Egg Chilli Fry(Egg Ball Chilli)

I was somewhat regular at the Sujatha Hotel in Mangalore till year 2010 before it closed down. They had a Chinese restaurant first started by a Chinese family from Kolkata in the late Seventies called Ho-Pei. Later when the Chinese family left and continued their business in Jeeth Bar and Hotel Navaratna(Lai Lai), Sujatha Hotel guys changed the name of their restaurant to Ting Hao. Ting Hao served some of the best Indo-Chinese as well as Mangalorean delicacies. Egg Chilly is one of them.

When I ordered Egg Chilli first in the 90's there, the waiter Laxman told me "Sir Egg Chilli here is made with egg omelette and you may not like it!" I was discouraged and decided not to try that. Yet, my curiosity to try it some day or the other was live inside my mind! To support my thoughts, a friend was all praises for Egg Chilli there and he was also a bit into cooking himself. He said "I've tasted egg chilli at many places but the way these people make them with strips of egg omelette, it is ultimate!"

Then I tried it one day and found it excellent! The sauces coated the strips of fried egg/omelette and as each bite danced on the tongue tip, it provoked the salivary glands to pump in at their peak! I also tried making them at home with fluffy fried egg/cushion omelette and succeeded.

My experiments in cooking are sometimes more practical than authentic. I developed Omelette Balls last year, using the Muffin Pan or Aappo Tawa as a cocktail snack, easy to share and eat. Last week we had a pot luck party at a friend's place and I was supposed to bring one or two dishes from my home. I announced that I'll get Masala Fried Prawns and Egg Chilli. When my friends saw Egg Balls cooked with spicy tangy Chinese Chilli sauces, they were totally bowled and the dish was acclaimed to be ultimate!

Try this with a little patience, little practice, but with lots of love and care because your family or friends deserve the best!

Ingredients:
Eggs - 4
Salt and Pepper
Refined Vegetable oil - 4 Tsp
Garlic - 6 cloves peeled and finely chopped
Onions - 2 sliced(Around 100Gms)
Green Chillies - 4 French cut
Capsicum pieces - A handful(Optional)
Red Chilli Paste/red chilli sauce - 1 Tsp(We used ready made hot chilli sauce got from Coorg)
Dark Soy sauce - 2 Tsp
Vinegar - 1 Tsp
Sugar - 1/2 Tsp
Corn Starch - 2 Tsp mixed in 1/2 cup water to a thin paste
Onion Shoot - A sprig chopped

Method:
Heat a muffin pan on the stove and reduce heat to medium.
Break the eggs and collect egg white and yolks in separate bowls.
Beat the egg white with an egg beater or spring till frothy.
Add the egg yolks, 1/2 Tsp salt and 1/2 Tsp pepper. Beat well.
Apply a drop of oil in each depression of the muffin pan.
Pour small portions of the beaten egg mixture into each depression. Allow to cook.
As the sides start detaching and the egg balls start getting golden in colour, flip them over using a spoon.
You can also add a drop of oil each while flipping over the egg balls.
Roast them and remove them into a bowl. Keep aside.
Heat remaining oil in a non stick pan or wok.
Add chopped garlic and stir fry on full flame.
Add the onion slices along with green chillies/optional capsicum and fry till onions are transparent and chillies develop whitish patches.
Now add salt and pepper to taste, sugar, dark soy sauce and red chilli paste/sauce. Stir fry.
Now stir in the corn starch paste and little water/stock if necessary. Bring to a boil.
As the sauce sizzles, add the egg balls and mix gently, taking care not to break them.
Add vinegar, mix and transfer to the serving bowl.
Garnish with chopped fresh onion shoot and serve as a starter snack or with fried rice or noddle of your choice.

Makes 18 egg balls and serves 4-6 people.