Recipes
Garlic Chive and Egg Stir-Fry
Flat garlic chives and soft egg curds cooked in separate turns, then folded together for a simple skillet dish to serve with rice.
Jump to recipe ↓Recipe
- Total time
- About 20 minutes
- Method
- Skillet
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Allergens
- Egg
About 2 servings with rice, or 4 small side servings
Allow roughly 20 minutes, including washing and trimming. This is an estimate. Have cooked rice or other accompaniments ready before heating the skillet. Contains egg.
Equipment: Cutting board, knife, mixing bowl, fork, 10- to 12-inch nonstick skillet, flexible spatula, clean plate and an instant-read food thermometer.
Ingredients
- 150 g green garlic chives, washed, dried and tough ends trimmed
- 4 large eggs
- 1 1/2 tablespoons neutral cooking oil, divided
- 1/4 teaspoon fine salt, plus a little more to taste
Method
Cut the chives and beat the eggs
Cut the prepared chives into 2 cm (3/4 inch) lengths. Beat the eggs with the salt until the whites and yolks combine. Wash hands and clean anything that touched raw egg.
Convert a measurement for this stepFold the eggs into curds
Warm one third of the oil in the skillet over medium-low heat. Add the eggs. As the underside sets, slowly draw the spatula across the pan, folding set egg over itself. When no liquid egg remains, transfer to the clean plate. Keep the raw-egg bowl separate.
Convert a measurement for this stepSoften the chives
Add the remaining oil and raise the heat to medium. Add the chives and stir until they bend easily and lose their raw stiffness. Taste a cooled piece; keep cooking if it is still tough. Lower the heat if the edges begin to scorch.
Convert a measurement for this stepReturn the eggs and check the center
Fold the eggs back into the chives over medium-low heat. Cook until the mixture is hot throughout and reaches 160°F (71°C), checking several thick clusters with the thermometer without touching the skillet. There should be no runny egg. Add a little salt only after tasting a cooled, fully cooked bite.
Convert a measurement for this stepMove dinner out of the pan
Turn off the burner and transfer to a serving plate immediately. Serve with your prepared accompaniments.
Convert a measurement for this step
A bundle of garlic chives gives this small skillet dinner its character: green strips with a little bite, tucked between soft golden eggs. There is no sauce to reduce. The useful work happens before the burner goes on, when you trim away tough ends and put a clean plate within reach.
This green-chive version adapts the separate egg-and-chive cooking method in Maggie Zhu’s yellow chive stir-fry, with a smaller quantity of chives. Gentle egg folding follows Judy Leung’s chives and eggs guidance.
A vegetable-sized handful of chives
Use the flat leaves sold as garlic chives or Chinese chives. The scallion and garlic chive guide helps distinguish them from hollow scallion leaves. Small snips of ordinary garnish chives will make a different dish.
Dry the washed leaves before cutting. Trim any fibrous base; extra time in the skillet is a poor substitute for removing a stringy end. Yellow Chinese chives can also work, but they are milder and more tender, so judge them by feel as they cook.
Let each ingredient finish at its own pace
The eggs leave the pan while the greens soften. That gives you room to cook a tougher bunch a little longer without keeping the eggs over heat the whole time. Stay at the skillet throughout; none of these steps is a waiting period for another task.
Serve alongside jasmine rice already cooked and ready. Compared with tomato and egg, this plate has a drier finish and a stronger green, garlicky flavor.
Keep leftovers cold
Following FDA egg-safety guidance, refrigerate leftovers in a shallow container within two hours, or one hour above 90°F (32°C). Keep the refrigerator at 40°F (4°C) or below, use within three to four days, and reheat to 165°F (74°C). The eggs will be firmer after reheating.