Well, dear reader, brace yourself for yet another egg recipe. I am steadfast in my new "I must use what I have on hand and not allow anything to go to waste" mentality. Seriously, we throw away so much food. Whether it is fresh produce that gets pushed to the back of the refrigerator and forgotten or leftovers that are kept for upcoming meals and tossed away, we waste a ton of food. My new mantra is "use what we have and don't waste anything."
Each market season, my various farmer friends graciously gift us items they don't sell at the market. These gifts range from fresh-cut flowers to herbs, bread, and mushrooms. I appreciate these generous gifts, but sometimes I don't know how to use the items in an everyday meal. We have learned that focaccia bread makes a beautiful and delicious pizza crust. I've also learned to create a lovely and tasty cream of mushroom soup from various gourmet mushrooms. Herbs tend to throw me a bit. I don't know how to use fennel or tarragon in large quantities. However, I am adamant that I will figure it out.
Last Saturday, our friends from Starcrossed Naturals gifted me a large bunch of fresh chives. I am unfamiliar with using fresh chives other than creating garlic and chive butter to top baked potatoes. Garlic and chive butter is an easy recipe but only requires a tablespoon or two of fresh chives. I had two cups or more of fresh chives to work with, and I did not want to let them go to waste. I came home from the market, put my fresh chive bouquet in a mason jar of water in the refrigerator, and then Googled recipes using chives.
The very first recipe to appear was an egg and chive Chinese stir-fry. This recipe is from: whttps://thewoksoflife.com/chinese-chives-eggs/#recipe. Check out this website for a variety of traditional Chinese recipes and wonderful insight. Much to my pleasure, I had everything on hand to create this easy recipe. Continuing with the theme of eating what we have on hand, I continue to have a ton of chicken eggs. Unfortunately, egg meals are going the way of soup with my daughter. I am confident she will begin protesting in earnest all things egg-based. However, she will have to learn to eat a lot of eggs or go hungry-sorry Bean.
This egg stir-fry was a quick and delicious meal that was ready in minutes. It was very filling and quite tasty. The Bibbed Wonder gave it the stamp of approval and requested I make it again. When a recipe is placed on the make-again list, I know it is a success. I served the egg and chive stir-fry with jasmine rice and fresh fruit to round out the meal. This is a lovely meal for busy weeknights when meal planning was forgotten.
Egg and Chive Stir-Fry
(Courtesy of The Woks of Life Website's co-author Judy)
Ingredients:
2 Cups cooked jasmine rice
5 eggs (I used 6 eggs because I have so many, and I like even numbers)
1/8 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon Shaoxing wine
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
4 teaspoons water
2 cups Chinese chives/garlic chives (chopped)
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
Directions:
Crack the eggs into a large bowl, and add the sugar, salt, Shaoxing wine, white pepper, sesame oil, and water. Beat the eggs for 30 seconds until you see a layer of tiny bubbles floating on the surface of the beaten eggs. Mix in the chives until combined. Now you are ready to cook.
Heat a wok until it starts to smoke, then turn the heat down to medium-low. Wait 10 seconds, and then add the oil. Coat the wok with oil using your spatula to swirl it around. When adding the egg mixture, the oil should be hot but not smoking.
Once you pour the eggs into the wok, flip them and stir them slowly with a spatula, being careful not to let them brown or firm up too much. Once the eggs are just cooked, they're ready.
I hope you enjoy this simple and delicious recipe as much as we did. Check out The Woks of Life website for more delicious traditional Chinese recipes. On this lovely summer-like Friday, stay safe, be smart, try new recipes, use what you have, make every effort not to waste food, and, of course, keep washing your hands.
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