Fanqie chao ji dan

China's most-cooked home dish: ripe tomatoes stir-fried with scrambled eggs in a sweet-salty sauce of ketchup, sugar and sesame oil: the dish every Chinese child grows up eating, deceptively simple and technically instructive

Origin: China (national; all regions)

From the journey of Tomato.

Fanqie chao ji dan, tomato stir-fried with egg, is almost certainly the most frequently cooked dish in China and one of the most commonly made dishes in the world by sheer volume. It appears in every Chinese household, from Beijing to Guangzhou, Sichuan to Shanghai. It is the dish taught to children learning to cook, the dish made when nothing else is available, and, at its best, one of the most satisfying combinations in all of Chinese cuisine. The Chinese name tells its history: fanqie means 'foreign eggplant': the name Chinese cooks gave the tomato when it arrived via Portuguese and Dutch trade routes in the 16th–17th centuries, reflecting their recognition of a nightshade relative of the aubergine. The dish is a relatively recent invention in culinary historical terms; it could not exist before the tomato arrived; but it has been so thoroughly absorbed into Chinese food culture that its foreign origin is forgotten. The technique is instructive about Chinese stir-frying: the eggs are cooked first and removed; the tomatoes are cooked separately to release their juice; the two are briefly reunited at the end. This two-stage process prevents the eggs from overcooking and allows each element to develop its character before combining. The seasoning; sugar to balance the tomato's acidity, a small amount of ketchup for depth and colour (an authentically Chinese addition), and sesame oil at the end; is sweeter than most Western cooks expect. This sweetness is deliberate and correct.

Ingredients

Main

  • 4 medium very ripe tomatoes (about 400g), cut into rough wedges
  • 4 large eggs
  • 3 spring onions white parts thinly sliced; green tops reserved for garnish
  • 3 tbsp neutral oil (vegetable or peanut), divided

Sauce

  • 1 tbsp tomato ketchup
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 0.5 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp sesame oil
  • 1 tbsp Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry

Method

  1. Beat the eggs with a pinch of salt and the Shaoxing wine until completely combined and slightly frothy. Set aside. In a small bowl, mix together the ketchup, sugar, and salt; this is the seasoning sauce.
  2. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a wok or large non-stick pan over high heat until shimmering and just beginning to smoke. Pour in the beaten eggs. Leave for 5 seconds until the edges begin to set, then use a spatula to push and fold the eggs in large, soft strokes; do not scramble fine. Remove the eggs when they are 80% cooked (still slightly wet and glossy) and set aside on a plate.
  3. Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the wok over high heat. Add the white parts of the spring onion and stir-fry for 30 seconds. Add the tomato wedges and cook over high heat, stirring and tossing, for 2–3 minutes until the tomatoes begin to soften and release their juice.
  4. Add the seasoning sauce (ketchup, sugar, salt mixture) and toss through the tomatoes.
  5. Return the partly-cooked eggs to the wok. Toss everything together gently over high heat for 30 seconds; just long enough to finish cooking the eggs and marry the flavours. The eggs should coat the tomatoes, absorbing some of the tomato juice.
  6. Remove from heat, drizzle with sesame oil, and scatter the green spring onion tops over the top. Serve immediately over steamed jasmine rice.

Notes

The sweetness of this dish surprises Western cooks. The full teaspoon of sugar, combined with the ketchup, creates a sweet-salty balance that is distinctly Chinese and fundamentally different from Western egg and tomato preparations. Reduce the sugar if you prefer, but understand that you are deviating from the original.

The Gastrographer

The Gastrographer

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Ingredient originTrade or transit route
Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control
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