Stir-Fried Lettuce With Crispy Garlic and Fried Eggs

By Hetty Lui McKinnon

Stir-Fried Lettuce With Crispy Garlic and Fried Eggs
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.
Total Time
20 minutes
Rating
4(539)
Notes
Read community notes

In Chinese culture, cooked lettuce is a symbol of good luck and is often eaten during Lunar New Year feasts. In Cantonese, the word for lettuce is sang choy, and in Mandarin, it’s sheng cai, which sounds like the words for “growing wealth” in each language. Stir-fried lettuce is commonly served as a bed for braised mushrooms or simply as a green side dish. Here, stir-fried lettuce, fried eggs and crispy garlic chips perch on a bed of rice, a simple meal with comforting flavors and textures. The joy of this preparation is that the lettuce retains a fresh crunch even after cooking; iceberg is preferred, but romaine will give you similar results. Vegetarian stir-fry sauce is a product sold in Asian grocery stores, but you can also use oyster sauce. For a shortcut, skip the fried garlic and top with store-bought crispy fried onions or shallots.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 1head of iceberg lettuce (about 1½ pounds)
  • 1tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1tablespoon sesame oil
  • 2teaspoons vegetarian stir-fry sauce, or oyster sauce
  • ¼teaspoon granulated sugar
  • Kosher salt (Diamond Crystal)
  • Black or white pepper
  • 2tablespoons plus ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1(1-inch) piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped
  • 6garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
  • 4eggs
  • Steamed rice, for serving
  • 1tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
  • 2scallions, green and white parts, finely sliced
  • Maggi seasoning sauce, for serving (optional)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

401 calories; 29 grams fat; 5 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 18 grams monounsaturated fat; 5 grams polyunsaturated fat; 26 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 10 grams protein; 753 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Using a sharp paring knife, run it around the core of the lettuce, then gently pull it out. Remove any discolored outer layers of the lettuce and discard. Tear the lettuce into large chunks. Wash the leaves and allow them to drain after gently shaking in a colander.

  2. Step 2

    In a small bowl, combine the soy sauce, sesame oil, vegetarian stir-fry or oyster sauce, sugar and ¼ teaspoon salt. Season with pepper.

  3. Step 3

    Heat a large (12-inch) deep skillet on medium-high. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of olive oil to lightly coat the pan, then add the ginger and cook for 15 to 30 seconds, until fragrant. Add the lettuce and stir-fry for 2 minutes, until it starts to wilt. Pour the sauce over the lettuce and stir-fry for another 1 to 2 minutes. (Take care not to overcook, as you want your lettuce to retain some crunch.) Taste and season with salt, if needed. Place the lettuce (and all the pan juices) in a bowl and set aside. Once your skillet is cool enough to handle, rinse it out and dry.

  4. Step 4

    To the same skillet over medium-high heat, add the ¼ cup olive oil and sliced garlic. Stir constantly for 3 to 4 minutes until the garlic turns a pale golden brown. (Watch carefully! It burns quickly.) Remove the garlic from the oil with a slotted spoon and place on a paper towel to drain; it will continue to brown and crisp as it cools.

  5. Step 5

    To the remaining oil in the skillet over medium-high heat, add the eggs and cook untouched until whites are set, 2 to 3 minutes.

  6. Step 6

    To serve, place a mound of rice in a bowl, top with lettuce, some pan juices, a fried egg, crispy garlic and a scatter of sesame seeds and scallions. Finish with a tiny drizzle of Maggi seasoning sauce, if using.

Ratings

4 out of 5
539 user ratings
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Cooking Notes

Chinquapin

Sounds great. Nothing to add from me, other than a bit of silliness. When preparing the iceberg lettuce, instead of using a knife to remove the core, it is much more fun, and quicker, to simply bang the lettuce, core end down, on the counter, then dig it out with your fingers.

Dancer's Mom

I've been making what I call "garlic chips" for several years now, and often eat them by themselves. They are delicious, and I've found that a small amount (one large garlic clove) satisfies my craving for chips. I've never seen them referenced in a recipe before! One caveat: in my experience, it takes just about 2 minutes (my slices are about 1/16th inch). As you note, they go from golden to burnt in an instant... about the time it takes to think, "Should I remove them NOW?"

