The Bay Area Country Dance Society Website

BACDS 2003 Playford Ball
"An Entertainment in King Arthur's Court"

March 29, 2003

[ Home ] [ Events / Locations ] [ Staff ] [ Registration ] [ Welcome ] [ Dances ] [ Call for volunteers ] [ Recipes ] [ Committee ] [ Archives ] [ Contact Us ]

PlayFood: Deviled Eggs

"The Eggar Boy"
"Newcackle"
"Jovial Eggars"
"The Wonid Cluck"
"Baruhen Grown"

Based on Betty Cracker's Cookbook, with narrative and
other corroborative detail provided by Michael Penk.

Recipe for 6 curried eggs (12 half-eggs):
6 egg yolks
3 Tablespoons mayonnaise
1 tsp Madras hot curry powder
Recipe for 4 dozen eggs (96 half-eggs):
4 dozen eggs yolks (start with 4 1/2 dozen)
1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
2 tsp. white pepper
2 2/3 Tablespoons Madras hot curry powder

Mix filling thoroughly, preferably with a blender or food processor. Pastry
bags do not like lumps—and you won't either if you're the one who fills the
eggs.

Put eggs in cold salted water (salt helps keep egg white from coming out
all over the place in case an egg should crack before it has become firm).

Bring to a slight boil (the first big rolling bubbles are forming on the
bottom, but are not making it to the top of the water), lower the heat ( see
occasional bubbles forming on the bottom) and keep on the heat for 8
minutes ( a hard boil produces rubberier eggs than a gentle simmer). Stir
several times, thus trying to better center the yolks. Take off heat and
rinse with cold water, not allowing eggs to uncover. As they cool, they will
absorb water, and will be easier to peel. keep covered in cold water (even
with ice cubes), to cut possibility of spoilage (and salmonella).

To peel, crack lightly all over, rub the egg fairly vigorously between your
palms (this greatly loosens the shell). After peeling, put back in cold
water.

To cut, use a thin sharp knife. Place the knife in a pan of cold water after
each cut, as this makes cutting much easier. Cut lengthwise, and try not to
cut where the yolk is very close to the surface. Store the whites in very 
cold water, and put the yolks frequently into the refrigerator to keep
them cold).

Don't make the eggs more than I day in advance; cooked eggs don't keep
as well as eggs in the shell in their original carton. Also don't wash the
eggs when you buy them ( if you are keeping them several days before
using); they lose freshness faster when the shell has been washed.
Fill the eggs the same day as they are to be eaten. Use a pastry bag to fill
egg white cavities generously. Sprinkle the tops with paprika. Refrigerate.

Other Notes.
I made 6 dozen for the 1991 BACDS Playford Ball, and they were scarfed
up. I started with 7 dozen eggs, but some eggs didn't peel cleanly, and
others broke when they were cut. Medium eggs were used, to keep the
halves bite-sized. It is a good idea to make a trial run with a few eggs, to
verify that the eggs are suitable, and that the curry powder tastes good.
The eggs should be about I week on shelf (so as not to stick to shell), but
no more (so as not to be too stale). If the eggs have 2 to 2.5 weeks of shelf
life left (but not more), they seem to peel well.

Try several brands of Madras curry powder (purchase in an Indian store),
as often the curry powder on the shelf has lost its flavor. The brand that
tasted best looked awful on the outside: it was rusty, dented, and stained.
(I got it at Spiceland in Santa Clara, on Pomeroy St., just off El Camino, east
of Lawrence Expressway).

Michael recommends:
• Agmark brand curry powder
• Hollywood brand mayonnaise

Copyright © 1998-2003 Spellbinder Systems Group for the Bay Area Country Dance Society.  All rights reserved Send comments and questions about this webpage to the webmaster Revised:  02/01/03