An eggsperience to dye for

The egg came first. For millions of years before humans domesticated the feathered lizards we now call “chickens,” countless generations of beings, including dinosaurs, were laying eggs.

This Easter, people will steam their homes with vinegar to recreate the pretty colors that appear naturally in diverse hen eggs. We backyard hen keepers, aka flocksters, understand. There is something deeply captivating about a diverse basket of eggs.

For the flockster, every day is like Easter. Especially if the flock includes a blue egg-layer, like an Araucana or an Ameraucana, because you can have a mix of white, brown and blue eggs. Next to blues, the brown eggs look reddish, so your basket will appear red, white and blue.

Last fall, my flock had dwindled to just two golden buff orpington hens, ages 2 and 8, only one still laying.

They needed reinforcements, and they got some, thanks to a deal that went down in a parking lot near the bountiful Missoula Winter Market.

At home, I set my box of boisterous cargo in the chicken yard and took off the lid. A single feathered head popped up like a periscope to survey the new digs. After a polite, deferential period of about 30 seconds, the new chickens were soon running around like juvenile delinquents, indifferent to the concerned old hens in the corner.

By nightfall, the new girls had snuggled up on perches alongside the old girls. The flock merger was complete.

But if chicken farming is not your thing, or you don’t have the yard space, extra bandwidth or desire, you certainly don’t have to. Support your local chicken farmer.

And since my new girls are not yet big enough to lay their spectrum of eggs, I’ll be coloring other eggs by soaking them in strong teas made from intensely colored natural materials. 

Natural dyes give a more “realistic” look, making them look like magical treasures from the nest of some fabulous bird, rather than perfect cookie-cutter models with a flawless, airbrushed finish of synthetic dyes.

My favorite materials for “tea dyed” eggs are turmeric, black tea and dried pea flower, which is easy to find online and makes for a bright indigo color.

 

Tea-dyed eggs

I dyed my eggs with black tea (brown), turmeric (yellow) and pea flower (blue). Like making tea, the concept is always the same regardless of which type of leaves you use, but each person has different tools in their kitchen and a personal preference on how strong they like their tea.

The depth of color is dependent on how much material you use and how long you let the eggs “steep.”

If you want to eat the eggs, go for it. Just keep them refrigerated as they steep.

• Six white eggs
• 1 quart water
• 1 cup vinegar (or more, which might help depending on the material)
• Choice of colorant:
• 1 cup powdered turmeric
• ¼ cup pea flower
• Three bags black tea

Place the water, vinegar and eggs in a pot over medium heat. Add the dye materials and boil. Turn down to low heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Turn the heat off and let the eggs steep until they reach the desired hue. For the darkest shades, let them sit overnight (in the fridge, if you plan to eat them).

Remove the eggs gingerly and dry on a rack. Wet coating can rub off, just like paint. Once completely dry, the eggs can be handled easily.