FRIED RICE WITH SALTED EGGS

After trying some of the fried rice recipes in my collection that turned out yummy, this is another tasty fried rice which I prepared for Sunday lunch. Compared with the earlier 2 recipes Nyonya Style Fried Rice and Thai Pineapple Fried Rice, this one has 2 more ingredients [young corn and frozen green peas] which you may obtain from leftovers after cooking other dishes or you can keep them for other fried rice recipes like Yang Chow Fried Rice or Fried Rice Ala Kampung so that these ingredients won’t be left to waste.

I find this fried rice good, it is tasty, savoury and extra fragrant with the addition of the salted eggs.

Ingredients

[serves 2]

3 cups cooked cooled rice [from about 1 cup uncooked rice]

1-2 salted eggs – steamed, shelled and diced

1 egg – mix with dash of pepper

2-3 tbsp oil

50 gm prawns – diced

2 young corns – diced [I used canned ones]

3 tbsp frozen green peas [I used canned ones]

Seasoning [combined]

1 tbsp each light soy sauce and oyster sauce

1 /4 tsp each of salt, pepper and msg [sugar]

Garnishing – some chopped spring onions and red chilli

1. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a non-stick wok, pour in egg and scramble until almost cooked. Dish up.
2. Reheat wok with 1-2 tbsp oil, sauté prawns and sweet corns until prawns are cooked. Add in rice and stir constantly until fragrant.
3. Add in seasoning, salted eggs and green peas, toss over high heat until well combined. Add in scrambled eggs and fry until rice is light.
4. Dish up to serve, garnish with spring onions and chilli.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Click here for other Fried Rice Recipes

Tips – for best results in frying rice, use cooked rice that is cooled or preferably kept overnight and always stir ingredients well after each addition over medium to high heat.

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NYONYA TAU EU BAK [PORK BELLY IN DARK SOY SAUCE]

Tau Eu Bak [Braised Pork Belly With Eggs] is a common dish in my mum’s place. She prepares this dish at least once a week using pork belly, firm beancurd and hard boiled eggs as the main ingredients together with soy sauce as seasoning. Her Tau Eu Bak is good eventhough the seasoning is according to her own estimation, like using her finger tips to add in the sugar and pouring in the dark soy sauce and light soy sauce straight from the bottle without a measuring spoon. Yet, it never fails.  This trick, we can never master.

I came across this Nyonya [Peranakan] pork belly dish recipe shared by Pearly Kee in her book ‘A Nyonya Inheritance’. This recipe is one of the recipes which I have tried from her book. Her way of cooking this dish is different from the other Nyonya recipe book ‘Nyonya Flavours’. For a comparison please refer to this  Recipe.

Anyway, this Tau Eu Bak turns out well, good and tasty, too. In my opinion, it is not difficult to cook this popular Nyonya dish yet the result is awesome. I have adjusted the seasoning a little such as reducing the amount of dark soy sauce and white pepper to suit my own preference. I have also omitted 1-2 steps because the pork belly was already tender after braising for about 45 minutes. The original recipe stated about 1 and ½ hours or so for the meat to be tender.  For this recipe, you would not be able to see the whole garlic after cooking.

Yummy-licious Nyonya dish, so good to serve with sambal belacan and steaming hot rice.   My advice is to cook this whole portion and store them in smaller portions if you can finish it in one go.  

Recipe adapted from ‘A Nyonya Inheritance’ by Pearly Kee with slight modifications

Ingredients
[serves 5-6]

600 gm pork belly with skin – cut chunky pieces

1 bulb garlic – skin removed and keep whole

3 pieces firm beancurd [taukwa] – quartered and fried until golden

4 hard-boiled eggs [or more if preferred]

2 cups [500 ml] water

Marinade [Mix together in a bowl]

4 tbsp soy sauce

2 tbsp dark soy sauce [I used 1 tbsp]

3 tbsp sugar

½ tsp salt

1-2 tbsp white pepper powder [I used 1 tbsp]

1. Combine marinade ingredients in a bowl and rest for 15 minutes for the sugar to dissolve.
2. Place pork belly pieces, garlic and marinade in a pot and turn on high heat.
3. Stir the ingredients to mix evenly. It is important to control the heat to prevent the marinade from drying up too fast. Reduce to medium heat and constantly stirring until the marinade is almost dry and oil begins to surface [about 10-15 minutes]. This will give the dish an amazing flavor.
4. Add enough water [1 cup] to cover the ingredients. Turn to medium high heat and cover to boil until the liquid is reduced [about 20 minutes]. Top up with more water and cover to cook for a further 20 minutes.
5. Then add in the fried beancurd pieces and hard boiled eggs. Stir to coat ingredients with the sauce.
6. Cover and lower heat to simmer until gravy has reduced by half and has thickened.
7. Serve warm with steaming hot rice.
   
   
   
   
   
   

Pearly’s Tips – Proper heat control is very important for this dish. The easiest is to cook it in a slow cooker for 2 hours with just enough water to cover the meat.

