Egg Foo Young (Fu Rong Dan)

The story

Egg foo young is Cantonese cooking's gift to American diners: fluffy egg pancakes studded with shrimp and vegetables, drowned in a quick savory gravy. It is fast, forgiving, and the answer to "what do I do with six eggs."

Ingredients (6 + pantry staples)

• Eggs — 6, beaten
• Frozen peeled shrimp, chopped — 6 oz / 170 g
• Frozen peas & carrots or bean sprouts — 1 cup
• Scallions — 2, sliced
• Chicken stock cube — 1 (for the gravy)
• Cornstarch — 1 tbsp

Pantry staples used (don't count toward the 6): salt, white pepper, soy sauce (1 tsp), cooking oil. Not stocked yet? See the pantry page.

Steps

1. Beat eggs with shrimp, vegetables, scallions, salt and pepper.
2. Fry ladle-full pancakes in oil over medium heat, 3 minutes per side, until puffed and golden; drain briefly.
3. Gravy: boil 1.5 cups / 350 ml water with the stock cube and soy; thicken with the cornstarch slurry.
4. Serve pancakes swimming in gravy over rice.

Swaps

Ham, leftover chicken, mushrooms — egg foo young is the original clean-out-the-fridge dish.