Italian Marinated Eggs (Piedmont Eggs)
Italian marinated eggs, or Piedmont eggs, are boiled eggs that soak in an olive oil marinade of garlic, parsley, and anchovy. Serve them sliced on crusty bread. A make-ahead appetizer that only gets better overnight.
If you like make-ahead appetizers like this, try my marinated cheese, eggplant spread, and pickled mini bell peppers. They all get better after a day in the fridge, same as these eggs.
If you love trying new flavor combinations and the ingredient list sounds good to you, you’ll love these marinated eggs!
And no, it is not the soy sauce kind of marinated egg. This one comes from the Piedmont region of northern Italy, where garlic, anchovies, and good olive oil show up everywhere.
I found this one back in my forum days in 2006. A woman who had married into an Italian family shared it, and she raved about these eggs so much that I had to try them.
I used chicken eggs that first time, because that is what I had. Quail eggs are what I make now – one bite each, and they look the part on a platter.
Either way, this recipe is all about the marinade. It flavors the eggs, and on a good crusty baguette it is an experience.
It is all about the marinade, and I mean that literally. The overnight rest is not for the eggs. Flavor doesn’t travel far into a boiled egg, no matter how long it sits. The time is for the marinade, so the garlic, anchovy, parsley, and chili come together. You can eat them right away, but they are best after a night in the fridge.
Here’s why you’ll love this recipe
A few reasons to make these for your next get-together:
- Nothing to cook but the eggs – the marinade is just chopped and whisked together.
- Make-ahead appetizer – you can serve them the same day, and a night in the fridge brings the marinade together.
- Big flavor from a few simple things – garlic, parsley, and anchovy do all the work, and no, it does not taste like fish.
- Quail eggs look adorable – a whole tiny egg on a slice of baguette. They make the tray look fancy with no extra effort.
- The marinade has more than one use – toss mozzarella balls in it once the eggs are gone, or spoon it over warm bread, potatoes, or pasta.
What are Piedmont Eggs?
Piedmont eggs (in Italian, uova alla piemontese, which just means “eggs Piedmont style”) are hard-boiled eggs marinated in olive oil with herbs, garlic, and anchovies. Piedmont is the region in the northwest corner of Italy, bordering the Alps and France. Their cooking loves garlic and anchovies. The famous warm dip from there, bagna cauda, is basically those two things melted into oil. Traditionally, the dish is made with quail eggs.
This version adds tomato paste, sweet chili sauce, and a fresh chili to the classic garlic-and-anchovy base. That is the Italian family’s spin, not mine. The tomato paste gives the marinade body and color. The sweet chili sauce adds sweetness and a little heat, so the oil is not just savory. The strictly traditional version skips all three.
These are not pickled eggs. Pickled eggs cure in a vinegar brine for weeks and turn firm and sour, while these sit in seasoned oil overnight and stay soft and creamy. They taste like garlic and herbs, not vinegar.
Ingredients for Italian Marinated Eggs
All normal grocery store buys. Here is what each one does and what you can swap. Amounts are in the recipe card.
Eggs: Quail eggs. If you can’t find them, large chicken eggs work. I love deep orange-yolked eggs – they look and taste better, in my opinion. Keep in mind, older eggs peel easier.
Parsley: Fresh flat-leaf (Italian) parsley. Curly works too. Dried has no flavor here.
Garlic: A whole head. Soaking it overnight in oil mellows the harshness but keeps it strong.
Anchovy fillets: Oil-packed. They are here for umami, not fish flavor. No anchovies? Anchovy paste works, or skip them and add more salt.
Tomato paste: Adds the rusty red color and enough body to cling to the eggs.
Olive oil: Extra virgin, one you like the taste of. It is the marinade, so its flavor comes through.
Vinegar: White wine or apple cider are my picks. Plain white works.
Sweet chili sauce: The Thai-style one from the Asian aisle. Sweet with mild heat. Honey with a pinch of red pepper flakes stands in.
Fresh chili pepper: Jalapeño or red Fresno. Skip it for a no-heat version.
Sugar: Just a pinch, to round out the vinegar and the anchovy salt.
