Eggs in cholent/tabet question

JoyInTheMorning

Fri, Jan 03 2020, 8:28 am

I'm going to make a tabet for Shabbat. It's kind of similar to cholent or hamin, but you use chicken instead of beef (which is what I have on hand this week) and rice instead of barley. I am thinking about putting in eggs. From Googling (and coming up with links to imamother), I see that people put in eggs that are raw, in their shells.

My question: Doesn't that long, slow cooking keep eggs at a dangerous temperature for far too long?

Thanks!

ra_mom

Fri, Jan 03 2020, 8:31 am

JoyInTheMorning wrote:

The temperature of the oven or slow cooker used for tabet, hamin or cholent is safe for raw foods in general (225 degrees usually).
The temperature of a hot plate plata for raw foods is dangerous for anything, including eggs.

JoyInTheMorning

Fri, Jan 03 2020, 8:34 am

ra_mom wrote:

Okay, great. I thought eggs were more prone to having bacteria. Good to know it will be fine.

I am planning to do weird things, like add cut-up butternut squash and granny smith apples. I hope this will be edible. Otherwise, we'll have to make do with leftover chicken cutlets and gefilte fish.

Thanks!

avrahamama

Fri, Jan 03 2020, 9:15 am

Too much water will make the rice mushy. Especially if you're adding more fruits and veggies. I like to soak my rice for a while so that it is softer yet still raw. The eggs don't need much water either. Also I like to put my whole chicken in a net bag so that it doesnt fall apart into my rice. (the bones get mushy)

JoyInTheMorning

Fri, Jan 03 2020, 9:25 am

avrahamama wrote:

Well, it turns out I can't get butternut squash. So it will be a whole large chicken + few pieces, two cups of brown rice, one or two sweet potatoes, and a few eggs. Maybe some potatoes. I'll brown the chicken first. I'll use cardamom, cumin, paprika, and cloves for spices. How much water should I use? And, can I add a can of chickpeas?

I will have salmon as a first course, so no one will starve.

avrahamama

Fri, Jan 03 2020, 9:31 am

JoyInTheMorning wrote:

I never made with brown rice I know brown rice needs more water. I usually use basmati rice and barely cover rice with water. Definitely you can use chickpeas. Let us know your results!

Shabbat shalom!

amother

Royalblue

Fri, Jan 03 2020, 9:36 am

Make sure everything is covered with about 2 inches water. Put the eggs in mesh bags in case they crack, shells shouldn't get in the food.
This sounds so delicious, my mouth is watering.

Stars

Fri, Jan 03 2020, 9:55 am

I put raw eggs in their shell in my cholent together with the rest of the raw ingredients. I bring the pot to a boil first so the eggs are definitely cooked by the time I turn the flame down to a simmer.

JoyInTheMorning

Fri, Jan 03 2020, 10:54 am

When I make a cholent, and I have beef, rice, beans,and potatoes (I don't use barley), I use 4 cups of water for 2 cups of brown rice. You'd think I'd need more water for the beans but it works out very well. Here I am concerned that I need a little less, because the chicken releases liquid, and there are no beans. But I don't want it to burn, either. So maybe I'll just do 3.5 cups of water and hope for the best.

So: chicken(which I will first brown in olive oil), carrots (since no butternut squash), sweet potatoes, apples, chickpeas, raisins, brown rice, and eggs, all seasoned with salt, cardamom, cloves, cumin, and paprika. Hopefully it will work! I'll let you know.

Last edited by JoyInTheMorning on Fri, Jan 03 2020, 10:57 am; edited 2 times in total

amother

Royalblue

Fri, Jan 03 2020, 11:04 am

You can make sort of a bag for the eggs with wet parchment paper. I know people wrap the eggs in foil but I don't like to cook chalont with foil in it.

JoyInTheMorning

Fri, Jan 03 2020, 11:08 am

amother [ Royalblue ] wrote:

You can make sort of a bag for the eggs with wet parchment paper. I know people wrap the eggs in foil but I don't like to cook chalont with foil in it.

Great idea! I have parchment paper. Thank you!

JoyInTheMorning

Fri, Jan 03 2020, 11:51 am

amother [ Royalblue ] wrote:

You can also put in cooked & peeled eggs. Then you don't need a bag.

When I was reading old posts about putting eggs in, there seemed to be a consensus that the whites got very tough, and were almost inedible. Is that your experience?

spoiled

Sat, Jan 04 2020, 5:39 pm

No. You can't put in cooked peeled eggs, they get rubbery.
I put them in a sandwich bag and make a few tiny holes, so the water can get in.

JoyInTheMorning

Sun, Jan 05 2020, 5:05 am

Well, that was disappointing. The chicken fell apart and there were bones everywhere. Not a segulah for avoiding borer. The apples fell apart. The cloves and other spices smelled delicious in the early morning, almost like apple pie, so I had high hopes. But by lunchtime, everything just smelled and tasted overcooked. Not all the chickpeas were submerged in liquid -- my mistake -- and I learned that chickpeas can dry out and get hard. The chicken tasted good anyway, and it was nice to have it piping hot. Maybe I'll get some of those net bags that everyone is talking about. That might help.