General's Egg Fried Rice Recipe, one of the single-person dinner series
When I am alone, I sometimes catch myself inexplicably turning into the star of a Taiwanese prime-time soap opera, muttering to the air in an empty room; sometimes the symptoms get worse, and I play two roles at once, asking and answering myself, debating myself, and the winning side even graciously spreads both hands and gives a knowing smile (I do not know if anyone else has these symptoms; if not, please tell me right away).
All right, that is not the point. The point is what things I most often debate with myself about. I usually struggle with myself over routine little things that nonetheless require a great deal of fuss, for example, whether it is worth spending money, time and effort to cook an exquisite single-serving dinner. The smaller the matter, the more powerful the motivation needed to spur myself on so that tonight will not be, once again, a pot of noodles from the alley or a Zhengzhong pork chop with the fourth channel.
"Legend" is a good motivation for persuading an opponent and inspiring people. Thanks to the editors at NewsMarket, who pushed me to persuade myself to cook a dish that has been buried in my heart for many years but that I had never dared to actually attempt, an irrational legendary dish–General's egg fried rice.
Before I start cooking, I must first explain just what makes this egg fried rice so legendary!
The Extraordinary Egg Fried Rice of the Legend
This legend comes from the mouth of my father, who spent his whole life in military service (I heard it from childhood all the way to adulthood, at least thirty years). The famous figure in the story is a four-star general in Taiwan, China, known for being frugal and strict. It is said that when this general visited troops, he strictly forbade banquets in his honor; especially whenever he inspected the front line at Kinmen, not only was a lavish feast not allowed, he would eat only one plate of egg fried rice. Of course, my father said, things were not that simple. A legend must contain a plot beyond the ordinary; that is to say, a legendary mess cook prepared this plate of egg fried rice in a way unlike anyone else's, and who that mess cook was can no longer be verified.
First, the general's egg fried rice had to use good rice. I do not know what rice the mess cook used; I used rice from A-Deng (my suggestion: before the rice from A-Deng goes into the pot, soak it for 15-20 minutes, drain off the water, then smell it, and you will then mutter to yourself, "Fragrant!")
The second step is the key: simmer a pot of clear chicken broth. Ingredients can be added to the chicken broth to boost its savoriness: bamboo shoots, shiitake mushrooms, clams, ham, dried scallops, abalone, all depending on one's personal financial means (I added 20 yuan of clams and 50 yuan of shiitake mushrooms). The flavor boosters should not overpower the host; scallion, ginger and rice wine remove any fishy smell. The principle for clear chicken broth is to simmer over extremely low heat to keep the broth from rolling cloudy.
Next, once the chicken broth is cooked, let it cool. Soak an appropriate amount of chicken broth with the rice for about 20 minutes, then put it in a rice cooker to steam, just like cooking plain white rice, except that clear water becomes chicken broth.
After the rice is cooked, let it cool, beat the eggs, and soak the rice in the egg mixture, letting every grain of rice put on a yellow coat as much as possible.
Finally, put it in the wok and fry the rice. That is all.
A Practical Report on the Legend
To add to the legendary quality, I deliberately chose to try making this dish on the eve of the 823 anniversary. My trial report is as follows:
* I started preparing the ingredients and simmering the chicken broth at about six o'clock, was in a frantic rush, and served the meal at eight thirty. It took two and a half hours, a bit long, and I was so hungry my hands were trembling slightly.
* Although I knew I should use overnight rice to fry rice that is distinct grain by grain, and my father had instructed me that cold rice grains are the only way to evenly coat them with egg mixture, my stomach was already growling and my hands were trembling, so I impatiently fried hot rice. As a result, the fried rice was a bit sticky, which counts as a failure.
* Once the rice was steamed, I could not wait to taste a bite. I must objectively say the flavor and texture were truly excellent! I could not help but praise myself with a curse word.
* After adding green scallions (scallions have recently been absurdly expensive), stirring in the egg and stir-frying, the flavor of the rice became even better. It was so delicious that I decided that next time I would cook the chicken-broth rice a day in advance, and I must fry up a general's egg fried rice that is distinct grain by grain.
* While eating, I thought that since chicken broth works, perhaps I could also try bamboo shoot broth, pork rib broth, borscht……, to make an advanced version of the general's egg fried rice with an even more unusual and fragrant flavor.
* I had wanted to photograph and explain the cooking process, but in the confusion I truly had no time for photography. I am only posting the finished photo. Please forgive me.
The process of making this egg fried rice seems rather similar to making risotto. Here I am casting a brick to attract jade. If anyone has any tips, please share them too.
