Stir-fry Tomatoes with Eggs （西红柿炒蛋）

“No tomatoes please!” I used to dislike tomatoes and its sourish taste. However, tomatoes are known to be really good for skin. Ladies, you may want to check this out! According to various research, tomatoes are found to consist of lycopene, which is a substance that can protect our immune cells from free radicals. Tomatoes are known to be heart-friendly and they are also loaded up with Vitamin A, which is good for your skin, hair, etc. So when did I start to un-dislike tomatoes?

Well, the story has to go back to when my friends and I plunged on an unplanned trip to visit one of our friends in Wellington. She and her family were so kind to invite us to her place for dinner. Her mom made us a lot of very delicious dishes and one of them was stir-fry tomatoes with eggs. To be honest, I was quite hesitant to give it a try when I saw it even though I love eggs. But looking at everyone around the table with their satisfying looks, I took one small spoonful of eggs with tomatoes and mixed it with my bowl of rice. I started un-disliking it on my first scoop of rice and egg but when it reached my second and third spoonfuls of rice, I started liking it instead. I asked her mom how it was done with the hope of replicating it when I returned to Dunedin. Her mom said it was very easy and told me the recipe briefly. I tried replicating it after I returned but it didn’t turn out as nice. It wasn’t bad but just not what I’d expect. Another friend of mine, Jimmy, then showed me how he cooked this dish using his Northern Chinese method. It’s quite different from my friend’s mom’s version. I like both versions. So, I decided to combine these two versions and see what turns out.

The tastiest stir-fry tomatoes with eggs

Ingredients:

1. 5 eggs
2. 6 – 7 tomatoes (cut into 1/8 pieces)
3. 2 star anise
4. 1 onion (slice into strips)
5. Oil
6. Sugar
7. Salt
8. Light soy sauce

Cooking method:

1. Whisk eggs in a big bowl until the mixture becomes fluffy.
2. Slice onion into strips and cut the tomatoes into 1/8 pieces.
3. Heat oil in a non-stick pan and pour in the egg mixture.
4. When one side of the egg is cooked, flip over to another side. Strip the egg into small strips/chunks when the egg is about ready.
5. Dish the egg strips/chunks up and put them aside.
6. Heat some oil in the same non-stick pan, put in star anise and stir fry until fragrant.
7. Add onions strips and stir fry for 2 minutes on medium heat.
8. Add tomatoes and stir fry for a minute.
9. Season it with salt, sugar and light soy sauce.
10. When the tomatoes are getting soft and melting away, add in the eggs.
11. Switch off the heat, continue stir frying until all ingredients are well mixed. Taste and see if it is to your preference. Else, add a bit more salt and/or sugar.
12. Dish up and serve.

Enjoy this very tasty dish, which I got addicted to ever since I got this recipe done!