Steamed egg is a truly Chinese home cooking dish. You won't find it at any restaurants. It's so simple, yet everyone I've ever made it for who hasn't had it before has been amazed! There are variations that add mushrooms, dried shrimp (called "shrimp rice" in Chinese), or noodlefish (it's also the Chinese nickname for white canvas shoes).
Japanese also have a version of this, a bit fancier, usually done in ceramic tea cups, hence its name "chawan mushi" which means "steamed in a tea cup". Today we'll do the most basic version found in Chinese homes.
Ingredients
- 4 eggs
- water
- 1 tsp salt
- soy sauce
- chopped green onions
Method
- Crack the eggs into a large bowl. Try to crack at least one of the eggs so that the shell is in 2 equal halves. For each egg, add 3 half shells full of water (so 12 in our case). If you're a Big Endian, use the big half. If you're a Little Endian, use the little half. In my opinion, it doesn't much matter. Oops, I'm not supposed to be political here. It's just steamed eggs.
- Add salt.
- Beat the eggs with the water and pour into a steaming dish.
- Place the dish in a wok on a steaming rack or into a steamer.
- Cover the eggs with foil or a plate.
- Steam on medium heat for 7-10 minutes
- Finish with some soy sauce and chopped green onions.
* The tools I described in my post about steamed eggplant help tremendously with this dish.
That's basic Chinese home style steamed eggs. The texture is way more refined and delicate than its "class" might suggest. You can try adding your own ingredients to make variations.
