This is a little taster from my new cookbook Agak Agak: Everyday Recipes From Singapore. It’s full of tips, tricks and simple but punchy Singaporean recipes like this, as well as Hainanese Chicken Rice, Chilli Crab Spaghetti and Second Auntie’s Achar. If you like what you see and want to try more, check the link out below. Thank you for your support! Shu x
FRIED EGG TEMPRA WITH ONIONS & KECAP MANIS
Tempra refers to the method of braising onions with sweet soy sauce. Chilli is added for heat, and lime for a refreshing tang. The simple ingredients transform into a sticky, zingy, caramel-like sauce. It’s a sauce that’s glorious spooned over anything and everything – in this instance (and in many other hungry instances), fried eggs.
Serves 1-2 as a side
3 tbsp vegetable oil
2 large free-range eggs
1 small onion, sliced
1–2 bird’s eye chillies, cut in half lengthwise
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 tbsp kecap manis
about 2 tbsp water
juice of 1/2 lime
2 sprigs of fresh coriander
Heat the oil in a small frying pan set over medium–high heat.
Crack the eggs into the hot oil – you should see the oil bubbling around the whites from the start. Fry until the whites turn lacy and golden brown on the edges and are set around the yolk –you might want to spoon the hot oil over the whites to help them set. Remove the eggs from the pan with a spatula and set aside on your serving plate.
Add the sliced onions to the remaining oil in the pan and fry until fragrant and golden. Now add the chillies, soy sauce, kecap manis and a small splash of the water to help deglaze the pan. Once bubbling, add a squeeze of lime juice, stir through, then pour the sauce over the fried eggs. Tear the coriander over to garnish and serve immediately.