Naturally Dyed Eggs

Making the perfect dyed Greek Easter eggs!

Greek Orthodox Easter week of “Pascha” has just begun!

Easter is one of the most colorful holidays of the year.

In addition to the traditional Easter egg hunts, there are also plenty of fun ways to decorate and dye eggs to mark the occasion.

One of the most popular ways to decorate eggs for Easter is to dye them using natural dyes, the most common of which are those made from plants and vegetables.

Image Credit: Sara Kate Gillingham

Egg dyeing is a fun activity that the whole family can get involved in, and it’s a great way to use up vegetables and fruits that may otherwise go to waste!

There are countless ways to naturally dye and decorate your eggs on the web.

We found this guide to be one of the handiest out there, promising to “transform your white eggs into a rainbow of colors”.

We picked it up, and we’d love to share it with you so here it goes:

👉 How to Make Homemade Natural Easter Egg Dyes With the Food in Your Kitchen

Apart from looking good, vibrant, and bright, dyed eggs must also be edible and of course, tasty!

Following below:

8 (plus 3) Lakonia Family’s tips to make the p e r f e c t Easter eggs😀

1. Make sure your eggs are at room temperature before starting to boil.

2. Place them in a pot with cold water, then start to heat up gradually. This will help you avoid unwanted (even unseen) cracks on eggshells.

3. It is a general rule that fresh eggs are less likely to crack, but we strongly suggest using eggs closer to their expiration date, as these are much easier to peel!

4. Add a bit of salt to the water while boiling. It minimizes the cracking effect and also helps to peel.

5. While the eggs start boiling stir slowly and carefully (thus avoid cracking), for a few seconds. This helps the yolks to stay in the center of the egg. Looks better and tastes better!

6. Get rid of eggs floating on top. All eggs must be underwater during boiling.

7. Ten minutes of boiling time is the general rule of thumb for your eggs to be hardboiled. You want them to be tight; makes the egg chucking game (see below)even more fun!

8. After boiling, rinse with cold water. This stops the after-cooking process and prevents the egg yolks from creating a rather unpleasant to the eye, green crust forming around them.

Rub your Greek Easter-colored eggs with olive oil for a more shiny result.

Also:

1. Use white eggs for an effective coloring outcome.

2. Clean your eggs with a cloth in vinegar before boiling; this will also help your natural dyes to perform at their maximum potential.

3. Use a paper napkin with its center soaked in olive oil to rub your dyed eggs with; this will give your eggs a bright, shiny look.

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Ready to do it? Here is a 3min quick video guide on natural Easter egg dyes!

💡Did you know?

Dying the Easter eggs is the brightest symbol of Greek Easter and is a tradition to do so on Holy Thursday.

Albeit dying the eggs in many colors is a common thing nowadays, red is the ultimate greek traditional color to use and symbolizes the blood and sacrifice of Christ since the early years of Christianity. In the Greek Orthodox church red color symbolizes also joy.

According to the custom, the first egg that is painted on Holy Thursday belongs to the Virgin Mary and should not be “cracked”.

Many housewives even today keep the egg in the “iconostasis” – a wall of icons and religious paintings – all year round until next Easter.

On Holy Thursday of the following year, they plant it in their fields to be fertile or hang it in the herds of animals to be fertile.

“Red Wins.” Source: Wikepedia

After the resurrection of Christ is announced and church ends, the greek families seat at the Easter table; the tradition has it to play egg tapping, with the Greek Easter eggs in a game that symbolizes the new life, just like a baby bird cracks the shell and comes to life.

The player who successfully cracks the eggs of all his “opponents” is said to be granted luck for the rest of the year!

This custom was established for the first time in the Byzantine courtyard by Constantine the Great and his mother St. Helen, with an official ceremony that took place on Easter Sunday morning. The guests would knock their eggs with the emperor and the queen mother, followed by a meal at the Easter Sunday table.