Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Pocket Eggs

I mentioned on Monday that I’m trying to learn more about Chinese cooking and gain some confidence in that culinary arena. I’ve been reading The Key to Chinese Cooking, and this is another dish from that book. Pocket eggs were very simple but new to me. The basic concept is to break eggs into a pan to fry them and fold them in half before they are finished cooking. Easy enough. Soy sauce, cider vinegar, and sugar were combined as a sauce which was poured over the eggs at the end of the cooking time.

As I turned the eggs onto themselves, I imagined future versions of them as mini egg tacos stuffed with a pinch of shredded cheese or a dab of salsa. The resulting half-moon eggs were very cute especially when you think of them as mini egg tacos. For a moment, I considered leaving the sugar out of the sauce which is just the sort of thing I would normally do. But, since I’ve been on a mission to learn from Irene Kuo and gain some understanding of Chinese cuisine, I stuck to the exact instructions. The sugar mitigated the vinegar’s acidity and was balanced by the soy sauce. The sauce is poured into the hot pan just as the eggs have finished cooking, the heat is turned off, and a lid is placed on the pan. You shake the pan as it sizzles, and the sauce thickens just a bit as it swirls around the eggs. The process was so simple I really couldn’t have failed. I need to learn a few more dishes to create a complete Chinese brunch, but the pocket eggs were a success.

11 comments:

  1. I saw your picture over at foodgawker and had to click on it immediately. Wow, you just brought back so many childhood memories with that egg. As a kid I use to love it over steam rice serve along with steam Chinese greens and drizzle with oyster sauce.

    ReplyDelete
  2. So glad to have brought back some good memories! I was wondering how these were typically served because, in the book, it just says: "serve with a Chinese brunch." I'll have to try these again with rice and steamed greens. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I was thinking of putting a plain poached egg over my fried noodles tonight but I think I'll do this instead! Thanks for the tip!

    ReplyDelete
  4. they certainly look like mini tacos--i think sticking something in the middle is a great idea! :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. umm yum! looks delicious! the pictures are beautiful, too!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Wow, so simple, so good, so versatile.

    (Oh, I found you via your foodgawker or photograzing picture.)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Lisa,
    I love eggs any way, shape or form.
    These came out beautiful, as do all of your dishes.

    Still waiting for Lisa's Cooking Cookbook!

    Stacey

    ReplyDelete
  8. This looks great - I really want to try them, and I love your ideas for future versions!

    ReplyDelete
  9. This looks fantastic, I can imagine spring onions or prawns inside mine. I can't eat sugar, so I guess a little honey would work as well?
    x x x

    ReplyDelete
  10. this is so gorgeous and unique. lovely blog.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Wow, thanks, I am gonna try Pocket Eggs tomorrow itself.

    ReplyDelete

Blogging tips