Egg and Tomato Stir Fry (番茄炒蛋)

5 from 7 votes

Egg and Tomato Stir Fry is made using everyday ingredients. Let the tomatoes simmer around egg folds and serve over rice!

Prep Time10

Cook Time20

Total Time30

Course: Breakfast, Dinner, Lunch, Side Dish

Cuisine: Asian, Cantonese, Chinese

Servings:

Calories: 211kcal

4 large tomatoes (or 5 small ones; quartered)
5 eggs (or to preference)
2 cloves garlic (finely chopped)
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 1/2 tsp salt (1/4 tsp for the eggs and remaining for the tomatoes; all to taste)
2 1/2 tsp sugar (or to taste)
1 tsp chicken bouillon powder (1/4 tsp for the eggs and remaining for the tomatoes)
1 tsp dark soy sauce
1 tsp vinegar (optional; only if you like it more tangy)
1 US cup water (or to preference)
6 tbsp oil (half for the eggs, half for the tomatoes)
5 spring onion (whites separated from the green and the green finely chopped)
1 tbsp potato starch slurry (1 tbsp potato starch mixed with 1 tbsp water)

Whisk the eggs until combined and season with 1/4 tsp salt and chicken bouillon powder. Heat up a wok with 3 tbsp oil on high heat, then pour it in.
Turn the heat down to low-medium and use a flat cooking utensil like a spatula to pull the cooked part toward the center.
Give it 10 seconds for another part of the mixture to cook before pulling that into the middle as well. Repeat this step until all of the egg mixture has been pulled in and at least 70-80% cooked or as cooked as you like.
Transfer into a bowl for later.
Bring the heat back to high and pour in the remaining oil. After 30 seconds, turn it to medium and add the white spring onion heads and garlic to cook for 30 seconds.
Turn the heat back up to high and put the tomatoes in.
Season with the remaining salt, sugar, chicken bouillon powder, dark soy sauce and tomato paste. Let it simmer for 2 minutes or until the tomatoes have softened to preference. If you would like it saucier, add the water in at this point to a consistency you like.
Optional: Taste the sauce and add the vinegar if it isn't tangy enough.
Turn the heat to medium, mix up the potato slurry and slowly pour it into the sauce while mixing to thicken it up.
Add the eggs back in and toss it gently through the sauce.
Garnish with the finely chopped spring onions and serve over hot rice as is!

Taste test as you go. Because the ingredients can vary widely from batch to batch, taste along the way to get it just right.
Use a low heat with the eggs. Keep the flame gentle so you don't overcook the mixture because it can be very delicate to work with, especially when trying to get the folds.
For serving, present the eggs on the top. If you don't want the eggs to get lost in all the sauce, scoop half of the cooked tomatoes onto the plate before adding the rest of the eggs and sauce on top.
Every ingredient can be added to preference; if you like more eggs, crack a few more in. If you prefer more tomatoes, cut up another one or two. Just make sure to adjust the seasoning to taste.
Some families like their tomatoes skinless, which can be done by scoring an X on the top until it just cuts through the skin. Boil it in water for 5 minutes and peel the skin off.
The vinegar is entirely optional for extra zest.
If you like sweet and tangy tomatoes with extra juice, go for smaller ones that are a deeper red and riper.
Firmer and lighter tomatoes keep their shape better than the riper ones, even when cooked for some time and are milder in flavor.