Chai Poh 菜脯卵 (Salted Radish) Omelette

I wasn’t in the mood to cook today. It was a good thing I have eggs on hand. And chai poh.
Chai poh 菜脯 is salted radish, easily found in asian supermarkets. Very commonly found accompanying teochew porridge. Well, good thing I have some one hand too. Chai poh neng 菜脯卵, or salted radish omelette, is easy to make and traditionally has only 1 ingredient – you guessed it – eggs. I added shallots and ginger here because I wanted fragrance from the shallots, and heat from the ginger.

Ingredients
½ handful of chai poh
3 eggs, beaten
2 shallots, chopped finely
1″ ginger, chopped finely
salt/pepper to taste

Instructions
1. Rince chai poh several times in water to remove some of the saltiness. Squeeze dry and remove as much water as possible using paper towels.
2. Heat up some oil and fry chai poh. This is to give it a slightly crispy texture, hence you want it as dry as possible. Note that it will never become completely crispy!
3. After about 30 seconds, add shallots and ginger. Fry till fragrant.
4. Prepare beaten eggs. Add salt and pepper to taste. Go easy on the salt as chai poh is already salty.
5. On high heat, add beaten eggs. Swirl eggs around pan evenly. Solid whites should form quickly around the edges. Lower to medium heat after about 5 seconds.
6. Allow eggs to cook. Spread eggs around if necessary to keep it even.
7. Flip or fold the omelette, depending on your preference, and cook till done.

Serves 2

Cai Po Neng

image courtesy of noobcook

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