One thing that most Japanese people would tell you is that when visiting Tokyo, Japan you must go to the onsen (hot spring) in Hakone. Located approximately 1.5 hours east of Tokyo by the Odakyu Romance Car, Hakone is one of the most famous onsen towns in Japan. With over 50 hotels, ryokans (Japanese inns), and hostels in the area, you have many options to choose from. Beyond the relaxing sulphuric hot springs, the picturesque view of Mt. Fuji on a clear day (note: winter is the best time to view Mt. Fuji), and numerous small museums and attractions in the Hakone area, many people come to Hakone for the special Owakudani black egg.
These black eggs are boiled at Owakudani and can be bought from the shops at the Owakudani Station area located along the Hakone Ropeway. For 500 JPY (approximately $6CAD) or 525JPY in town, you will get five of these black eggs which are specifically boiled in the sulphuric waters of Owakudani. Locals claim that with every black egg you eat you would add another seven years to your life. So that means by now I would have added another 42 years to my life… I’m going to be an old woman, or so I hope! At the site where the egg is boiled, which you are able to walk up to and see how it is done, there are literally black shells littered all along the ground by the small stand and standing tables.
When you see the egg at first it looks a little weird because of the black shell. A person might think automatically of the Chinese preserved egg. However, once you break off that black shell, you find your usual hardboiled egg inside. I was initially a little hesitant in taking the first bite, but once I went for it, it tasted like a normal hardboiled egg. Aside from the fact that the egg was boiled in sulphuric water and the shell turned black, there was nothing else particularly special about it.
While walking around a gift store I found a video of how they make the Owakudani black egg. Count on the Japanese for making cute videos!! Click on the two links below to view the video I made; I wasn’t thinking at the time and I accidently stopped taping part way through the first one, sorry.
Hakone’s Owakudani Black Egg Part 1
Hakone’s Owakudani Black Egg Part 2
If you’re ever in the Hakone area, I would recommend trying the Owakudani black egg. Remember, it’ll add seven years to your life!
[Photos courtesy of flickr: yougottadance, eugene]
[Video courtesy of YouTube: jennetty]
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Count on the Japanese to make a ridiculously cute video on how an egg cooks and turns black in sulphuric waters! The accompanying music is too cute!
I was also thinking about the Chinese preserved duck egg! How odd that these eggs don’t taste any different, I was hoping that it would! Maybe it tastes like a few years of extra life added, almost like in Super Mario brothers when they get that 1up mushroom!
Onsen tamago are amazing and the perfect accompaniament to ramen, or even better in korean dishes like bibimbap. soooo tasty. and pretty easy to make at home too! you need to keep the temperature of the water rather precise (the temp range escapes me), but all you need is a thermometer, eggs, a pot and a rack to put the eggs in. the key is to not let them touch the bottom and to maintain the temperature.