Oriental Tea Leaf Eggs

• 1 tablespoon black tea leaves
• 2 (3 inch) cinnamon sticks
• 4 whole star anise pods
• 1 tablespoon five-spice powder
• 6 whole cloves
• 1 slice fresh ginger root
• 1/2 teaspoon Szechuan peppercorns
• 1 teaspoon licorice root
• 1 piece dried mandarin orange peel
• 1 ounce Chinese rock sugar
• 1/2 cup dark soy sauce
• 1/3 cup light-colored soy sauce
• 10 hard-cooked eggs

1. Place the tea, cinnamon, star anise, five-spice, cloves, ginger, peppercorns, licorice, orange peel, rock sugar, dark soy sauce, and light soy sauce in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low, and let simmer for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, lightly tap the hard-cooked eggs to crack the shells all over. The soy sauce will penetrate the cracks, and color the egg white.
2. Place the eggs in the simmering liquid, and cook for 30 minutes, then remove from the heat, and let the eggs stand in the liquid for 2 hours off the heat. After 2 hours, drain the eggs, chill, and peel.

black tea leaves, cinnamon sticks, star anise pods, fivespice powder, cloves, ginger root, szechuan peppercorns, licorice root, sugar, soy sauce, lightcolored soy sauce, eggs

Taken from www.allrecipes.com/recipe/160400/oriental-tea-leaf-eggs/ (may not work)