Steamed Egg Recipe (clap for joy)

So you know how when you were younger, your taste buds used to be really, really simple. There was once upon a time, when our knowledge of food and taste was so unadulterated by all the complex/sophisticated techniques and ingredients we have come to experience over the years.

You either like a food or you don't, that was it. It wasn't about how it looked, or how expensive it was, but simply how it made you happy/excited from the very first bite, for whatever reason it may be. You would eat delicious food wide-eyed, and smiling.

Mum likes to remind me that when I was younger, I used to be such a picky eater. But then there are those times, when I would walk into the kitchen, and immediately clap for joy at the sight of what was prepared before me, and she would laugh. My excitement and appreciation was uncontrollable. I can tell you now, that till this day, this is still the case =)

There's so many home-cooked food that I can remember off the top of my head that would make me feel this way. Dinners with deep fried prawns, fried nam yu pork, plum sauce duck, ikan masin eggplants, the list goes on (and on...). There's so many of these kind of recipes of my childhood that I plan to revisit and recreate on this blog, so do stay tuned.

This Steamed Egg dish was definitely one of them. Since I was a kid, one of my favourite things to eat was Eggs. Eggs, eggs, eggs... Boy, did I love eggs... I could eat a big plate of rice with this every time and would always secretly wish we could have this for dinner every night. No kidding.

The silkiness of the egg, countered by the saltiness of the duck yolk (placed right at the centre as the "treasure" of the dish), on a bed of tasty mince which had lots of sauce or gravy to go with your rice. Simply, divine. I'm so glad that I can make this dish for myself now.

And what's best is that it's not only delicious, but it seriously takes close to no time to make.

3min prep time + 10min cooking time, it's done before your rice is even ready. Awesome.

On a more technical note, I've always found the perfect ratio of egg to water that will give you a smooth and delicious consistency is 50ml of water per egg. So do feel free to use this if you use a deeper dish or would like to increase the volume of your egg. Also, 10min total steaming time under high heat works best for me. If you find that your eggs still haven't set, steam longer but not too long or they will turn out too stiff and "egg-y". You could also omit the "poking step" by steaming it longer under lower heat but I'm lazy and this is quicker.

Now tell me, what are some of the food that you now, or used to, like eating that would make YOU clap for joy? Anything from your childhood or of late?

Would love to hear the stories behind all the food that still brings a heartfelt joy to you or your family. Hope you're all having a smashing start to the week!

Blessings,

Winston =)

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Steamed Egg Recipe

Ingredients:

Ground meat:

250g minced pork

2 tbsp sesame oil

3 tbsp Shao Xing wine

2 tsp oyster sauce

1 tsp light soy sauce

4 tsp chilli oil (optional, if you like a bit of kick like me)

Egg custard:

3 eggs (your usual 60 - 70g ones)

150ml water or chicken stock

dash of white pepper

1 salted duck egg (optional)

Method:

1. Separate duck egg white and yolk. Combine all ground meat ingredients, including duck egg white (if using). In a separate bowl, whisk egg, water and pepper. Set aside.

2. Place ground meat at the bottom of a 22cm deep dish (approximate). Pour egg custard on top. Place duck egg yolk in middle.

3. Steam on high heat for 7 minutes. Open cover and use spoon to poke all around the egg mixture (to release built up steam in egg). Garnish with spring onions if you like and continue to steam for another 3 minutes (which makes 10 minutes in total). Serves 4 as a meal with rice and other dishes.