Onsen Tamago Recipe

Onsen Tamago (温泉卵) is soft and silky semi-cooked eggs, and often used as a delightful topping for donburi rice bowl dishes, noodles, or simply eaten on its own with soy sauce or Mentsuyu. Typically, these eggs are made by gently heating them in warm water resembling hot springs. The eggs are placed in the water without cracking their shells and are slowly heated over time. The resulting eggs have tender whites and a gooey semi-cooked yolk. Today, onsen tamago enjoys popularity both in Japan and abroad.

We have to admit that making Onsen Tamago can be quite finicky. Our recipe works in our kitchen, but it may not work in yours since conditions such as the type of pot used, water and egg temperatures, vary. We used a heavy pot with a heavy lid (Le Creuset to be exact), exact measurements of boiling water and tap water, and 4 cold eggs right out of the refrigerator. Then, 15 minutes of “cooking” worked for us. We also tried using a less heavy stainless steel pot, and it took 16 minutes to achieve the desired doneness. We believe this is a good starting point for you, and you may need to adjust to succeed in making your own Onsen Tamago. Depending on how firm or soft you like the eggs, add or reduce the cooking time by minute increments. Once you find your own system, you can enjoy wonderfully silky eggs at home without going to the hot springs. Have fun experimenting, and enjoy your delicious eggs!