[This is post #003 towards #100DaysOfFoodBlogging, our goal to do 100 posts in 100 days as part of The 100 Day Project.]

Pickled eggs are an odd thing. Eggs. Just swimming in an unmarked glass jar. Pickling away.

And what’s odder is that I have fond memories of eating them when I was a kid. I remember going to a this small general store, and picking out pink eggs from a jar on the counter. And yes, there was also a jar of thick dill pickles on one side and a horror-film level creepy jar of pigs feet on the other.

The reason that’s odd (at least to me), is that I grew up in a decent sized suburban area. Not a small town. We didn’t have fishing holes and there was no Aunt Bee to make you lemonade. It wasn’t Mayberry by any stretch (although this general store was directly across the street from a police station…). For some reason though, this little general store existed in our community. I don’t remember getting pickled eggs from anywhere else, so had it not been for this one little seemingly misplaced store located in suburbia, I’d have zero memories of pickled eggs.

Reminiscing about pickled eggs from a general store? Oh, so this is what it feels like to be old.

Anyway, I had mostly forgotten about all those briney eggs I had eaten as a kid. At some point or another that store shut down, so I was pretty much accepting of the fact that I’d probably never get to taste them again. For most of my adult life, I hadn’t really thought much about those eggs.

But then something happened…

Last year, Tina started seeing beet-pickled deviled eggs pop up on blogs and social media.  Always wanting to make our food look prettier (and being a beet-junkie), she was adamant about trying them.  I’m more of a “deviled egg purist” and not a huge fan of beets, so I wasn’t very excited. And at this point I wasn’t thinking about my previous love affair with pickled eggs as a child.

After tasting the the first beet-pickled deviled egg, I was instantly reminded of the giant jar of floating eggs at the general store. I could see myself sitting in the backseat of my parent’s Datsun, cramming my mouf with the tangy pink eggs. They were delicious then, and these pink deviled eggs are delicious now.

Since then, the beet-pickled deviled eggs have made their way into our regular rotation of egg-making. We’ve finally set on a recipe that seems to work well every time and is a nice change of pace from classic deviled eggs. They’re tangy, creamy, eggy, and a little bit spicy. And as a bonus, you don’t have to reach into a giant jar to eat them. Score one for sanitation!

RECIPE: BEET-PICKLED DEVILED EGGS

Ingredients:

• 2 15 oz Can Sliced Beets
• 1 Cup Vinegar
• 1 Cup Sugar
• 1 Dozen Hard Boiled Extra Large Eggs
• 1 Cup Mayonnaise – It has to be Hellmann’s brand, no deviation allowed (trust me, we’ve tried and it makes a huge difference)
• 1 Tablespoon Sriracha
• 1 Tablespoon Yellow Mustard
  
• Kosher Salt and Pepper to taste
• Chives for garnish

Directions:

1.  Make Hard-Boiled Eggs. By now you should know how to do that, but no worries if you don’t. Check out our classic deviled egg post for tips!

2. Mix the vinegar, beets, and sugar in a resealable mixing bowl and stir until the sugar dissolves.

3. Place eggs in pickled beet mixture ensuring they are completely covered. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours. For best results, stir halfway through.

4. Remove eggs from pickled beet mixture and allow to dry slightly. Slice the eggs in half, lengthwise and place the yolks in a separate bowl.

5.  Mash the yolks up with a  spoon until you have a fine powder, or until your arm goes numb. We like a smooth, well-blended filling without any “pockets” of dry yolk. Stir in the mayonnaise, mustard, and Sriracha until well blended. Add salt and pepper to taste.

6.  Use a pastry bag/piping tip and fill each egg up to perfection.

7.  Garnish with chives.