How to Make Marinated Eggs (Step-by-Step)
Set aside a good 30 minutes of hands-on time. Peeling the quail eggs is the long part, 15 to 18 minutes for 40 of them, and everything else is a breeze. The fridge does the overnight work. Here’s how it goes:
- Boil the eggs. Lower quail eggs into boiling salted water and time them: 2 minutes for runny, 3 minutes for just jammy, 4 minutes for hard-boiled. Using chicken eggs instead? Cover them cold with salted water, bring to a boil, then 4 minutes for jammy or 5 for hard-boiled. Ice bath right after, either way.
- Shock them, then peel. The second the timer goes off, move the eggs into a bowl of ice water and leave them for 5 minutes. That stops the cooking, cools them through, and loosens the shells. Crack each egg all over and peel under a thin stream of cold running water. Pat them dry.
- Chop the marinade ingredients. Chop the parsley, garlic, anchovies, and chili as fine as you can. The finer the chop, the better the marinade clings to the eggs. A garlic press gives a stronger garlic hit, and leaving the chili seeds in makes it spicier.
- Whisk the marinade. In a bowl, stir together the chopped parsley, garlic, anchovies, and chili with the tomato paste, vinegar, sweet chili sauce, and sugar. Whisk in the olive oil until everything is evenly mixed. Taste it. It should be salty from the anchovies with a little sweetness and tang. Add a pinch of salt if needed.
- Let it rest overnight. Put the peeled eggs in a lidded glass or ceramic container (a wide-mouth jar works great). Pour the marinade over so the eggs are covered, seal it, and refrigerate overnight. They are ready to eat right away, so this rest is for the marinade, not for the eggs.
- Serve over bread. Lift the eggs out and spoon plenty of the marinade over them, parsley and garlic bits included. Serve them whole on a slice of crusty baguette, one egg per bite. If you used chicken eggs, cut them in half or into thick rounds first.
Marinated Quail Eggs
Quail eggs are worth looking for, and most larger grocery stores carry them now. Each one sits whole on a slice of crusty baguette and goes down in one bite, so a platter of them reads as a real appetizer. If you can only find chicken eggs, use six large ones and keep the marinade exactly the same.
How long to boil quail eggs. They are tiny, and they cook fast, so have the ice water ready before you start. Times are from the moment they go into the water:
- 2 minutes – runny yolk. Lovely on toast, but delicate to lift out of the jar in one piece.
- 3 minutes – just jammy. This is the one I use for the marinade.
- 4 minutes – hard-boiled all the way through.
Lower them into gently boiling water with a spoon. Let them sit out of the fridge for a few minutes first so the cold shells don’t crack when you add them. Then straight into ice water for 5 minutes.
Salt the water. Quail shells are thin, and some of them will crack no matter how careful you are. Salt does not prevent that; it seals it. The leaking white hits the salty water and sets on contact, plugging the crack instead of streaming out into the pot. About a teaspoon per 8 cups is enough.
Roll each one on the counter to crack the shell all over, start at the wide end, and peel under running water so it works under the membrane. That membrane is tough, so budget 15 to 18 minutes for 40 eggs.
Marina’s Pro Tips for
the Best Marinated Eggs
A few things I have learned making these over the years:
- Chop while the eggs cook. Making the marinade takes about as long as boiling and cooling the eggs. Start chopping as soon as the pot goes on, and everything lands at the same time.
- Peel onto a paper towel. It takes the extra water off so the eggs go into the oil dry.
- Use a wide-mouth jar. Easier to lift the eggs out.
- Double everything but the oil. Scale the parsley, garlic, and anchovy for a bigger batch, then add oil only until the eggs are just covered. A fuller jar needs far less extra oil than you would think.
- Day three is not day one. The garlic mellows and the anchovy spreads out over the week. If it tastes sharp the first night, leave it alone and try it again the next day.
- Cut the eggs right before serving. They dull and dry once halved.
Ways to Serve This Egg Appetizer
These are an appetizer first, but they work in a lot of other places too. A few ways I like them:
- With bread – a crusty baguette, ciabatta, or a slice from my 4-ingredient artisan bread, to mop up the oil.
- On an appetizer board – next to marinated cheese, olives, cured meats, and roasted bell peppers.
- Over boiled potatoes – halve the eggs over warm potatoes and spoon the marinade on top. It is a whole lunch.
- On a green salad – the marinade is the dressing. Sliced eggs on top.
- Tossed with warm pasta – the leftover marinade plus a chopped egg or two. Ready in the time it takes to boil the pasta.