Ali

Made this with 4 small romaine lettuce heads (about 1.2 lb) and a couple handfuls of green beans. Substituted oyster sauce 2 tsp soy sauce and a bit more sugar. Would make a bit more sauce next time, or salt more. Good, light, and fast! Could scramble eggs with the leftovers for work lunch.

Kristin D.

Delicious, with a couple of small modifications: I made it for two, but left all ingredients the same except I cut the eggs from 4 to 2 and used a bit less garlic. I added a handful of thinly sliced asparagus after the ginger to add a bit more heft to the dish. Will definitely make this fun and easy dish again.

CJ

Fantastic made exactly as is except took others’ advice and fried the garlic chips first and did the lettuce after. And thanks to Chinquapin for reaching that great lettuce technique!

AEBlumberg

I would cook the garlic first. Since the garlic will be used cool anyways, this will improve the chance for the lettuce remaining crispy and hot as it only needs to wait for the eggs to be fried.

Chris B

I made a close version of this, but with fairly crispy leaf lettuce, which the garden produces in abundance this year. I used oyster sauce and a dash of fish sauce. With jarred minced ginger and garlic, prep was super-fast and the result really tasty.

Jeffrey Hill

Some Asian markets sell bags of fried garlic chips.

Annie

Loved this dish. Very easy and a different way to use the excess lettuce of the season. I added mushrooms.

Becca

Maybe it's just my stove, but cooking garlic for 3-4 minutes in a wok over medium-high heat seems like a recipe for burnt garlic! I do have an electric range, not gas, and thus it's a bit harder to control the heat, but it seems it usually takes about 30 seconds to yield this result before the chips start to turn. I frequently find the recipe cook times for garlic to be WAY high, and this is case in point.

Jenn

Bets made April 24. We loved it! Rotation please!! Didn’t halve the recipe, but used only 1 egg per serving.

Ann

Rather than use a knife to core the lettuce, just smack it hard, core side down on a kitchen surface. The core can then be pulled right out.

NoCheese

Nice light and quick dish. We "messed up" the first go round and forgot to add the sauce to the lettuce in the pan, but it still tasted great. Super easy. Egg yoke adds a flavor layer that the scrabbled just didn't give, we tried both ways. Wouldn't add anything.

pauline

Very good quick delicious dish! Made couple times 1. with garlic chips and 2. just adding garlic to sauce — no fuss 2 was just as good. Added fried tofu for protein

Flâneuse

Easy way to make this: Make up sauce. Cut and fry garlic first, set aside. I added Spring Rolls to this meal, so fried them next and placed in warm oven. Then, prep lettuce. When it's just about time to eat, assmble toppings and set table. Fry eggs mostly done, put in warm oven to finish. Stir fry lettuce, serve. Easy peasy.

Christopher

For me, your description and the image renders a textural disconnect... eggs fried Sunnyside can look great, but are leathery on the back. To easily bring all three elements together for the mouth, I tenderly scrambled the eggs and laid them over the rice, already lying on the fried lettuce. Now the fork comes through the eggs and rice to pick up the lettuce last, so the lettuce leads into the other elements into the mouth, then crunches like a lettuce roll to release the bounty.

SS

Subbed iceberg lettuce with cabbage as that's all I had. Still great!

FH Cyclist

This is good! Not as easy to make as I expected but excellent clean out the fridge dish.

Herta

I've been coring iceberg lettuce Chinquapin's way since 1973, when I worked at the old Bearden's on Rocky River Drive in Cleveland, and one of the cooks taught me that trick.

KB

I am usually very much NOT on Team Warm Lettuce, but I made this as written and thought it was delicious.

Rills

To Veganise, replace fried eggs with fried slices of tofu. I would use use grated ginger instead of sliced. Use Vegetarian Oyster Sauce.

Kerry

I love this simple dish! I add other veggies sometimes but overall the sauce and simple iceberg lettuce (who knew) makes it so yummy. I’m always surprised by how big the mound of lettuce looks, but it cools down quickly. I also add more sesame oil to serve.

Annie

Loved this dish. Very easy and a different way to use the excess lettuce of the season. I added mushrooms.

Anais

This was so quick and easy!! I used soft tofu as a topping instead of egg and it was delicious. Honestly, everything Hetty McKinnon does is perfect.

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