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Soy sauce eggs are truly addictive! Jammy boiled eggs are marinated overnight in a sweet and salty soy sauce marinade that brings me back to grandma’s kitchen. Mirin, sake, toasted sesame oil, and fresh aromatics bring a great depth of flavor to the umami-rich sauce.
Follow my tips to get perfectly cooked eggs that peel like a dream, plus learn the sweet spot for marinating—so they’re deeply flavorful but not too salty. I’ve also included ideas for using up the marinade so you don’t waste a drop!
Table of Contents
- Inside this recipe with ChihYu
- Main Ingredient Notes
- How to make soy sauce eggs
- Soft boiled eggs
- Soy egg marinade
- How long to marinate the eggs for the best flavor?
- How long can soy sauce eggs sit in the marinade?
- Can I reuse the soy sauce marinade?
- Different ways to use soy marinated eggs
- More easy egg recipes
- Soy sauce eggs recipe
Inside this recipe with ChihYu
I had a nickname from my grandma that, translated from Mandarin, means an egg-holic. Part of the reason is that my grandma made the best Chinese soy-marinated eggs—the yolks were perfectly soft and creamy, and the soy sauce marinade was super addictive.
She made them not spicy, so they were child-friendly—the flavor was a cross between Japanese ramen eggs (shoyu eggs) and Korean mayak eggs (drug eggs).
She would thread the eggs over a long chopstick, and I’d devour them while watching her make meals in the kitchen. Before you knew it, the whole soy egg kabob would be gone in no time.
I had a lot of fun experimenting and recreating my grandma’s soy egg. While the egg sauce is simple to assemble, getting the right yolk consistency requires a bit of extra care. But fret not—I’m sharing my simple tips in this recipe so you, too, can enjoy my grandma’s delicious recipe.
Main Ingredient Notes
Making the perfect soy sauce boiled eggs starts with good egg selection and building a balanced marinade. The flavors in this recipe are similar to Japanese or Korean marinated eggs—salty, umami rich, subtly sweet, and tangy. Garnish with scallions and sesame seeds for the perfect texture.
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Perfect Jammy Eggs
- Large Eggs – Using eggs that are the same size and at room temperature helps them cook evenly, giving you a perfectly set egg white and a jammy yolk. If your eggs are cold from the fridge, let them sit at room temperature for about 10-15 minutes before boiling.
- Vinegar – Just a splash of any vinegar (white, apple cider, or rice vinegar) in the boiling water can help the egg whites firm up and make the eggs easier to peel.
For the Marinade
- Soy Sauce – I recommend using light soy sauce for a slightly salty flavor. For gluten-free, try tamari or gluten-free soy sauce. You can also use coconut aminos, which has a slightly sweeter taste and less salt.
- Mirin and Sake – These two ingredients balance out the saltiness of the soy sauce. Mirin adds a subtle sweetness, while sake (Japanese cooking wine) smooths out any sharp edges in the marinade. Together, they create that signature well-rounded Japanese shoyu egg flavor. If you follow a gluten-free diet, check out my Chinese Pantry Guide for ingredient swaps!
- Ginger and Garlic – Since the marinade isn’t cooked, the aromatics are grated to release their flavor.
- Toasted Sesame Oil – Adds a deep, toasty, nutty aroma that brings umami depth.
- Hot Water – Since this marinade isn’t simmered, hot water helps dissolve the coconut brown sugar for a well-blended flavor.
How to make soy sauce eggs
The trickiest part of making soy marinated eggs is boiling the eggs just right. (I prefer a creamy, jammy egg!) The soy sauce marinade requires no cooking, so the rest of the process is quite simple.
Soft boiled eggs
Let the eggs sit at room temperature to remove the chill for 15 minutes. Bring a pot of water to boil and then add a splash of vinegar. This helps the eggs peel more easily and the egg whites firm up.
Simmer the eggs over medium to medium-low heat for 6 minutes. (Don’t let it come to a rolling boil—you should see bubbles swirling around the eggs.) Gently stir the eggs while boiling so they cook evenly. Pop them into an ice bath to cool.
Pro tip for easy peeled eggs: I find it’s easiest to peel the eggs once they’ve cooled down a bit but are still warm to the touch.
Soy egg marinade
Mix the marinade ingredients in a 5-cup (1.1 liters) storage container with a lid. Since we’re not cooking the marinade, use hot water so the ingredients mix evenly. Add the peeled eggs and make sure they are fully submerged in the marinade.
