Cured Egg Yolk Recipe: How to Make Salt-Cured Egg Yolks

Cured egg yolks are yolks (typically from chicken eggs) preserved in salt. Thanks to their yolks, eggs bring their own silky sauce to any dish, whether served on toast, in pasta carbonara, or nestled in a bowl of hot ramen. Curing yolks—separating them from their whites and preserving them in salt and seasonings—concentrates that flavor and texture and takes it to the next level. The salt draws out the egg yolks’ moisture, giving them a denser, harder texture that makes them easy to grate, shave, or slice.

Adding an egg can turn just about any savory dish into a complete meal. Here are some ideas for using salt-cured egg yolks instead of boiled, poached, or fried eggs:

1. 1. Add to salads: Shave ribbons of cured yolks onto salads and appetizers, like a summery zucchini salad with a lemony vinaigrette. Learn how to make a classic salad dressing with Chef Thomas Keller’s vinaigrette recipe.
2. 2. As a condiment: Add grated yolks into tuna salad or egg salad to amp up the eggy richness of the mayonnaise.
3. 3. As a sea salt replacement: Garnish avocado toast, sliced, ripe in-season tomatoes, or even popcorn with grated cured egg yolks. In addition to saltiness, they contribute richness and color.
4. 4. In place of cheese: Use egg yolks as a dairy-free replacement for hard cheeses, like Parmesan, grated over risotto or Caesar salads, or in place of pecorino when making pasta carbonara. As a bonus, the heat will allow the yolks to emulsify, adding a subtle yet luxurious creaminess.
5. 5. In ramen: Add cured egg yolks to soups, like ramen, in place of the usual soft-cooked egg.

The fermentation process essentially “cooks” the egg yolk, which means you won’t be consuming raw eggs. Here’s how to nail both the method and the seasoning to make it come together.

1. 1. Use cheesecloth for straining. To ensure your yolks are entirely egg white–free, you can use cheesecloth to strain out the egg white. Here’s how to use cheesecloth properly.
2. 2. Balance your curing mix. Pickling often entails some kind of salt mixture. This recipe uses both salt and sugar as the base of the curing seasoning. The sugar won’t make the yolk taste sweet; it will simply round out the sharp salinity of the salt.
3. 3. Try different seasonings. Peppercorns, dried seaweed or kelp, dried mushrooms, bay leaves, coriander seeds, lemon zest, and dried herbs are all wonderfully flavorful additions that can bring the yolk’s savory, umami flavor to the next level.
4. 4. Switch in duck eggs. Instead of curing chicken egg yolks, swap in duck egg yolks for a richer, more concentrated yolk flavor. Remember that duck egg yolks are slightly larger than chicken egg yolks.
5. 5. Make soy sauce–cured yolks. Combine the yolks with soy sauce, mirin, and kombu and refrigerate them for one to three days. Grate or slice the yolks over rice with furikake, sesame seeds, and slivered scallions for a hearty, healthy meal.