China · Home-style
Stir-Fried Cucumber with Egg and Ham
Cool cucumber slices and ham tossed with softly scrambled egg, seasoned lightly. Crisp, savory and quick enough for any weeknight.
This is the cucumber brought back from school cooking, where ham and egg make an ordinary gourd feel like a proper dish. The cucumber goes in after the egg is out of the wok and is left to keep some of its crunch. Not washing the pan between stages is deliberate, since the oil left behind is what seasons the cucumber.
Ingredients
- cucumber200 g
- eggs2 pieces
- ham sausage40 g
- red chili1 pieces
- cooking oil10 ml
- light soy sauce3 ml
- salt2 g
Directions
- 1
Wash the cucumber and cut it into half-moon slices.
- 2
Cut the ham into half-moon slices.
- 3
Finely chop the red chili; this is optional.
- 4
Crack the eggs into a bowl and beat until even.
- 5
Heat the wok and add 5 ml of oil.
- 6
Once hot, lower the heat, pour in the beaten egg and break it up with chopsticks, cooking until it is solid and just yellowing; this is the soft egg, turned out for later.
- 7
Do not wash the wok. Add 5 ml of oil, add the cucumber and stir-fry over high heat for 1 minute.
- 8
Return the soft egg to the wok, season with 2 g of salt and 3 ml of light soy sauce, and add the ham and the chopped chili if using; toss until even.
- 9
Turn off the heat and serve.
Source: HowToCook · WorldBite adaptation · Unlicense source text; bilingual recipe adapted by WorldBite.