Chinese Home-Cooked Tomato Eggs DIY Recipe (w/ step-by-step instructions)

So fun fact – I have no idea what this dish is called in English, but in Chinese, it’s called 蕃茄炒蛋, which literally translates to Tomato Eggs, hence that’s what I’m calling it today.

I first tried this dish a few years back in San Juan, while eating at this Chinese restaurant whose name eludes me. But according to Zomato, this tomato egg dish of theirs is SUPER good, and so while I had no idea how tomato and egg could elicit such a strong positive reaction, I decided, why not? Well, it’s GOOD.

So when I went home, I immediately bustled over to my mom and told her about this rapturous experience of mine (ok, a bit of an exaggeration, but really it was good enough that I told my mom she should try to cook it!). And my mom did! Honestly, my mom’s really good in the kitchen – she cooks by taste, never seems to follow a recipe, but always ends up with a good dish. I, on the other hand, am the opposite. I can tell you technically what you’re supposed to do – e.g. add water to make the scrambled egg a bit fluffier (because I like reading about these things), but have no idea how to cook on the fly (and the sheer thought makes me shudder… forewarned is forearmed! Why would you want to cook on the fly!?!)

Anyway, long story aside. Let’s dive in.

DELECTABLE DISH FOR THE DAY: CHINESE HOME-COOKED TOMATO EGG

DIFFICULTY: Easy

SERVING SIZE: Good for 5 people

COOK TIME: 30 minutes

 

INGREDIENTS FOR CHINESE HOME-COOKED TOMATO EGG

• 9 pcs of tomato
• 10 cloves garlic
• 9 eggs
• 3 tbsp Ketchup
• 1 tbsp Lee Kum Kee soy sauce
• 1 tbsp sesame oil
• Water

 

STEP-BY-STEP PROCESS TO MAKE CHINESE HOME-COOKED TOMATO EGG

• Wash the tomato thoroughly first, then make generous cross-section cuts at the top. This is to allow the hot water to seep into the tomato and enable the skin to peel off more easily

• Place the tomato into hot water for ~15 minutes. Afterwards, take it out and peel off the skin using your hands. Slice the tomato into thin strips, and dump them into a bowl (with the seeds and everything!)
• Mince 10 cloves of garlic and set aside
• Crack 9 pcs of egg into a bowl, place some salt (for flavor) and water (for fluffiness) and mix thoroughly

• In a big pan, place oil over medium heat. Commence cooking your egg (don’t dump in everything at once, but cook in batches). Scramble the egg, and take it out once it has set – but make sure to NOT over cook

• Afterwards, in the same pan, put some oil, sauté the garlic till golden brown, then dump in the tomato strips

• Now for the sauce, put in 3 tbsp ketchup (can add more if you want it more flavorful), 1 tbsp Lee Kum Kee soy sauce, 1 tbsp sesame oil (just for the fragrance), and 1 tsp water
• Once the sauce starts boiling, dump the scrambled egg in and mix thoroughly

• Bon Appetit!