Cucumber and Egg Stir-fry with Fresh Perilla 紫苏鸡蛋炒黄瓜

It seems like eons ago when CC#2, hubby, and I traversed the hinterland of Hunan Province for about a week. From Mao’s desk in grade school, to the palatial hotel suite nestled among the chaotic city streets of Xiangtian 湘潭 and equipped with a self-rising mahjong table and a mile-long hallway, and finally to the otherworldly mesmerizing mountain peaks of Zhangjiajie (Avatar was filmed there), one single dish stood out among the many spicy and tasty Hunan culinary delights: A simple stir-fry of cucumber slices peppered with the strong pungency of perilla leaves and seasoned with Hunan’s own aromatic blend of fermented hot pepper sauce. Upon returning home, I started growing perilla in my garden in the hope of recreating this memorable dish.

Growing up eating cucumbers raw, stir-frying them is definitely not part of my Chinese cooking wheelhouse. After several meh attempts, I found this recipe that captures the essence of the uniquely Hunan seasoning. The secret ingredient turns out to be a special type of Hunan Duojiao 剁椒, fermented chopped chilies full of umami. The trick, as the recipe cautions, is to add the pepper sauce last to preserve its flavor. Duojiao is also the key ingredient in the famous Hunan dish “steamed fish head with chopped chili” 剁椒鱼头.

Ingredients:

  • 1-2 fat English or Chinese cucumbers, unpeeled and sliced diagonally into thick pieces

  • 2-3 eggs, beaten lightly together

  • 3-4 large cloves of garlic, half chopped and half minced

  • 1 tbsp soy sauce

  • 1 tbsp oyster sauce

  • 1 bunch of perilla leaves, roughly chopped

  • 1 fresh chili pepper, optional but color looks great on the dish

Instructions:

  • Lightly salt cucumber slices for 30 minutes and rinse well

  • Stir fry eggs in wok with about 2 tbsp of canola oil till about 70% done, and set aside

  • Stir fry cucumbers in hot wok with 1-2 tbsp canola oil on high heat, take your time so that cucumbers are free from moisture and slightly charred

  • Add chopped garlic and cook with cucumbers until fragrant

  • Add back eggs, breaking them down as you mix with cucumbers

  • Add 剁椒 and stir fry quickly before adding perilla leaves, soy sauce, and oyster sauce in the mixture and cook for 30 more seconds

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