You can add a clean paper towel on top of the eggs to keep them submerged or just rotate them a few times while they marinate. Seal the airtight container and move to the refrigerator to marinate.
How long to marinate the eggs for the best flavor?
For a well seasoned egg, marinate for 24 hours in the refrigerator before eating. To make sure the flavors spread evenly in the eggs, keep them submerged while they marinate. You can enjoy them chilled or at room temperature.
How long can soy sauce eggs sit in the marinade?
For the best flavor, I recommend eating these eggs within 3 days. After that, they will start to get too salty. Plus you want the eggs to be fresh—unlike with pickled eggs, the shelf life is not extended because they’ve been marinated.
Can I reuse the soy sauce marinade?
Absolutely! This umami-rich ramen egg sauce is so flavorful, you won’t want it to go to waste. Use excess marinade as is to drizzle over rice, sautéed vegetables, or noodles.
You can even reuse the marinade to make a second batch of eggs—be sure to boil it first before marinating a second batch and discard it after the second use.
Different ways to use soy marinated eggs
I’m obsessed with these marinated soft boiled eggs! I love eating them as a snack with garlic chili sauce, and they make an excellent topping to so many of my favorite dishes.
- Toppings for rice and noodles: Make a simple meal by serving these eggs on top of rice cooker steamed rice or my scallion oil noodles. I personally love them on this Asian broccolini noodle salad and as a topping for my tomato ramen.
- Drizzle the egg sauce: I add both the eggs and a drizzle of the sauce to my teriyaki salmon bites and this cold noodle salad—they’re a match made in heaven! Kick up the flavors in this bok choy dim sum with a drizzle of the egg sauce. Delish!
More easy egg recipes
If you enjoyed this Asian marinated egg recipe, don’t miss these easy and delicious egg recipes.
Soy sauce eggs recipe
Video
Ingredients
For the eggs:
- 6 large eggs ideally room temperature eggs
- A splash vinegar such as distilled white vinegar
For the marinade:
- 0.35 oz garlic cloves 2 large, grated
- 0.2 oz ginger grated
- ⅓ cup soy sauce
- ⅓ cup mirin
- 3 tbsp cooking sake
- 1.25 tbsp coconut brown sugar
- ½ cup hot water
- 2 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 1-2 whole green onion dice to small rounds
- ½ tbsp toasted white sesame seeds
Optional serving:
Equipment
Instructions
Soft boiled eggs:
- If the eggs are refrigerated, set them by the kitchen counter for 15 minutes to remove the chill. In the meantime, bring a pot of water to boil.
- Lower the heat to simmering (about medium to medium-low heat), add a splash of vinegar, then carefully and slowly lower the eggs into the water. Simmer over medium to medium-low heat for 6 minutes. This will give you a solid egg white with a running egg yolk center.
- Pay attention to the stovetop heat as you want the eggs to be simmering (not boiling) throughout. You should see small bubbles circling around the eggs so adjust the stovetop heat as you go. Do not walk away. You also want to gently move the eggs around so that the egg yolk remains in the center and the eggs are cooked evenly.
- After 6 minutes, immediately shock them into a bowl of ice water. As soon as the eggs are no longer piping hot, use a back of spoon to gently tap the egg shell to remove it.
Soy egg marinade:
- In a 5-cup (1.1 liters) container with a lid, combine the ingredients from garlic to sesame seeds and stir well. Add the eggs to the marinade, making sure they are evenly coated. If they aren’t fully submerged, rotate them a few times throughout the marinating process to ensure all sides absorb the flavor. You can also lay a clean paper towel over the eggs—the towel will soak up the liquid and help keep them coated.
- Seal the container and refrigerate for at least 24 hours before eating.
Storage:
- It’s best to eat the eggs within 3 days after marinating.
To reuse the marinade liquid:
- You can bring the sauce to a boil, let it cool to room temperature, and add a fresh new batch of boiled eggs to marinate. You can only reuse the marinade once and after that you should discard it. You can also drizzle the marinade over blanched vegetables, rice, or boiled noodles, too.
Notes
- It’s best to use room temperature eggs – it keeps the cooking time and texture consistent.
- If the eggs are refrigerated, let them sit by the kitchen counter for 10-15 minutes before boiling.
- Marinate the eggs for 24 hours before consumption.
- Best finish the eggs in 3 days (that’s the reason we make only half a dozen!)
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Absolutely delicious! A real success. The sauce is still I. The fridge and I will us me it to smother the rice tomorrow!
Yum Yum! I use that soy marinade for noodles or blanched veggies, too. So yummy and no waste! 🙂