Stir-fried Eggs and Wheat Berries

中文菜谱： 葱花蛋炒小麦粒饭

We all know how good stir-fried eggs and rice are.  But have you ever thought about substituting white rice with healthier whole grains?  I have.  I tried with wheat berries.  And guess what?  It tastes amazingly delicious! O(∩_∩)O~

Wheat berries have a much lower GI index than white rice.  And it can keep you full longer.  Not to mention they are also high in fiber, minerals and nutrition. 

When fully cooked, wheat berries have al dente texture similar to a combination of brown rice and pearl barley. 

Just a perfect little bit of chewiness makes it my new favorite whole grain now.

This is what wheat berry looks like.

Ingredients：

1 cup hard winter wheat berry
3 to 4 tablespoons crumbled bacon
water for cooking wheat berries
3 to 4 large eggs
1/4 cup chopped green onion
2 to 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
salt to taste

Directions：  

Rinse the wheat berries under running water.  Add to a rice cooker.  Add water according to rice cooker’s brown rice cooking instructions.  And then press “brown rice”. 

The whole cooking process takes about 100 minutes.   

This is what it looks like when wheat berries are fully cooked.

Eggs and green onion are essential to Asian style stir-fried rice.

Heat a cast iron wok over high heat.  Add oil.  Seconds later, add beaten eggs. 

Add cooked wheat berries when eggs are beginning to settle at the bottom of the wok.  Stir fry constantly over high heat with a spatula.  Use the spatula to break down any large pieces eggs when stir frying.

Add crumbled bacon and salt to taste.  

Sprinkle with chopped green onions.

Continue to stir fry for another 10 to 20 seconds. 

Remove from heat and serve hot immediately.

Mini Goledn Egg Dumplings with Pork Filling

中文菜谱：迷你黄金蛋饺 & 2019年夜饭

Febrary 4th is the date for traditional Chinese New Year in 2019.  On this day, most Chinese families get together from all over the places to celebrate the beginning of a new year.  It is kind of like Thanksgiving in America, but longer and more festival. 

On the last evening of lunar year, it is also a tradition to make serve a marvelous feast which could take up to weeks’ preparation.  

Now since we are living in the United States, we still celebrate Chinese New Year, just on a smaller scale.  I still make some traditional Chinese food on this day.  Egg dumplings are one of them.

Egg dumplings are a must for New Year’s feast.  The beautiful golden color resembles gold and more money incoming in the New Year.  The shape of flower means good luck and blessing in the New Year too. 

Ingredients：

180 g ground pork
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 to 2 teaspoons rice cooking wine
1/2 teaspoon oyster sauce
2 to 3 tablespoons soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/4 cup chicken stock/ water
5 large eggs
salt to taste
vegetable oil for cooking

Directions ：

Add ground pork to a medium bowl, along with ground ginger, rice cooking wine, oyster sauce, soy sauce, ground white pepper, and salt.  Whisk clock-wise with a pair of chopsticks.

While whisking, add a tablespoon chicken stock/ water.  Whisk until the liquid is absorbed before adding more.

Add a pinch of salt to the eggs and beat them until smooth.

I use a cast iron pancake puff pan to make egg dumplings.  It is super efficient because I can make 7 of them at a time. 

Heat the pan over medium low heat.  Spray with oil.  Add a couple teaspoons of beaten eggs to each hole.  Swirl around a little bit.

Add teaspoon ground pork filling to each of them.

Fold them over.

Once egg dumplings can hold their half moon shape, remove from pan. 

Repeat the process until all done.

Assemble all egg dumplings in a plate like a big flower. 

Add to a steamer.  Steam dumplings over high heat for about 6 minutes.   The steaming time may vary with dumplings’ sizes and shapes.

They can be served hot or cold.  Aren’t they pretty?

The rest of our New Year feast also includes boiled free range chicken with dipping sauces.

med bass with ginger and oyster sauce

Purple daikon salad

Cucumber salad

Spinach and tofu salad

Steamed sweet rice with nuts and red beans paste

Soft Boiled Eggs in Soy Sauce and Rice Wine

中文版菜谱：溏心温泉蛋（米酒版）

If you are a fan of ramen noodles like me, you would be familiar with the soft boiled eggs in soy sauce and know how great they taste. 

Tonkotsu ramen is very hard and time consuming to make from scratch at home.   On the other hand, soft boiled eggs are quite simple and easy.

Making authentic Japanese style soft boiled eggs recipe requires merin, which is similar to rice wine but sweeter.  When you don’t have merin at hand (well, I guess most people in America don’t), you can always substitute with rice wine like I do.  And it works out pretty good too.

Ingredients：

8 fresh eggs
water for boiling eggs plus more for soaking
ice cubes
2/3 cup soy sauce
2/3 cup rice wine
1 1/3 cup water
salt to taste

Directions：

In a medium stainless steel pot, add water and eggs. 

Cook over high heat until water boils.  Turn off heat and cover eggs with lid immediately.  Wait for 3 to 4 minutes.  If you like egg yolks to be less runny, wait for another a couple minutes.

Fill a large bowl with water and ice

Add eggs

Add soy sauce, rice wine, brown sugar, salt and water to a medium pot.  Cook over medium high heat until the mixture boils. 

Remove from heat and allow it to cool down to room temperature.

Peel the eggs and soak them into soy mixture.  Cover with lid or plastic wrap.  Refrigerate overnight.

I use a small bowl to help eggs to completely submerse under soy mixture.

The second day, eggs are ready.

With a sharp knife, cut eggs open in the center