Ingredients
Eggs
- 4balut, fertilised duck eggs incubated 16 to 18 days, bought fresh from a supplier
To season
- coarse salt
- spiced vinegar with garlic and chilli
- or calamansi and chilli
To serve
- hot, from the shell, in the evening
Directions
- Discard any egg that smells foul or sulphurous when opened, or that has a cracked shell. As with any egg, cook it thoroughly and do not eat it undercooked.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil, deep enough to cover the eggs. Lower the eggs in gently with a spoon so the shells do not crack.
- Boil them for twenty to thirty minutes.
- Cook them thoroughly rather than briefly, since everything inside must be fully cooked through. Now serving them while still hot.
- Take them out and serve them immediately while still hot. Balut is eaten hot, straight from the water, and it is not good cold.
- Stand the egg on its wider end and tap the top with a spoon to crack it.
- Peel a small opening at the top and sprinkle in a little salt. Now drink the broth, the warm savoury liquid inside, straight from the shell.
Technique
- It is normal everyday food across Southeast Asia rather than a novelty.
- Philippine balut is incubated sixteen to eighteen days; Vietnamese versions longer.
- The warm liquid inside is drunk first, before anything is eaten.
Substitutions
- A younger egg, at fourteen to sixteen days, for a first taste.
- Spiced vinegar in place of salt.
Variations
- Hột vịt lộn, the Vietnamese version, served with rau răm and ginger.
- Balut sa puti, a younger egg where the embryo is barely formed.
- Deep fried in batter, as balut penoy.
History
A fertilized duck egg, incubated for an intermediate period before boiling, containing a partially developed embryo eaten along with the yolk and remaining liquid, developed in Filipino cooking, generally traced through earlier culinary influence from China, where a related fertilized egg dish exists, carried to the Philippines through centuries of trade and immigration and adapted with distinctly Filipino seasoning, typically a simple dash of salt and vinegar or a chili-vinegar dip. It is traditionally sold as a nighttime street snack, often paired with beer, and eating balut correctly, sipping the savory broth first before eating the yolk and embryo, is considered a specific skill and cultural rite of passage, particularly for visitors and younger Filipinos encountering the food for the first time.
Frequently asked questions
What is Balut?
Balut is a street food from Philippines: boiled fertilized duck egg with salt and vinegar, evening street ritual. A fertilized duck egg, incubated for an intermediate period before boiling, containing a partially developed embryo eaten along with the yolk and remaining liquid, developed in Filipino cooking, generally traced through earlier culinary influence from China, where a related fertilized egg dish exists, carried to the Philippines through centuries of trade and immigration and adapted with distinctly Filipino seasoning, typically a simple dash of salt and vinegar or a chili-vinegar dip. It is traditionally sold as a nighttime street snack, often paired with beer, and eating balut correctly, sipping the savory broth first before eating the yolk and embryo, is considered a specific skill and cultural rite of passage, particularly for visitors and younger Filipinos encountering the food for the first time.
How long does Balut take to make?
Balut takes 5 min of preparation and 25 min of cooking. The recipe makes 4 eggs. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Balut?
Yes, within limits. A younger egg, at fourteen to sixteen days, for a first taste. Spiced vinegar in place of salt.
What is the most important thing to get right in Balut?
Discard any egg that smells foul or sulphurous when opened, or that has a cracked shell. As with any egg, cook it thoroughly and do not eat it undercooked.
