Last week sis and I took our Mom out for lunch at a Japanese restaurant. For a hot salad starter, we decided to try this salad on the menu that consisted of bittergourd, egg and bonito flakes served in a stone bowl. The name escapes me now though.
This salad was mixed right at your table, where the egg is first poured into the hot stone bowl and scrambled, then the bittergourd slices are put in and finally the bonito flakes are stirred in for flavour. It was absolutely delicious so I sought to replicate it at home.
- 1 Medium sized bittergourd sliced thinly
- 2 eggs
- Some wood fungus sliced thinly
- 2 cloves of garlic chopped
- 1 3g packet of bonito flakes
How to:
- Beat up the eggs with some soy sauce and pepper.
- Heat up a little oil in a pan and lightly fry the chopped garlic until brown and fragrant.
- Pour in the beaten egg and scramble by stirring it quickly.
- Add in the sliced wood fungus and sliced bittergourd. As its thinly sliced you won’t have to fry it very long.
- Add in some soy sauce seasoning to taste.
- When cooked, dish out the mix into a bowl. Make a well in the middle of the mixture and pour in some bonito flakes. Mix thoroughly and repeat until whole packet is used up. You can add more if you prefer it stronger tasting.
Serves: 2-4 people depending on whether its a main dish or part of a meal
Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 10 minutes
Mine did not turn out exactly like how it was at the restaurant, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. Its not very heavy as its mostly vegetables and is quick to whip up. I served mine up on top of hot rice sort of like a donburi as a one dish meal. If you plan to do so, make it slightly saltier or it would be rather bland. The bonito flakes add flavour to the dish and if omitted this dish would make a good vegetarian option (for ovo-vegetarians).
technorati tags: Bitter gourd, vegetables, egg, bonito flakes
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The only time I gobble up bittergourd is when it’s fried.
A bit blur here… what are bonito flakes? Haven’t heard of it before.
Like Rinnah, I am as dumb when it comes to bonito flakes.. It’s meat? But the idea is cool. I might just try this out with thinnly sliced celery and corn flakes.. LOL, ok, no, not corn flakes…
Ok, I have to say this looks delicious. But what is a bonito flake? Is it something that wears a hat and goes “Arrriba!” ?
Looks good..can’t wait to try.
This calls for lesson time with Pinkelle! *cues kiddy music*
Bonito, boys and girls, is a sea fish from the mackerel family. It’s usually smoked and then grated into fine flakes which are used extensively in Japanese cooking as it provides excellent flavour to broths and food! If you remember Mitsuba from Iron Chef, he always uses fistfuls of it to coax out maximum flavour from his broths!
Plus, if you scatter it on top of just fried rice, it dances!
Find it at any Japanese store or supermarket! Happy experimenting!
To the uninitiated, I’ve included a definition of Bonito Flakes in my other post.
Gallivanter: Welcome to my kitchen. I seem to have overcome my aversion to bittergourd and its now a fave vege!
Rinnah: Popular in Japanese cooking. See my next post.
LB: LOL! In fact I have some celery and might just experiment with it! But no, not corn flakes
Cheesey: You sure TM will eat it?!
Pinkelle: Thanks!
I think someone must change wedding vows to read, “I do… and I will eat any damn thing she cooks because it’s better than having it to cook it myself or tah-pow.”