I am submitting this post to Cook Your Books Event #28 [November 2015] hosted by Joyce of Kitchen Flavours

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EZCR#35 - MEAT, EGG AND YAMBEAN PORRIDGE

This is not the thick and mushy type of porridge. The rice is grainy but soft and the broth is a little soupy for the Chinese crullers to soak it up. It is a very simple and easy porridge to prepare and the yambean cubes stay crunchy.

A homey porridge for the family, serve with a simple stir fry vegetables makes it a complete easy meal.  Love this easy meal which is perfect for busy days.

Ingredients

[serves 4]

1 ½ cups rice

2 litres water

200 gm yam bean – cubed

150 gm pork meat – cut strips

1 large egg [I used duck egg] – lightly beaten

Some chopped coriander and spring onions

Some crispy fried garlic

1 piece Chinese crullers [Eu Char Koay/Yutiao] – cut small pieces [click here on how to fry soft crullers till crispy]

Seasoning

2 tsp salt

½ tsp chicken stock granules or msg

½ tsp pepper

2 tbsp cooking wine

1. Marinate meat strips with 1 tsp light soy sauce, wine, dash of pepper and cornstarch. Mix well and set aside.
2. Boil rice with water in a big pot. Add in yam bean cubes and salt when the water boils. Cook until rice is soft over medium heat [about 30 minutes].
3. Add in marinated meat to cook, stir to mix well. Pour in beaten egg and do not stir until after cooking for 10 seconds.
4. Lastly add in msg, pepper and wine to taste.
5. Scoop porridge into individual bowls to serve yutiao, fried garlic, chopped coriander and spring onions.
   
   
   
   
   
   

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EZCR#28 - CHIVES AND SAUSAGE PANCAKE

When you are tired of having rice, noodles for lunch, perhaps you can consider this savoury pancake for weekend lunch. Preparation is quick with simple ingredients and children should love to have this pancake for a change.

This pancake is tasty, soft and moist but firm. Serve with chilli sauce, tomato sauce or mayonnaise would be great accompaniment.  For vegetarian version, just omit the Chinese sausage [Lap Cheong].

Ingredients

[serves 2-3]

250 gm self raising flour or plain flour

250 ml water

2 eggs

• Combine flour, water, eggs and seasoning into a batter. Set aside.

1 bunch chives [kucai] – washed and cut 1 cm lengths

100 gm carrot – peeled and shredded

1 Chinese sausage [lap cheong] – remove the skin and diced

1 stalk spring onions – washed and cut 1 cm lengths

2 cloves garlic – chopped

Seasoning

½ tsp each salt and pepper

Dash of msg

1 tbsp light soy sauce

1. Heat a non-stick wok with 1/2 tbsp oil, fry sausage and garlic until aromatic. Add in spring onions, carrots and chives. Stir fry to mix well and dish up onto prepared batter. Mix to combine.
2. Heat the same wok with 1-2 tbsp oil, pour in half the batter, fry over low heat until the edges are brown and there are small holes appearing in the batter. 
3. Flip over to fry the other side until golden brown and pancake is cooked.  Dish up onto a plate.
4. Add another 1-2 tbsp oil in wok and fry another piece with the remaining batter the same way.
5. Cut pancake into small pieces and serve with chilli sauce.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

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EZCR#26 - TOMATO MUSHROOM BASIL OMELETTE

Another dish without meat which I prepared with fresh mushrooms.  There are various types of fresh mushrooms in abundance in Xiamen.
I cooked this tomato egg foo yong [omelette] when my neighbor gave me a bunch of Basil leaves from his garden. This is a healthy omelette with tomatoes, fresh mushrooms [I used White Crab mushrooms], basil leaves and eggs.

The omelette is very aromatic with the basil leaves, the soft tomatoes are sourish and the mushrooms are crunchy and sweet. Lovely omelette which is soft, moist and tasty to go with rice.  I believe this is a healthy dish packed with ample nutrients.

Ingredients

[serves 3]

3 eggs – lightly beaten

1 large tomato – skinned and diced

1 packet fresh mushrooms – discard the base and cut 1 cm pieces

A bunch of basil leaves – stems removed

Seasoning

½ tsp salt

Dash of pepper

1 tbsp wine

1 tsp cornstarch

1. Mix seasoning ingredients in a bowl and add in the eggs. Lightly beat and set aside.
2. Heat up a non-stick wok without oil, stir fry mushrooms until water oozes out and almost dry.
3. Add in 1 teaspoon oil and tomato. Stir fry to mix well and dish up into egg mixture.
4. Heat wok with 1-2 tbsp oil, pour in egg mixture. Shake the wok a little to spread out the mixture.
5. Fry over low heat until the edges are firm. Spread basil leaves over egg omelette and fry until the omelette is brown at the edges. Flip over to fry the other side until cooked.
6. Dish up onto serving platter.
   
   
   
   
   

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