Whitebait omelette with rice and blanched greens
Wet-market whitebait rinsed, dried and folded into beaten egg, then pan-fried golden on both sides — tender and savoury with choi sum and rice, simple and reassuring.
- 20 min
- Serves 2
- Pan-fry
- Easy
Why it suits you: Special, allergy-prone constitutions do best with simple, fresh, easily digested food, and Chushu's lingering humid heat makes itchy rashes more likely. Whitebait is tiny with soft, edible bones and strengthens the spleen and lungs, while egg nourishes yin and blood. With few ingredients, no sauces and little oil, it's a plate you can eat with confidence.
Method
Prep 10 min · Cook 10 min- 1Rinse the whitebait gently in lightly salted water, drain and pat dry with kitchen paper. Chop the spring onions.
- 2Beat the eggs with the salt, pepper, ginger juice and the cornflour mixed with 1 tbsp water, then stir in the whitebait and spring onion.
- 3Heat the oil, pour in the egg mixture and cook over a medium-low heat for 3 minutes until golden underneath. Flip and cook for 2 minutes more until set, then cut into wedges.
- 4Blanch the choi sum in boiling water with a drop of oil and serve with the omelette and hot rice.
Cautions
- Avoid this if you're sensitive to fish or eggs; buy whitebait fresh or frozen and eat it the day it's thawed.
Chef's tips
- Pat the whitebait thoroughly dry so the omelette doesn't weep and fall apart; a little cornflour water in the eggs makes them extra tender.
The TCM view
Whitebait is sweet and neutral, strengthening the spleen and stomach and benefiting the lungs — the Suixiju Yinshi Pu says it 'nourishes stomach yin and harmonises the channels'. Egg is sweet and neutral, nourishing yin, moistening dryness and calming the mind; choi sum clears heat and eases the bowels; ginger settles the stomach. Simple and balanced, it supports the spleen and lungs and helps strengthen defensive qi.
