The Dried Scallop & Egg White Fried Rice My Dad's Made 100,000 Times
Why this recipe
Most dried scallop & egg white fried rice recipes online are tested only a handful of times. My dad used to make this dish multiple times a day, every day, for 50 years and can make this in his sleep.
I know you'll love it as much as our community does! This recipe has over 256.2K views, 4.4K likes on YouTube.
Does dried scallop and egg white fried rice sound simple? It really is! Dried scallops are super fragrant, aromatic nuggets of flavor, and the idea of this dish is to really highlight them against a light background of simple egg white fried rice.
The story goes that a chef invented this dish for a Hong Kong billionaire who wanted to eat healthier food. Cooking fried rice with egg white and no yolk is also a great way to accommodate people who avoid egg yolks.
Also, this is Daddy Lau's favorite style of fried rice!
Ingredients
Instructions
Prepare rice & dried scallop
Wash the rice (3 cup) by swirling and massaging the rice in clean water. Pour the starchy water out and repeat two more times. Transfer the rinsed rice into your rice cooker, add water (24 fl oz), and set it to start cooking.
Wash the dried scallops (1 oz) to get rid of possible debris. Soak in hot water; small scallops will take at least 20 minutes to soften and rehydrate, and large pieces may take longer.
Prepare aromatics
Chop the green onions (1 oz) into small pieces. To save time, you can chop the green onions in half, so they are half the length, and stack them all up to chop together.
Mince the ginger (0.50 oz) by first slicing thinly, cutting the slices into thin strips, and then chopping the ginger strips into even smaller pieces.
Prepare eggs & dried scallop
Since this is an egg white fried rice, you'll only want the whites of each egg. To separate the whites and yolk, prepare two separate bowls. Crack the egg carefully over one bowl, and as you pull the eggshell halves apart, catch the yolk on one eggshell half. Let the egg white drip down into the bowl.
Pour the yolk back and forth a couple of times, allowing the egg white to slip away and drop down into the bowl. Be careful not to catch the yolk on any jagged shell bits, which may rip the membrane holding the yolk together.
When you're satisfied with the amount of whites you've separated from the yolk, pour the yolk into the second bowl. Repeat with the rest of the eggs.
If you accidentally get a bit of yolk in your whites bowl, it's not ideal, but it's also not the end of the world.
Once the dried scallops have rehydrated, shred them into short threads by pulling them apart with your fingers or by smashing them with a knife. Use the broad, flat side of the knife to press down on 1-2 rehydrated scallops, then pull carefully towards yourself or to the side. This will loosen up the scallops a lot, and you'll have a much easier time pulling them apart.
When the rice is finished cooking, fluff it to help release some steam and moisture.
Stir-fry eggs & fry dried scallop
Heat the wok on high heat. Once it's hot, not quite smoking, add oil (2 tbsp) and swirl it around to coat the wok. Turn the heat to medium.
Have your spatula ready! You'll need to move fast with the egg whites.
Beat the egg whites slightly, then add them to the wok. Stir and flip them immediately, and continue to stir and flip as they cook. It'll take about 15 seconds for them to cook through. Take the cooked egg whites out and put them aside for later.
Add more oil (1 tbsp) to the wok, and turn the heat up to medium high. Drop half of the rehydrated, shredded scallops into the wok, and fry for 50-60 seconds, until they turn golden brown.
Turn off the heat and scoop the fried shredded scallops out with a slotted spoon or mesh strainer. Allow the oil to drip back into the wok as you scoop them up. Set the fried scallops aside. You'll be sprinkling these crispy goodies on top as a garnish at the end.
Stir-fry everything
There's enough oil in the wok, so there's no need to add any more. Plus, this oil now carries all the umami seafood-y aroma of the dried scallops you just fried!
Turn the heat to medium. Add the minced ginger and remaining rehydrated shredded scallops to the wok. Cook and stir for 10-15 seconds.
Lower the heat so that the ingredients don't burn as you add the cooked white rice.
Use your spatula to press the rice down and loosen it up. You want the rice to break up into individual, flavorful grains. No one wants a fried rice full of clumps of unflavored white rice.
Cook for 80-90 seconds, mixing everything well to distribute the flavor.
Season the rice by adding salt (0.50 tsp), sugar (0.50 tsp), and fish sauce (0.50 tsp). Mix to distribute.
Add the cooked egg whites, using your spatula to break them down into smaller pieces. Cook and stir for 90 seconds.
Give it a taste. Add extra salt as needed and stir to distribute.
Add sesame oil (1 tsp) and stir for 30-35 seconds.
Add the chopped green onion and stir it in for about 10 seconds, just enough to warm them up and take the raw edge off.
Turn off the heat and plate. Sprinkle the fried shredded scallop over it just before serving. Enjoy!