Each family decides differently how to paint eggs for Easter with their own hands. Some people like store-bought dyes because they give the eggs rich colors, while others prefer exclusively natural pigments. Today we will look at how to dye eggs in onion skins.
We will need:
- Eggs;
- Onion peels (a lot);
- Vegetable oil;
- Water;
- Salt.
How to properly color eggs in onion skins:
- It’s clear that we will boil eggs in onion skins, but not everything is as simple as it seems. Wash the eggs well before boiling. To avoid getting eggs, leave them to stand at room temperature for at least an hour. And put a couple of tablespoons of salt into the water where we will boil the eggs.
- Eggs of any color are suitable for this coloring. We put a lot of onion peels into the pan, fill it with water, but not to the edges of the pan, then put it on low heat. Cook the husks for 40-50 minutes to get a rich color. If you need a lighter shade, reduce the cooking time.
- When the onion peel paint is ready, increase the heat and lower the eggs into it. During cooking, it is better to turn the eggs over so that the paint lays evenly. And the obligatory point is that the water must completely cover them. Cooking time is 15-20 minutes, then the eggs are well stored.
- Place the finished colored eggs into a pan with cold water and set aside. When they have cooled, take them out and wipe them well. And so that the eggs are not matte, but shiny, rub them with vegetable oil. Here's a simple way dye eggs for Easter.
- You can also
I have already shared my proven ones with you, today I want to talk about such an interesting way of decorating eggs as painting with onion skins. The color can range from brown to deep red. The more onion peels are used for painting, the more juicy and bright the color of the eggs will be.
This time I didn’t get a lot of peel (out of 4 onions), so the color wasn’t too red, but rather brown. But if you take a lot of husks, you get a very rich, bright burgundy color.
For painting you need:
- Onion peels - the more the better
How to color eggs in onion skins:
So, put the prepared onion peels into a saucepan, add water to about half the volume and boil the peels for a few minutes until they give off color, then cook the eggs in this water with the peels. This is the first way.
You can do it the second way. Place the onion skins in a saucepan, place the eggs on top, add water until it completely covers the eggs, bring to a boil and cook for 10 minutes.
That's all, coloring eggs in onion skins is as easy as pie and you get a beautiful color from light brown to burgundy red!
Eggs painted in this way can be additionally painted with acrylic or gouache paints, or festive Easter stickers can be placed on them. Children will especially enjoy this creative process!
The egg symbolizes life and is therefore an essential symbol of Easter. Most often they are made red or brown, like the blood of the crucified Christ. In churches, after the blessing of Easter baskets, children exchange beautiful Easter eggs and give them to relatives and friends. And although today there are many food products sold, with which you can get bright colored dyes, in our family, in addition, for Easter it is customary to paint eggs in onion peels, as this was done in ancient times. It is necessary to prepare for such a procedure in advance: pick up a bag of this very husk - a natural dye.
How to dye eggs in onion skins
The best time to color eggs is on Holy Saturday. Fill the onion peel with water and cook the coloring solution.
We choose the oldest pan, since after all the manipulations it will not look its best. Strain the broth and cool.
Now, it's time to think about how to boil eggs. First, wash them thoroughly and dry them.
If you want to paint eggs in an unusual, beautiful and interesting way, you can experiment. To do this, you can wrap a thread around them as in the photo, or attach beautiful flowers or leaves and secure with tights or a bandage.
If you just want to quickly and evenly color the eggs, then you don’t need to invent anything, just move on to the next stage.
Fill the prepared eggs with onion broth, add a little salt and cook for 10 minutes.
Then, carefully remove them with a spoon, remove the threads and dry the dyes using paper napkins or a towel.
You can lightly grease them with sunflower oil - this will give them a beautiful shine.
At this stage, the onion skin colored eggs are ready.
All that remains is to put them beautifully in a basket with other Easter baskets and they can be taken to the temple for consecration.
Onion peels, it is advisable to collect them in advance - the more eggs there are, the more onions you need. For a dozen eggs, a liter with compacted husks is enough, but for a richer and darker color you can take more. Also, the resulting color will depend on the type of onion: for example, the onion will give the shell a pleasant purple tint.
If you mix different varieties, you can get interesting shades.
To prepare the decoction, you need to put the husks in a pan - it is advisable to choose one that you don’t mind spoiling, since the paint may remain on the walls. Pour hot water on top so that it does not reach the edge. Place on the fire, bring to a boil and reduce the temperature. The onion peels are simmered over low heat for 20 to 50 minutes: the longer, the darker the paint.
While the broth is being prepared, you need to remove the eggs from the refrigerator so that they have time to warm up to room temperature. They will have to be cooked in a boiling liquid, and due to a sudden change in temperature they may burst. Rinse them thoroughly and leave for half an hour while the husks cook.
Painting eggs with onion skins
It is advisable to strain the finished broth: otherwise there will be streaks on the shell and the color will be uneven, although some people prefer this option. Add salt to the water so that the shell becomes harder and the paint does not get under it and stain the white. Carefully lower the eggs, bring the infusion to a boil and cook for 8-10 minutes. The longer you cook, the more saturated the color the shell will acquire, but, on the other hand, the eggs will be less tasty: from long-term thermal exposure, the protein acquires the consistency of rubber and becomes denser. It is advisable to turn the eggs during cooking to ensure even coloring. Make sure that the broth covers them completely.
To diversify the color, you can wrap some of the eggs in threads, and roll some in dry rice and wrap in cheesecloth. After cooking, some will have beautiful stains, while others will have small specks.
If you take the eggs out after three minutes and pierce the shells with a needle in several places, and then cook them further by adding cinnamon and cloves, they will also color inside.
Keep the finished eggs in cold water for several minutes so that the shells can easily come away from the whites. To give a matte surface a shine, they are wiped dry and lubricated with sunflower oil.