half a day. Roll the eggs once partway through so they color evenly.
A small, deep container keeps the eggs submerged with less marinade.

Substitutions

Instead of	Use	How
sugar	4 Tbsp oligosaccharide syrup	The marinade turns a little stickier and glossier.
scallions	1/2 Korean leek (daepa)	Thinly slice mostly the green part.

Storing leftovers

Keep the eggs submerged in the marinade in the fridge and eat within 2 to 3 days. The longer they sit, the saltier and firmer the whites get and the more the yolks set, so after a day it is better to lift the eggs out and keep them separately. Eat them cold without reheating, and do not freeze them, since the whites turn spongy and rubbery. Leftover marinade is good mixed into rice.

Serve with

Steamed white rice, roasted seaweed, and oi-muchim (spicy cucumber salad). Split an egg over rice and mix it with a spoonful of the marinade.

Making more or less

When making more eggs, you only need enough marinade to cover them. For 12 eggs, make 1½ times the marinade and use a deep container rather than a wide one.

Before you cook

The yolks are left soft-boiled, and undercooked eggs can be risky for people with weakened immune systems. For pregnant people, young children, and older adults, boil the eggs for 10 minutes until fully set.

Questions

The marinade is too salty. What can I do?

Change the soy sauce to water ratio to 1:1.5 and add a little more onion to soften the saltiness. If the eggs are already soaking, take them out sooner and thin the marinade with a little water.

How do I get the yolk just right?

Using eggs straight from the fridge dropped into boiling water: 6 minutes gives a runny yolk, 7 minutes a jammy yolk, and 8 minutes an almost-set yolk. For room-temperature eggs, take off 1 minute each.