First things first: pull the eggs out of your fridge and start to let them come to room temperature. In a pan that accommodates a steamer basket, bring water to a boil. Lower the steamer basket into the pan (or use the steamer basket that nests above your pan if your cookware set came with one). Lower 4 eggs into the steamer basket and cover the pan with a tight fitting lid. Steam for 7 minutes for a soft boiled finish or 10 for medium. Remove and place into a bowl with ice cubes and cold water to stop the cooking.

Listen. I’ve “messed up” a lot of steamed eggs, but the worst that will happen is you’ll have a hard boiled egg. It’s okay if it takes a few tries with your steamer set up to get eggs just right. This tastes just as good with hard boiled eggs. And if you’re wondering why you’re steaming soft boiled eggs, it’s because they are approximately 15 times easier to peel. You can quote me on that.

While your eggs are cooling, in a small sauce pot, combine 1/2 cup soy sauce, 3/4 cup mirin or sweet mirin, 3 star anise, 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper, 1 tablespoon crushed red pepper, 1 tablespoon miso paste and 1 tablespoon brown sugar. Whisk this together over low heat until the sugar is dissolved and the miso paste is fully incorporated. Remove from heat and let cool.

Peel your now cooled eggs and place them into a container they can marinate in for a little while. I use a small plastic gelato container because it guarantees at least half of the eggs will be full submerged and won’t have the Easter dye effect on them and because I like to reuse things when I can. Once the eggs are in, pour your cooled marinade over them and assess whether you may need to add a bit more soy sauce or mirin to cover most of the eggs. Let marinade for at least two hours, but I recommend a full 24. If you find that there isn’t quite enough liquid to fully cover all the eggs, rotate them at about the halfway mark.

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