We have the lovely Nigella to thank for inspiring this recipe. I can’t believe I hadn’t ever thought to make a curry using eggs. It’s such a brilliant idea.
Simmering the egg in a coconut creamy curry sauce gives you a more substantial sauce thanks the the whites and the creamy oozy egg yolks as contrast. So so good!
I’ve used coriander leaves in the photo, however to keep to my 6-ingredient limit, have left them out of the recipe. They just make everything look prettier and aren’t critical.
Malaysian Golden Egg Curry
Ingredients
- 1/4 large white cabbage
- 3-4 teaspoons curry powder
- 1 can coconut milk 400mL / 14oz
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce or soy
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 4 eggs
Instructions
- Heat a medium saucepan on a medium high heat. Finely slice cabbage and add to the pot with a little oil and a pinch of salt. Cover and cook, stirring often until cabbage is softened but not mushy. About 5 minutes.
- Divide cabbage between two bowls. Return pot to the heat and add curry powder, coconut milk, fish sauce and lime juice. Taste and season with salt or more fish / soy sauce if needed. Bring to a simmer.
- Add eggs and simmer for 3 minutes or until whites are set and yolks are still runny.
- Top cabbage with 2 eggs each and spoon over the sauce. Serve hot.
WINE MATCH: A buttery chardonnay.
Variations & Substitutions
pantry-friendly – lime juice = 1-2 tablespoons rice vinegar.
prettier – serve with the leaves from a bunch of coriander (cilantro) on top. Mint or basil will work too.
different veg – replace cabbage with chopped cauliflower, broccoli or brussels sprouts.
more veg – soften a diced onion before cooking the cabbage. Add snow peas, peas, capsicum (bell peppers) and/or bean sprouts at the end.
more substantial (low carb) – use coconut cream and / or serve with a few handfuls roast cashews, extra eggs, almonds or peanuts.
egg-free – use chicken or tofu instead. Simmer until just cooked.
more substantial (carb-lovers) – serve with steamed rice, roti, warm flat bread, tortillas or cooked noodles.
different spicing – garam masala can be used instead of the curry powder.
hot! – add some fresh or dried chilli or serve with a drizzle of chilli oil.
carnivore – add some cooked chicken.
Waste Avoidance Strategy
cabbage (white) – will keep in a plastic bag in the fridge for weeks, even months. Can be frozen but will have a wilted texture once defrosted.
curry powder / coconut milk / fish sauce (or soy) – keep them in the pantry.
lime – will keep in a plastic bag in the fridge for months.
eggs – will keep in the fridge for weeks or use for another meal.
Prepare Ahead
Cook the cabbage and curry sauce ahead but don’t add the eggs or coriander. Will keep for about 2 weeks in the fridge or freeze. To serve bring curry back to the simmer and cook eggs.
Problem Solving Guide
bland – salt, fish sauce, soy sauce or more lime. OR some dried chilli or fresh chopped chilli. OR more curry powder.
crunchy cabbage – it’s important to cook it until it’s really soft so it feels like noodles. For now you could fish out the eggs and simmer the cabbage in the sauce for a few more minutes. Then return the eggs to the pot.
rubbery eggs – woops overcooked eggs. Next time simmer them for less time.
too hot – next time use a milder curry powder (or reduce the quantity) for now the only solution is dilution – more coconut milk is the easiest option. Or serve with greek or coconut yoghurt.
Add to my Old Favourite Recipes
I made this with a few adaptations to stretch my ingredients out for more than 2 meals! I added onion, garlic, and ginger (all pantry ingredients for me) and sautéed them with the cabbage, then kept the cabbage in the pot and added 3 cups of chicken bone broth with the coconut milk to make it more of a soup. Also tossed in a teaspoon of red curry paste (from the Thai meatball recipe a few weeks ago!) with the curry powder and soy sauce. I’m also allergic to eggs, so thinly sliced up a chicken breast to simmer in the soup with a handful of dried greens from this summer’s harvest. Added lemon juice and a chopped up head of broccoli that was about to go bad when the chicken was just cooked, and it was perfect after a couple more minutes! Also, instead of chopped cilantro, I put a bit of cilantro paste (since I live in Northern Canada, and fresh cilantro is hit or miss up here), and that just brightened it up perfectly!
Thank you so much Jules! This is a lovely meal, and I really enjoy getting creative and adding my own spin on things! 🙂
Love what you’ve done with this Sarah! Thanks for taking the time to share your success!
I’m adding this recipe to my must-make list. I’m not a huge fan of eggs, but this way of doing them sounds wonderful. Add to that the fact that I have some curry powder from Sri Lanka – the maker of the curry powder has a mix of Malay and Sri Lankan heritage – the result should be wonderful. Thank you for inspiring me!
Your welcome Susan! I can imagine it will be beautiful with such an authentic curry powder 🙂
Jules, this was our dinner last night, and we both agreed that the recipe is a keeper. I used my 12-spice roasted curry powder from Sri Lanka, and also added an onion. I allowed 3 eggs per person to up the protein level. This recipe makes me really glad that I bought 2 tins of the curry powder when we took a cooking class in Sri Lanka – other curries pale in comparison. I was once again blown away by how good food can taste when recipes have only a few ingredients.
Yes Susan! A good curry powder is worth it’s weight in gold. So glad you enjoyed.
I cooked some brown rice to go with this then realised that’s what the cabbage was meant to replace – ah well, fried cabbage and brown rice turns out to be a pretty good combo anyway. I also made a slight mistake, given that the only coconut milk that I had was sachets of powder. One of those only makes a cup, not a whole tin worth, so my sauce was a little scant – a tin of tomatoes would in any case not go astray as an extra sauce component. I simmered a capsicum and some snow peas with the curry before adding the eggs, and it was good, although I could have done with an extra egg per serve.
Love your adaptations Mark!
Yes a can of coconut milk is 400mL – so 1 + 2/3 cups 🙂
What would you suggest for cooking if I don’t like runny eggs? Would cooking a few minutes longer be too much?
A few minutes will cook them through Elizabeth – and with the curry sauce they’re really delicious cooked hard.
Enjoy!
I cooked them for a few minutes longer because I don’t like runny eggs either. They were a little overdone but fine.
That’s the nice thing about the sauce – it doesn’t matter if the eggs are a little dry 🙂
How big is your Le Creuset pot in this video? I’ve been checking for the right size as i’m only having just 1 pot of this kind. Thanks Jules.
Hi Maria!
This is the 24cm one.
I also have a 20cm and a 26cm.
I use the 24cm the most for everyday cooking.
I love them so much! You won’t regret investing. They literally last a lifetime 🙂
Jx