Spice up your Easter: Sriracha Deviled Eggs

A few years ago I had the experience of working in a French-American restaurant. I worked as a garde-manger chef and sometimes helped out on the line. It was an awesome experience; one that showed me that I really didn't want to be in the restaurant business, but somehow wanted to keep the culinary arts very much a part of my life in other ways. The most exciting times for me while working at the restaurant was plating/food styling and Tuesdays and Wednesdays, when we tested new recipes. I particularly remember my head chef making an amazing smoked paprika deviled egg, garnished with an olive and sprig of chive. He served it as an appetizer during the fall months. I thought it was so old-fashioned, compared to the other menu items, but it was the most frequently ordered item on the appetizer menu during that time. It was a testament to the fact that you can put a modern spin on a classic and people are bound to give it a try-kind of like these sriracha deviled eggs. They're flavorful, spicy, and pretty, just as you would expect of a deviled egg. What makes them different is the tangy and uniquely spicy flavor from the main ingredient- sriracha.

Sriracha, also known as rooster sauce, is a Thai condiment that seems to have developed this cult following here in the states. People (me included) just put it on everything! It has this great tangy taste that leaves a nice spicy finish at the end. It's made of red chili peppers, garlic, salt, sugar and vinegar and the consistency is thicker than that of a traditional American hot sauce. In the U.S., it is best recognized in this iconic plastic bottle that has an outline of a rooster on the front and a bright green nozzle. I first had this sauce a few years ago at a Thai restaurant and became a fan instantly. I love it on fried rice and especially in Vietnamese Pho. It tastes so good on everything, that there is even a cookbook- The Sriracha Cookbook.

You can find this sauce at any Thai or Vietnamese restaurant, it will usually already be on the table along with a few other condiments, waiting for you. It is also sold in Asian markets and grocery stores. I have seen it more often in the ethnic aisle at larger grocers as well.

I've made these sriracha deviled eggs a few times for dinner parties at my house and they're always a hit- talk about a modern take on a classic. They're pretty easy to make too; the hardest part will be boiling the eggs, no seriously. An overcooked hard-boiled egg will leave you with extremely stiff egg whites and a rubbery yolk. Overcooked yolks will be tough to smoothen out and will make your yolk filling quite lumpy. So here are my recommendations based on my own mishaps and a little bit of research.

Use old eggs that are at least 4-5 days old. Fresh eggs are extremely hard to peel and will rip and tear while removing the shell.

Bring eggs to room temperature before boiling, otherwise you risk them cracking.

A continuous rapid boil is not needed to completely hard-boil an egg- this method can overcook the egg and result in green rubbery yolks

Do not stack eggs on top of each other, the pot must be wide enough to fit all of them.

How to hard-boil an egg:

Place eggs in pot first, fill with water, about 2 inches above eggs.

Bring to a rapid boil. As soon as water reaches a rapid boil, remove pot from heat and cover tightly with lid. Let eggs rest in water for 17-18 minutes. Do not open lid during this time.

Drain hot water and immediately run cold water on eggs.

Hit egg slightly against a hard surface, peel and rinse.

While still warm, slice eggs in half, scoop out the yolks and place in a mixing bowl. Mash them up then add 1 tbsp sriracha, 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper, 1/4 tsp black pepper, and 1/4 tsp salt.

Mix it up pretty well. Add 4 tbsp mayonnaise and 1 tsp Dijon mustard. Mash until smooth and very little lumps remain. Mixture should start to look smooth.

That's good enough.

Give the egg whites a gentle rinse, one at a time. Pat dry and place in a platter.

Fill a pastry bag with the egg yolk mixture, pipe into each egg hole. If you do not have a pastry bag, you can use a freezer zip-lock bag, snip the edge off and use as a piping bag.

Drop a dot of sriracha on each egg. If making these ahead of time, wait until ready to serve to garnish with the sriracha.

• Sriracha Deviled Eggs
• Makes 18 deviled eggs
• Ingredients
• 9 eggs
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp sriracha sauce
• 4 tbsp mayonnaise
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• chives or scallions for garnish (optional)

Directions:

Place eggs in pot first, fill with water, about 2 inches above eggs.

Bring to a rapid boil. As soon as water reaches a rapid boil, remove pot from heat and cover tightly with lid. Let eggs rest in water for 17-18 minutes. Do not open lid during this time.

Drain hot water and immediately run cold water on eggs. Hit egg slightly against a hard surface, peel and rinse.

Slice each egg in half, scoop out the yolk and transfer to a mixing bowl.

Add spices and sriracha sauce to egg yolk mixture, combine thoroughly.

Add mayonnaise and Dijon mustard, mash until mixture is smooth and has very little lumps.

Adjust spices to suit your taste.

Fill egg yolk mixture into a pastry bag and pipe into egg holes. Drop a dot of sriracha sauce on each egg. Garnish with chives or scallions.