These easy pickled eggs soaked in vinegar-brine take just minutes to prep with 3 variations to choose from. They are a sweet, savory, tangy, mouth-watering healthy snack, appetizer, or condiment!
Once they're cooked, immediately transfer them to a bowl of ice water to cool. Once cool, peel them.
Peel and slice the garlic and thinly slice the onion.
Sterilize the Jars
Wash the jars and lids thoroughly in hot soapy water and then leave to sit in boiling water for 10 minutes. Finally, leave them to air dry on a clean surface until completely dry.
Prepare the Pickling Brine
Combine the vinegar, water, sugar, salt, and pickling spice in a large saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
Once boiling, immediately reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and continue to heat, stirring often, until the sugar dissolves. Then remove it from the heat.
Pickle and Refrigerate
Transfer the eggs, onion, garlic, and dill to the sterilized jar/s, ladling the pickling liquid (spices included) over them to immerse them entirely, leaving ½ inch (1cm) of headspace.For a spicy version: Add thickly chopped jalapeño (remove the seeds for a milder flavor) and/or red pepper flakes. Adjust the amount to preference.For pink eggs with beet: Add a few cooked beet chunks/slices to the pickling brine (with or without the pickling spices or extras, like onions and garlic).
Give the jars a tap against the counter to release air bubbles. Wipe the jar rims with a clean cloth and secure the lids until fingertip-tight.
Let the jars cool and transfer them to the fridge to pickle. The pickling time for eggs depends primarily on their size. For medium to large hen eggs, I recommend 5-7 days to allow the salty-vinegar brine to really penetrate the eggs and produce the best flavor. However, you can enjoy them in as little as a few hours. When making pickled quail eggs, 1-2 days is more than enough for a well-developed pickle.
Notes
Adjust the flavors: You can tweak the amount of sugar, salt, and pickling spices (including experimenting with other variations) to find your preferred flavor profile. You can also slightly adjust how much the vinegar is diluted if you want a milder/more acidic flavor.
Ensure the eggs are fully submerged: This is important to avoid premature spoiling.
To avoid sticking: It's best to stir the eggs daily for the first 5 days of pickling.
The size of the jar: Note that a 16 oz/500 ml jar will hold approximately 6-7 medium-large hard-boiled eggs.
For dyed eggs: You can use natural ingredients to dye your eggs other colors, too, including:
Yellow = turmeric/yellow beets (or a combination of the two),
Dark yellow/orange = carrot,
Violet = red cabbage,
Purple/Blue = Red cabbage with a pinch of baking soda.
Check the blog post for more tips and serving recommendations!