Sunday Breakfast

I have no idea how Chinese this recipe for Beijing-Style Scrambled Eggs really is, but I was wandering through my recipe collection and realized I had everything this one called for, and Joe and I were hungry, so I whipped up a batch - super easy and quick and uses only one pan! Sounds like the perfect breakfast to me! These are the very simple ingredients:

BEIJING-STYLE SCRAMBLED EGGS WITH TOMATOES (NY Times recipe)

2 medium tomatoes

3 eggs, beaten

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

2 tablespoons vegetable oil (I skipped the oil and used a well-sprayed nonstick pan)

1 green onion, diced (mine was sliced)

1/2 inch piece of fresh ginger root, grated

1 teaspoon sugar

Cook the tomatoes in boiling water for 30 seconds. Remove, drain, and peel the skin off. Cut in half and remove seeds, and chop coarsely. Set the tomato on a paper towel-lined dish to absorb liquid.

        In a small bowl, beat the eggs and add salt.

        In a skillet or wok, heat 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil over a high flame, making sure the pan is hot. Add the eggs, lower heat to medium-high and stir gently until thickened, but not overcooked. Remove from heat and place on a dish.

      Over high heat, add the remaining tablespoon of vegetable oil to the pan and stir-fry the green onion and ginger for a few seconds. Add the tomato and sugar. Stir-fry for about 30 seconds or until most of the liquid has evaporated. Add the scrambled eggs to the skillet. Stir gently and cook until the liquid has cooked away and serve immediately.

WHAT I DID DIFFERENTLY:

1. I skipped the whole blanching and peeling of the tomatoes. I don't mind the skin; I'm sure it adds a little fiber. I used meaty Roma tomatoes which produce less juice than some varieties; next time I'll try something juicier. But it still tasted great.

2. I also skipped the oil entirely. A decent nonstick pan with a generous spray of Pam-type cooking spray worked just fine.

After the eggs were scrambled and removed to a plate,
 I just re-sprayed the pan for the ginger and scallions,  followed by the tomatoes.

 3. I didn't actually stir the eggs and tomatoes together when I put the eggs back in the pan; rather, I pushed the tomatoes to the sides, plopped the eggs back down in the middle to warm up again, then served it up.

I don't suppose the toast is very authentically Chinese. In fact, the whole thing seems more like a delicious Asian twist on huevos rancheros, and that's just fine with me. I'll be happy to make it and eat it again.

      The recipe didn't say how many it would serve. One or two, I guess. This morning it served two, along with some fruit (not shown). It was enough, but I can easily imagine someone hungrier than I was today eating it all. After all, many restaurant omelets use 3 eggs.

Cosmo, not surprisingly, slept through the whole production.