And do not throw the marinade out once the eggs are gone. Spoon it over fresh crusty bread, or pour it into a small dish and dip warm baguette straight into it. My favorite thing to do with the last of it is drop in fresh mozzarella balls and let them sit in the fridge for a day. That’s my spin rather than the authentic Italian version, and it turns the leftover marinade into a whole second appetizer. It keeps a few days either way.
How to Store Marinated Eggs
Fridge: Keep the eggs in their marinade in a covered glass or ceramic container. They’re best on days 1 through 3 and fine for up to 5 days. Peeled hard-boiled eggs should not sit longer than a week, no matter what they are in.
Room temperature: Serve them and put the rest back in the fridge within 2 hours. Never store garlic in oil at room temperature. The fridge is a must for this one.
Freezer: No. Frozen hard-boiled eggs turn rubbery and watery.
Leftover marinade: There will be some, because part of the oil keeps the eggs covered. Strain out any egg bits and keep it in the fridge up to 5 days. Use it on bread, potatoes, pasta or salad.
Make it ahead
Make the marinade a day or two ahead, and it only gets better. Boil and peel the eggs whenever it suits you, then let them sit in the marinade overnight. Cut the eggs right before they go on the table so the yolks stay pretty.
Still have questions? Here are the common ones.
Marinated Eggs FAQ
Why are my hard-boiled eggs so hard to peel?
Almost always because the eggs are very fresh. The white sticks to the shell membrane. Use eggs that are a week or more old, shock them in ice water for 5 minutes as soon as they come off the heat, and peel them under running water. Steaming instead of boiling (12 minutes for hard-boiled) makes them easier still.
How long do marinated hard-boiled eggs last?
Up to 5 days in the fridge, covered, in their marinade. They taste best in the first 3 days. Full storage details are in the storage box above.
How long do you marinate eggs?
Overnight is best, but you can serve them right away. The marinade does not soak deep into a boiled egg, so the resting time is really for the marinade flavors to come together. A few hours helps, and a full night helps more.
Can I make these without anchovies?
Yes. The anchovies add umami, so the marinade loses some depth without them. Replace them with a little anchovy paste, a splash of fish sauce, a spoon of miso, or just extra salt. The eggs will still be very good, only a bit less savory.
How long do you boil quail eggs?
Lower them into boiling salted water and time from there: 2 minutes for runny, 3 minutes for just jammy, 4 minutes for hard-boiled. Straight into ice water after. A runny yolk is delicate to lift out of the marinade, so I go 3 minutes or more when they are coming out of the jar. Full peeling notes are in the quail egg section above.
Are marinated eggs the same as pickled eggs?
No. Pickled eggs cure in a vinegar brine for a week or more and turn firm and tangy. Marinated eggs like these soak in seasoned olive oil overnight, stay soft, and taste of garlic, herbs, and anchovy. If you were looking for Italian pickled eggs, try this oil-marinated version instead.
Can I make these with soft-boiled eggs?
Yes, and I think they would be even better, but keep them jammy rather than runny. Boil 4 minutes from the boil, or steam 9, then shock and peel carefully. Go softer than that, and the yolk bursts when you fish the egg out of the jar, and then the whole marinade is full of yolk.
More Appetizers to Try
If these eggs are your kind of thing, these are the next ones to make:
- Marinated Cheese Appetizer – cubes of cheddar in garlic, parsley, and olive oil. Same idea, no eggs.
- Eggplant Spread – a smoky roasted eggplant spread for bread.
- Ikra (Eggplant Caviar) – the eggplant and pepper spread I grew up with.
- Homemade Salmon Caviar – cured at home, ready in a day.
- Sweet Peppers Stuffed with Egg and Cheese – a party favorite.
- Quick and Easy Kholodets – meat aspic, a holiday table classic.
Made this recipe?
Please leave a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ star rating and a comment below.
It helps other readers find it, and I love reading every single one.
I first published these marinated Piedmont eggs in 2009, a few years after a woman who had married into an Italian family shared the recipe with me on a cooking forum. In September 2026, I rewrote the post with a full ingredient guide, step-by-step instructions, a marinated quail eggs section, storage notes, and answers to common questions.
Italian Marinated Eggs (Piedmont Eggs)
Italian marinated eggs, an easy make-ahead appetizer. Boiled eggs soak in an olive oil marinade of garlic, parsley and anchovy. Serve on crusty bread.
