Shermay’s Oyster Omelette (Or Luak / Or Chien)

INGREDIENTS:

Flour Mixture (Yellow):

  • 130 gm sweet potato flour (or tapioca flour)
  • 720 ml water, or less
  • 70 gm plain / all-purpose / wheat flour
  • 1 tsp fine salt

Rice Flour Mixture (Sticky White Slurry):

  • 30 gm rice flour
  • 400 ml water

Omelette Condiments:

  • 240 ml oil
  • 12 eggs
  • 8 tsp light soy sauce
  • 4 tsp fish sauce, preferably Red Boat
  • 4 tsp Chinese cooking wine, try to use a more aged wine, such as 10 years
  • 4 tbsp garlic, peeled and semi-finely pounded
  • 16 large oysters, or 24 small ones
  • 4 tbsp spring onions/scallions, diced to 0.5cm pieces

Garnish:

  • White pepper, optional
  • Scallions
  • Coriander leaves & tender stems, 1 inch

Traditional Dipping Sauce:

  • Cilicuka (Original, Very Hot or Very Very Hot)

Note:

  • Soy Sauce: Use premium soy sauces such as Kwong Woh Hing or Kwong Cheong Thye, the two local soy sauce brewers. High-quality soy sauces naturally contain glutamates and do not require added MSG.

  • Fish Sauce: Red Boat is highly recommended, with options like N40 or the stronger N50.

  • Chinese Cooking Wine: Consider opting for aged varieties from grocery stores like Meidi-Ya or Yue Hwa.

  • Eggs & Oysters: Use organic eggs and large fresh French oysters (available from Culina) for the best quality and food safety.

  • Oyster Juice: Instead of discarding the oyster juice (which is full of flavour), use it to make the slurry by adding flour. You can use tapioca flour (for crispiness) or plain flour, instead of rice flour (which will make the slurry sticky). Coat or soak the oysters with the flour before cooking.

  • Garlic & Pepper: Add the garlic just before the oysters, and use white ground pepper either in the egg mixture or sprinkled over the dish for added flavor.

  • Coriander Sprigs: Soak the coriander sprigs in cold water to make them crisp when garnishing.

  • Timing the Seasoning: Find the optimal moment to add your seasonings (light soy, fish sauce, and Hua Tiao cooking wine), adjusting for your cooking speed and heat intensity.

METHOD:

  1. Mix the sweet potato flour with water. Gradually strain into a mixing bowl through a very fine strainer, discarding the dregs. Mix into the plain flour, strain and add the salt. Set aside.
  2. Mix the rice flour with water and strain. Set aside.
  3. Omelette: For 1 serving, spread and swirl 100ml rice flour mixture in a lightly oiled non-stick pan to evenly cover the entire surface. Cook over medium-high heat until the rice paper base is formed. Spread and swivel/swirl 230ml sweet potato flour mix over low-medium heat. Crack 3 eggs, add 2 tsp light soy sauce, 1 tsp fish sauce and 1 tsp Chinese cooking wine. Spread evenly over the entire surface. Fry over low heat. When the underside is light brown and the top is 3/4 cooked and still wet, cut into 4 and turn each quarter over to fry until medium brown, drizzling 1 tsp oil into the centre and aroun the sides as needed. Put 1 tsp garlic, 1 tbsp chilli paste and 2 tbsp oil in the middle of the frying pan, fry for a few seconds. Quickly mix the omelette, cutting each into 3-4 pieces, and put aside.
  4. Bathe the oysters in a small dish of rice flour mixture and drain. Slip the oysters on the frying pan and stir for a few seconds to sear them. Quickly mix the oysters and spring onions with the omelette, and avoid overcooking.
  5. Transfer the omelette to a serving dish and garnish with fresh coriander.
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