Creamy treat: Ways to enjoy Century Eggs

MANILA, Philippines — If you’ve had a lauriat lunch or dinner in an exquisite Chinese restaurant, you would have already encountered, if not tasted, Century Eggs.

These black eggs are actually duck or chicken eggs that have been “processed” to become Century Eggs. They are a curious lot, a Chinese delicacy, that look like regular eggs but with the yolk in dark green to brownish black. They often have creamy, wet-like consistency.

In Chinese restaurants, Century Eggs are sliced or cut into wedges and served as part of the cold cuts platter course during lauriat service when there are events such as weddings. For regular a la carte service, you can order a cold cuts platter or a simple combination of century eggs and jellyfish. The latter is also a great treat for the palate.

Also called Pi-dan and Hundred-year-old Eggs, Century Eggs do not take that long to make. Duck or chicken eggs are wrapped in a mixture of clay, salt, ash, quicklime and rice hulls for several weeks or months, depending on the preservation method. The clay hardens around the eggs.

Due to the presence of hydrogen sulfide and ammonia, the yolks turn dark green to black, take on a creamy consistency and develop a strong flavor. The whites become salty, translucent dark brown to black, and jelly-like. Alkaline salt gradually raises the pH of the eggs to 9 to 12 during the curing process and breaks down some of the complex proteins and fats and produces smaller compounds of flavor.

Some century eggs develop small white patterns that look like pine branches on the egg whites that have turned black. These are regarded as of superior quality than non-patterned ones.

While you used to get Century Eggs only from Chinese delis and groceries, now you can buy them from major supermarkets. They also used to be just available with the hardened alkaline clay mixture still wrapped around each egg, now you can get them with the clay mixture removed and cleaned. You will easily recognize them, as the shell of century eggs is light grayish white with a few dark speckles all over them.

Century Eggs are said to originate from Hunan, China, some 600 years ago, back in the Ming Dynasty.

Today, Century Eggs are