Ingredients
Eggs
- 40 quail eggs one per bite, the version I make
- 6 large eggs if you cannot find quail; deep orange yolks if you can get them
- 1 tsp salt for the cooking water
Marinade
- 1 cup parsley chopped fine
- 1 head of garlic peeled and chopped fine or pressed
- 6 anchovy fillets chopped fine
- 4 Tbsp tomato paste
- 1 cup olive oil or enough to cover the eggs in your jar
- 2 Tbsp vinegar white wine or apple cider
- 2 Tbsp sweet chili sauce
- 1 chili pepper seeds removed for mild heat
- 1/2 tsp sugar
Instructions
-
Boil the eggs. Add 1 tsp salt to the water first (Note 1), then time the eggs from the moment it boils.• Quail eggs: let 40 quail eggs sit out a few minutes so the cold shells do not crack, then lower them into boiling salted water with a spoon. Cook them 2 minutes for runny, 3 minutes for just jammy, or 4 minutes for hard-boiled.• Chicken eggs (if you cannot find quail): cover 6 large eggs, straight from the fridge, with water by 1/2 inch and bring to a boil. Cook them 5 minutes for hard-boiled, or 4 minutes for a jammy yolk.A runny yolk is delicate. These eggs get lifted in and out of a jar of oil, so go 3 minutes or more if they are coming out whole. (Note 2 for the steamer method.)
-
Shock and peel. Move the eggs into ice water the moment the timer goes off and leave them 5 minutes.• Roll each egg on the counter to crack the shell all over.• Peel under cold running water so it works under the membrane.• Quail eggs have a tough membrane under a thin shell, so start at the wide end.Pat the eggs dry before they go into the marinade.
-
Make the marinade. Chop 1 cup parsley, 1 head of garlic, 6 anchovy fillets and 1 chili pepper as fine as you can. Stir them with 4 Tbsp tomato paste, 2 Tbsp vinegar, 2 Tbsp sweet chili sauce and 1/2 tsp sugar, then whisk in 1 cup olive oil. Taste it before it goes on the eggs and add salt if needed; anchovies vary a lot in saltiness.
-
Marinate overnight. Put the peeled eggs in a glass or ceramic container with a lid and pour the marinade over so they are covered. Wiggle the container so the marinade settles into every gap between the eggs, then refrigerate overnight. The eggs are edible right away, so this rest is for the marinade flavors rather than the eggs (Note 3).
-
Serve. Spoon plenty of the marinade over the eggs, parsley and garlic bits included. Quail eggs go whole on a slice of crusty baguette, one to a bite. Cut chicken eggs in half or into thick rounds. (Note 5 for the leftover marinade.)
Recipe Notes
1. Why salt the water. Salt does not stop a shell from cracking, it seals the crack once it happens. The leaking white hits the salty water and sets on contact instead of streaming out. Use about 1 teaspoon per 8 cups of water. Worth doing every time with quail eggs, since their thin shells crack easily.
2. Steaming peels easier. Bring 1 inch of water under a steamer basket to a boil, add the eggs, and cook them 9 minutes for a jammy yolk or 12 minutes for hard-boiled. Give them the same ice bath after.
3. The rest is for the marinade. Flavor does not travel far into a boiled egg. The overnight lets the garlic, anchovy, parsley and chili come together, which is what you are really tasting.
4. Egg choice. Quail eggs are the traditional version and make the prettiest platter. Whichever you use, look for deep orange yolks. Older eggs peel far easier than very fresh ones.
5. Leftover marinade. Spoon it over crusty bread, or drop in fresh mozzarella balls and give them a day in the fridge. The mozzarella is my own spin, not the traditional version.
6. Nutrition. Figured on the quail egg version: about 7 quail eggs per serving, plus roughly 1 tablespoon of the marinade, which is about what clings and gets spooned over. Most of the oil stays in the jar, so it is not counted. Made with 6 large chicken eggs instead, a serving is one egg and comes closer to 155 calories, 13 g fat and 186 mg cholesterol. Quail eggs are tiny but rich, so seven of them push the cholesterol up fast. Spoon on more marinade and the numbers go up.
7. Storage. Keeps up to 5 days refrigerated in the marinade. Never store garlic in oil at room temperature. Take the jar out of the fridge 20 minutes before serving so the oil is not cloudy.
Thank you for following me on Instagram, Facebook & Pinterest!
Hashtag your photos #LetTheBakingBeginBlog so I can see your creations and for a chance to be featured!
Marina | Let the Baking Begin
