Eggcelent Nyonya eggs belanda or… delicious fried eggs in a sweet and sour tamarind gravy! This is a great food memory from the island of Penang, Malaysia. What a treat!
Have you ever seen or heard of eggs belanda before?
Nyonya Cuisine
It is a typical Nyonya recipe with some explosive flavors in it.
You can also call it eggs belanda or fried eggs in a sweet and sour tamarind gravy. I first came in touch with it when I was living in Penang, Malaysia for a couple of weeks.
I found this great Nyonya restaurant up in Georgetown.
And I loved their food so much that I went back 4 more times!
Nyonya cuisine is amazing.
Easy Sweet & Sour Fried Eggs Belanda Recipe
Are you familiar with tamarind?
I know that tamarind is not very easy to find although every Asian supermarket should have it.
I use small portion bags of tamarind juice that you can easily rip open. If you really can’t find any, then I suggest that the best tamarind alternative for these eggs belanda is a mixture of brown sugar, lemon juice and pomegranate or pear molasses.
Tamarind Gravy
Since you already need the sugar and lemon juice in this recipe for eggs belanda, a single tablespoon of the molasses will do because otherwise this dish will be way too sweet in the end. You can adjust the flavors the way you like by adding extra sugar or lemon juice in the end.
Do you like cooking with tamarind?
Then you should also take a quick look at my tamarind beef stew below as well!
Origin
Years ago fellow Malaysian food blogger Jackie told me that Belanda actually means ‘Holland’.
Holland style eggs?
Jackie said yes!
That is the name of this dish she knew from her childhood days. Eggs Masak Branda or Eggs Belanda.
Vegetarian
You can turn these eggs belanda into a vegetarian dish by leaving out the fish sauce! Just add a simple sprinkle of salt instead.
Enjoy!
Easy Sweet & Sour Fried Eggs Belanda Recipe
Eggcelent Nyonya eggs belanda or... delicious fried eggs in a sweet and sour tamarind gravy! This is a great food memory from the island of Penang, Malaysia.
- 2 large eggs
- 2 oz red bell pepper (55 g), diced
- 1 spring onion sliced
- ½ small red onion sliced
- 1 small garlic clove sliced
- 2 oz tamarind juice (55 g)
- ¼ cup water (60 ml), cold
- vegetable oil
- 2 tsp fish sauce
- 2 tsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp hot chili sauce
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Pour a little drop of vegetable oil in a medium non-stick pan and place it over medium heat until hot. Then add the red onion and the chopped garlic.
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Stir a little and gently fry the onion and garlic for a minute. Then add the diced bell pepper and the sliced spring onion.
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Stir again and cook the vegetables for 2 minutes. Then add the tamarind paste and the water.
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Stir the sauce and bring it to a light simmer. Then season it with the brown sugar, the fish sauce and the hot chili sauce.
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Stir, cover the pan now and let the sauce cook for another 3 minutes. In the meantime pour a little vegetable oil in another pan and place it over medium-high heat. Once the hot is hot, break the eggs and add them to the pan.
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Fry the eggs until brown and a little crisp on the edges. Check the seasoning of the sweet and sour tamarind sauce and add extra fish sauce, brown sugar or chili sauce to taste if necessary. Take the sauce off the heat now. Cut the fried eggs up and transfer them onto warm plates. Drizzle with the tamarind sauce. Serve hot.
Cooking with Tamarind
Have you ever cooked with tamarind before?
You just gotta love it.
Tamarind is one of the not-so-secret ingredients in a lot of Asian cooking. But what is it exactly? Well tamarind is is a sour fruit that grows on a tree.
Pods & Seeds
Inside is a sour pulp with lots of black seeds.
The tamarind pulp is usually separated from the seeds and then pressed into a sticky paste cake or further processed to make ready to use tamarind juice.
Fresh Tamarind
Tamarind has an important role in traditional medicine.
It is a real pity fresh or dried tamarind pulp is so hard to find around here sometimes. I am absolutely fond of its sweet and sour freshness and vinegary touch it contains.
The taste explosion is so fantastic and blows your socks right off!
The only tamarind I came across recently were these little bags of tamarind juice I discovered in a tiny Asian supermarket.
Tamarind Juice
It proved to be a great product as well though!
If you get hold of fresh or dried tamarind, then soak it in just a little bit of water for a while. It will release its fresh and sour taste. Squeeze it out as good as you can and keep the precious liquid.
Then throw away the soaked pulp and seeds.
Use the tamarind liquid to spice up salads, sauces, stir fries or to marinate any protein you want. Tamarind is also a great match for fish such as mackerel, barracuda and grouper.
Enjoy!