Кра́шение пасха́льных яи́ц [Coloring Easter eggs] is one of my funnest memories of celebrating Па́сха [Easter]. In our family, we used a traditional way кра́сить [to color] я́йца [eggs] by boiling them в лу́ковой шелухе́ [in onion shells].

A few weeks пе́ред пра́здником [before the holiday], my mother would start collecting лу́ковую шелуху́ [the onion shells], so we would have enough for coloring я́йца [the eggs]. Also, the more onion shells you have, the darker the eggs will color! On the day before Easter, we would get together на ку́хне [in the kitchen] and color пасха́льные я́йца [Easter eggs].

To color the eggs using лу́ковую шелуху́ [the onion shells], you need the following:

– raw eggs
– onion shells (about 1 gallon bag full, but the more the merrier)
– a pot that doesn’t stain
– water

Step 1: Place all onion shells into a pot, then put your eggs on top of the shells.

Step 2: Pour water to cover the eggs, and place the pot on the stove. Turn the stove on, and bring the water to boil. Set the burner to medium-high heat, and let the eggs boil for 10-12 minutes.

Step 3: Once the eggs are done, use a spoon to take them out. Do not place the eggs onto a towel because it will stain. Once the eggs cool off, you can serve them, play games with them, or give them to your family and friends as gifts!

Hint: You can reuse the onion shell dye, if you decide to color more eggs later.

Russian “Easter Egg Cracking” Game!

After я́йца [the eggs] were colored, my brother and I would each choose яйцо́ [an egg] and play a traditional Russian Easter egg game. In America, де́ти [children] go Easter egg hunting. In Russia, де́ти [children] go “Easter egg cracking!”

So we would each choose an Easter egg, then one of us would hold an egg and another one would try and crack it with his/her egg. Наприме́р [for example], I would hold своё яйцо́ [my egg] firmly in my hand, and my brother would try cracking the tip of my egg with the tip of his. Whoever cracks яйцо́ [the egg] wins. If ва́ше яйцо́ [your egg] becomes cracked, you choose another one, and игра́ [the game] continues until all eggs are cracked!

In our neighborhood, де́ти [children] would take their пасха́льные я́йца [Easter eggs] outside and compete with one another to see who had the strongest яйцо́ [egg]. On Easter, our yard was covered with colorful egg shells and, as one would expect, by the end of Sunday all our пасха́льные я́йца [Easter eggs] were cracked!

Happy Easter Egg Cracking!