Son-in-Law Eggs: Thai Fried Hard-Boiled Eggs in Tamarind Sauce Recipe (2024)

  • Quick Sides
  • Fried Eggs
  • Boiled Eggs
  • Quick Snacks

Sour, sweet, and salty, this dish represents what people love about Thai cuisine.

By

Leela Punyaratabandhu

Leela Punyaratabandhu

Leela Punyaratabanhu is a food writer, recipe developer, and award-winning author specializing in Thai cooking. She has written three cookbooks: Simple Thai Food, Flavors of the Southeast Asian Grill, and Bangkok, which won the 2018 Art of Eating Prize.

Learn about Serious Eats'Editorial Process

Updated December 05, 2022

WRITE A REVIEW

Trending Videos

Son-in-Law Eggs: Thai Fried Hard-Boiled Eggs in Tamarind Sauce Recipe (1)

Why It Works

  • Palm sugar, fish sauce, and tamarind pulp combine to make a complex and deeply-flavorful sauce that's sweet, salty, and sour.
  • A garnish of fried shallots and sliced chiles add both crunch and just a touch of heat to the finished dish.

What's with thenameof this dish? Is that what you're thinking? Well, even if you aren't, I'll tell you about it anyway.

And here's what I can tell you:I have no flippin' clue.

Interviews with my Thai friends and family members have yielded various conjectures regarding the origin of this dish's name. They range from the laughably absurd to the yeah-maybe-but-nahh.

But the conclusion is thatnobody knows.True, it's probably unfair for me to base this conclusion on a small sample of people whose intelligence may be called into question based solely on the fact that they either share my genes or consider me a friend. But, really, I doubt anyone else is any more or less clueless about this name issue than these people.

Son-in-Law Eggs: Thai Fried Hard-Boiled Eggs in Tamarind Sauce Recipe (2)

Out of all the conjectures, two stand out as the most plausible. Okay,fine. They're not the most plausible; I just like them more than the rest.

One theory rests on the golden color of the hard-boiled eggs that have been deep-fried and thoroughly doused in a deep golden-colored sauce. With the Thai culture being quite entrenched in symbolism, it's not beyond the realm of possibility that the golden color, which reminds one of actual gold, is linked to wealth, something the parents of a woman naturally hope for in their future son-in-law.

Son-in-Law Eggs: Thai Fried Hard-Boiled Eggs in Tamarind Sauce Recipe (3)

It's actually the other theory that I really like. It paints a much grimmer, or shall I say more gruesome, picture. But that's precisely what makes it appealing. The Thai word for "egg" (as in the kind of egg laid by the female of various species) is the same as the word for the, uh, male reproductive glands that come in pairs.

Now visualize an egg—and we're going to be ambiguous as to where exactly in the semantic range of the word this occurrence of "egg" falls—being boiled, deep-fried until blistered and browned all over, whacked in half with a cleaver or methodically andslowlysliced open with a sharp chef's knife (possibly with the slicer laughing maniacally while slicing), then having a sticky sauce poured on top of it in the manner of hot melted asphalt on the surface of your new driveway.

Son-in-Law Eggs: Thai Fried Hard-Boiled Eggs in Tamarind Sauce Recipe (4)

"Here's what's going to happen to you, boy, if you mistreat our daughter," seems to be the message that the parents of a woman want to send their future son-in-law. If the guy doesn't run away in terror, with his hands covering the part where his pant inseams meet, then I guess that guy is considered worthy of the daughter.

All you really need to know is thatson-in-law eggs are very loved by the Thai people.It's one of those down-home dishes you don't usually find at fancy restaurants in Thailand; you find them mostly at no-frills rice-curry shops or school cafeterias. For sure, you hardly ever find them at a Thai restaurant in North America.

Son-in-Law Eggs: Thai Fried Hard-Boiled Eggs in Tamarind Sauce Recipe (5)

It's a dish worth trying or at least being familiar with, for it captures so very wellthe sour, salty, sweet flavors associated with traditional Thai foodwithout the burning heat that is often mistaken as the necessary component of "authentic" Thai cuisine.

If you have some leftover hard-boiled eggs from this past weekend and you've run out of fresh ideas on how to use them, make son-in-law eggs. Clarity on the origin of the name is not a prerequisite to enjoying this classic Thai dish.

April 2012

Recipe Details

Son-in-Law Eggs: Thai Fried Hard-Boiled Eggs in Tamarind Sauce Recipe

Active20 mins

Total30 mins

Serves4 servings

Ingredients

  • 3 large shallots, peeled and sliced thinly lengthwise

  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil, plus more for deep frying

  • 8 large eggs, hard-boiled and peeled

  • 1/2 cup very finely-chopped palm sugar, packed or 1/4 cup brown sugar

  • 1/4 cup Thaifish sauce

  • 2 tablespoonsprepared tamarind pulp

  • 3 tablespoons water

  • 2 red jalapeño peppers or half a red bell pepper, deseeded and cut into slivers, for garnish

  • Fresh cilantro leaves for garnish

Directions

  1. Add sliced shallots and 1/4 cup of vegetable oil to a small skillet set on low heat (it is imperative that you add the shallots to cold oil lest they burn before crisping up). Stirring constantly, cook shallots until they are golden brown and crispy. With a slotted spoon, transfer fried shallots to a paper towel-lined plate; set aside.

  2. Add enough oil to a medium saucepan so that it comes up about 2 inches high. Place pot on medium-high heat. Once oil is hot, gently drop hard-boiled eggs into it. Stir eggs around to ensure even browning. Once egg exteriors are thoroughly browned, fish them out with a slotted spoon, slice them in half with a serrated knife, and arrange halved eggs on a serving platter.

  3. Discard oil from the skillet in which you fried the shallots and set the skillet on medium heat. Add sugar, fish sauce, tamarind, and water to it; bring mixture to a gentle boil, stirring constantly. Once sugar has fully dissolved, check for consistency. The sauce should have the consistency of maple syrup. If at this point the sauce is still too thin, reduce it a bit more. If it is too thick, add a little more water to thin it out. Once you have the desired consistency, remove skillet from heat and pour sauce over prepared eggs.

  4. Sprinkle fried shallots over the top of the eggs. Garnish with red pepper slivers and cilantro leaves. Serve son-in-law eggs with steamed jasmine rice.

Notes

It's more traditional to use palm sugar. But if you don't have it, brown sugar can be used to create very similar results. The one component that should not be left out, however, is the fried shallots.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
407Calories
29g Fat
23g Carbs
15g Protein

×

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories407
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 29g37%
Saturated Fat 5g23%
Cholesterol 373mg124%
Sodium 1547mg67%
Total Carbohydrate 23g9%
Dietary Fiber 2g7%
Total Sugars 18g
Protein 15g
Vitamin C 8mg39%
Calcium 92mg7%
Iron 2mg12%
Potassium 384mg8%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

Son-in-Law Eggs: Thai Fried Hard-Boiled Eggs in Tamarind Sauce Recipe (2024)

References

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Recommended Articles
Article information

Author: Prof. Nancy Dach

Last Updated:

Views: 5363

Rating: 4.7 / 5 (77 voted)

Reviews: 84% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Prof. Nancy Dach

Birthday: 1993-08-23

Address: 569 Waelchi Ports, South Blainebury, LA 11589

Phone: +9958996486049

Job: Sales Manager

Hobby: Web surfing, Scuba diving, Mountaineering, Writing, Sailing, Dance, Blacksmithing

Introduction: My name is Prof. Nancy Dach, I am a lively, joyous, courageous, lovely, tender, charming, open person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.