You'll Never Eat Flavorless Eggs Again When You Fry Them Chinese Style

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Years ago, when I was a home care physical therapist in New York City, I would sometimes stop by my grandparents' home for lunch, where my gong gong (maternal grandfather) would always have a hot meal ready for me. What always stood out to me was the delicious and super flavorful fried eggs he made to accompany our rice. Using a wok with a generous amount of oil, he made "荷包蛋" or "he bao dan," otherwise known as "wallet eggs" in Cantonese. They had smoky flavors from the wok, or "wok hei," and gong gong would drizzle hot scallion oil and soy sauce over them. 

As a cookbook author, I like to think of eggs literally as a protein canvas or sponge, one that happily absorbs other flavors. See, egg yolks are chock-full of glutamates, the compounds that signal savoriness and umami to our taste buds. When added to eggs, soy sauce, fish sauce, and MSG (or monosodium glutamate) amplify the protein's flavors. Gong gong's eggs are seared into my memory — he and other Chinese home cooks know very well how to enhance the natural umami of eggs. While he is no longer here today, I've immortalized his recipe in my cookbook, "Modern Asian Kitchen."

Aside from carrying the kiss of smoky flavor from the wok and working beautifully as a vessel for savory sauces, gong gong's fried eggs also benefited from the Maillard reaction. It is a reaction in which food cooked over high heat breaks down and browns, becoming tastier and more aromatic. See, gong gong would fry eggs in at least 2 tablespoons of neutral oil. The result? Eggs with crispy, frilly fried edges, while the yolks stayed melty in the center. The golden-brown edges are nutty and toasty, and the eggs are completely transformed. 

From there, gong gong would scoop the perfectly fried egg out of the wok and top it with sauce and seasoned oil. However, these days, I also like to experiment with my wok-fried Chinese-style eggs. Sometimes I add a dash of my favorite fish sauce and then drizzle chili crisp over it. But the one thing I rarely do is add salt and pepper to my fried eggs and call it a day. Nature's protein canvases deserve more — and you should always choose umami. Consider making my gong gong's Chinese-style eggs or sizzle them Thai style (it's easy).