What Are Balut Eggs?
“Balut” is the Philippine word for fertilized duck eggs in which the embryos are allowed to develop for a time before the eggs are hard cooked. They are considered a great delicacy and are thought to have a therapeutic value as a food for invalids. Because balut eggs are considered an ethnic food, they are exempt from inspection and grading. What Are Thousand-Year-Old Eggs? These Chinese eggs are not really 1,000 years old, but are somewhere between a month and several years old. The egg is not retained in its original state but rather converted into an entirely different food, probably by bacterial action. They are exempt from inspection and grading. The following are several types of thousand-year-old Chinese eggs. “Hulidan” results when eggs are individually coated with a mixture of salt and wet clay or ashes for a month. This process darkens and partially solidifies the yolks, and gives the eggs a salty taste. “Dsaudan” eggs are packed in cooked rice and salt for at least 6 months.
