What are egg balls, and how are they used?

They are small balls of hard-boiled egg yolk kneaded with cold butter, salt, and pepper – a soup garnish. From 3 eggs you get about 20 balls. They are placed straight into the plates just before the soup is ladled over.

What do I do with the egg whites?

The recipe suggests cutting the hard-boiled whites into slightly coarse strips and adding them to the soup, if you are not using them for anything else.

Why should the butter be cold?

The yolks are rubbed smooth with cold butter so the mixture is firm enough to roll into round balls that hold their shape until placed in the soup.

Where does the recipe come from?

From Henriette Schønberg Erken's "Stor kokebok" (1914), page 72. It serves 4 and takes around 25 minutes including boiling the eggs.

Egg balls

Name: Egg balls
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Norwegian
Ingredients: 3 pcs hard-boiled eggs (cooled); 15 g butter (cold); 1 pinch salt; 1 pinch pepper

Egg balls from Erken's Stor kokebok 1914: hard-boiled egg yolks are rubbed with cold butter, salted and peppered, and rolled into 20 small balls placed in the plate before clear soup is ladled over. The egg whites can be cut into strips in the soup.

Source: Henriette Schønberg Erken, Stor kokebok, 1914-utg. s. 72 (falt i det fri)

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About the dish

From the chapter "Additions to soups" in Stor kokebok (1914). Such small egg garnishes were placed in the plate just before the clear soup was ladled out.

How to make it

1
Make the egg mixture
Rub the cold, hard-boiled egg yolks completely smooth together with the cold butter. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.
2
Roll the balls
Roll the mixture into 20 small, round balls.
3
Serving
Place the balls straight into the plates immediately before the soup is ladled over. The egg whites can be cut into slightly coarse strips and placed in the soup if you are not using them for anything else.

Changes from the original

Measures and units are modernized (grams kept), "pinch" (knivsod) is given as a pinch. The method is written in modern Norwegian as numbered steps.

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Frequently asked questions

What are egg balls, and how are they used?: They are small balls of hard-boiled egg yolk kneaded with cold butter, salt, and pepper – a soup garnish. From 3 eggs you get about 20 balls. They are placed straight into the plates just before the soup is ladled over.
What do I do with the egg whites?: The recipe suggests cutting the hard-boiled whites into slightly coarse strips and adding them to the soup, if you are not using them for anything else.
Why should the butter be cold?: The yolks are rubbed smooth with cold butter so the mixture is firm enough to roll into round balls that hold their shape until placed in the soup.
Where does the recipe come from?: From Henriette Schønberg Erken's "Stor kokebok" (1914), page 72. It serves 4 and takes around 25 minutes including boiling the eggs.

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