Not your average Easter egg: 3 easy ways to make yummy deviled eggs like you've never had before
These aren’t your Easter bunny’s typical eggs.
Nick Korbee, executive chef and partner of the New York City eatery Egg Shop, shared three different ways to take those hard-boiled eggs you dyed for Easter and turn them into tasty treats for you and your guests to enjoy.
“Here at Egg Shop, between both stores in New York City, we go through, in the course of three days, about 14,000 eggs. That’s a lot,” Korbee said. “Between scrambles and hard-boiled and sunny ups and poached eggs, we’re making a lot of eggs at Egg Shop.”
The secret to making deviled eggs is perfecting the hard-boiled egg. Korbee says he likes to bring the water to a boil first with a little bit of vinegar and salt, which he believes makes the eggs easier to peel in the end.
“I prefer my hardboiled eggs at about 11 minutes. Beyond 12 minutes in the boiling water, you get sort of, like, the grey, Death Star ring of evil around the yolk, and you don’t want that, so 10 to 11 minutes tops,” he explained.
After boiling the eggs, Korbee says he prepares an ice bath for the eggs to shock them and stop the cooking process.
What’s Korbee’s eggshell peeling technique?
“A little tap on both sides, roll on a kitchen towel, and you’re good to go,” he said.
Korbee, who is the author of “Egg Shop: The Cookbook,” showed how to make three different types of deviled eggs: the classic, artichoke-pesto and tikka-masala.
“What makes each one unique is sort of a memory,” Korbee said. “The classic deviled egg, for me, is a Fourth of July picnic in Wichita, Kansas, classic cars rolling around, out in the sun, a big platter of deviled eggs.
“Next, I love Italian food, so my artichoke-pesto deviled egg is just a classic play on my favorite Italian and sort of Mediterranean flavors,” he continued. “The third one, left field, eating Indian food in New York City is a great, great experience. And when you’re the egg guy, you got to turn everything into egg stuff. So my favorite dish is a chicken tikka-masala when I get Indian food with a big, cold Kingfisher beer.”
You can make chef Nick Korbee’s classic deviled eggs, artichoke-pesto deviled eggs and tikka-masala eggs by following the recipes from his cookbook, “Egg Shop: The Cookbook,” below.
Classic deviled eggs
Ingredients for 12 deviled eggs:
6 hard-boiled eggs halved, yolks removed
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 cup mayo
1 teaspoon sea salt
Pinch of paprika, for garnish
“Mayo is really easy to make at home. A couple of egg yolks, a little bit of mayo, a little bit of vinegar, some salt and some blended oil. Just whip it up,” Korbee explained.
Directions:
1. The easiest way to make the deviled egg filling is to puree the yolks and seasonings in a food processor. Otherwise, use a fine cheese grater to shred the yolks or push them through a fine-mesh sieve, then whisk them with the mustard and lemon juice to form a paste. Fold in the mayo and sea salt. This helps ensure a smooth texture.
For the filling, Korbee said to make sure the consistency is “not too loose.”
“It’s not too thick, because you don’t want these things to dry out,” he said. “You’ve all been to a party where you have deviled eggs that are dry and crusty and weird. And you don’t want them, and everybody leaves them on the platter and nobody eats them. You don’t want that.”
2. To fill the egg whites, a piping bag always works best even if it’s a DIY version of a proper piping bag made from cutting one corner off of a zip-top bag. Sprinkle the yolk mixture with paprika to garnish.
Artichoke-pesto deviled eggs
Ingredients for 12 deviled eggs:
Filling from classic deviled eggs
1/4 pesto
1/4 cup minced artichoke hearts
Toasted pine nuts, fresh basil leaves (the smaller, the better), and/or shaved pecorino cheese for garnish
Directions:
Prepare the deviled egg filling as directed for classic deviled eggs, and fold in the pesto and artichoke hearts. Pipe to fill the egg whites and garnish as desired.
Tikka-masala deviled eggs
Ingredients for 12 deviled eggs:
1 teaspoon unsalted butter
1/4 cup minced onion
1/4 cup minced garlic
1/4 cup minced fresh ginger
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1/4 cup light beer
Filling from classic deviled eggs
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
12 bite-size pieces of fried chicken
Fresh cilantro, for garnish
Directions:
1. In a medium sauté pan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, ginger and turmeric, and sweat until tender and nearly caramelized, about 10 minutes. Whisk in the tomato paste, and cook over low heat, stirring often, until the raw tomato paste flavor is cooked out and the aroma of roasted tomatoes fills your exotic nasum, about 10 minutes. Add the beer, and stir to turn the mixture into a paste.
2. Prepare the deviled egg filling as directed for classic deviled eggs, and fold into the paste.
3. In a small bowl, combine the garam masala, cumin and cardamom. Sprinkle the mixture lightly to season the fried chicken.
4. Pipe to fill the egg whites, top each with a piece of spiced chicken, and garnish with cilantro.
Nick Korbee is the executive chef and partner of the Egg Shop and author of “Egg Shop: The Cookbook.”
