Egg Curry

Egg Curry is a Filipino dish made with hard-boiled eggs in a creamy curry sauce of all-purpose cream, yellow curry powder, ginger, and fish sauce. It has potato, carrot, and bell pepper, just like my chicken curry, but the chicken is replaced with boiled eggs. The eggs come out covered in a rich curry sauce that goes really well with rice. It is a good meal to make when you want something filling and there is no meat in the house.

The first time I made this was after a long day at work. There was hardly anything left in the refrigerator, and going out to buy groceries was the last thing I wanted to do. What I had were eggs, an onion, some garlic, a potato and a carrot, and a can of coconut milk in the pantry. Curry seemed like a good idea, even though I had never thought of using hard-boiled eggs as the main ingredient before.

That first attempt turned out much better than I expected. The potato and carrot made the curry filling, and the boiled eggs went surprisingly well with the coconut milk sauce. It started as a way to make dinner with whatever I had at home, and I have been making it as a quick dinner ever since. I later discovered that all-purpose cream works well with this too, and that is what I use in this version.

What is Egg Curry?

Everything cooks in one pan, in a few short stages. The potato and carrot are fried first, then simmered in the cream sauce until tender. The peppers follow for a few minutes, and the eggs go in last, since they only need enough time to warm through and take on some of the curry flavor.

Pay attention to the sauce while the vegetables cook. It should be creamy and thick enough to coat the eggs, with plenty left for the rice.

Why This Egg Curry Recipe Works

• Frying the potato and carrot first makes a difference. They pick up a little color in the oil before going into the sauce, and they keep their shape while simmering.
• Give the curry powder a few seconds in the hot oil. About 20 seconds is enough to bring out its aroma. Keep stirring until the cream goes in.
• There is no need to cook the eggs twice. They are already hard-boiled, so they go in last. A short time in the sauce warms them through and keeps the whites tender.
• Let the cream simmer gently. Low to medium heat keeps the sauce smooth while the potato finishes cooking.

Ingredients

• Eggs – Large chicken eggs, hard-boiled and peeled. Boil them while you gather and cut everything else.

• Potato – One large potato, peeled and cut into roughly 1-inch cubes. Check it for tenderness during the simmer.
• Carrot – One medium carrot, peeled and sliced. Cut it a little thinner than the potato since it goes into the oil later and cooks for less time.
• Yellow onion – Chopped. It cooks until soft before the garlic and ginger go in.
• Garlic – Mince it finely so it cooks quickly with the ginger and does not leave big pieces in the curry.
• Ginger – A thumb-sized piece, cut into thin strips so it cooks into the sauce.
• Fish sauce – One teaspoon, cooked into the aromatics for half a minute before the curry powder.
• Yellow curry powder – One tablespoon. Any supermarket yellow curry powder works here.
• Nestle All-Purpose Cream – One 250 ml pack. It makes the sauce creamy and a little richer than coconut milk does.
• Water – Three quarters of a cup, added with the cream. It gives the potato enough liquid to simmer in before the sauce gets too thick.
• Red bell pepper – Sliced. It simmers for only about 3 minutes before the eggs go in, so it stays bright and keeps a little bite.
• Long green peppers – Two pieces. Leave them whole for a milder curry. Cutting them open releases more heat.
• Maggi Magic Sarap – Six grams. It goes in with the eggs at the end for that burts of umami.
• Cooking oil – Used first for the potato and carrot and then for the aromatics in the same pan.

1. Boil the eggs for 9 to 10 minutes.
2. Transfer them to a bowl of cold water and let them cool. Peel the eggs and set them aside.

Fully cooked eggs work best here because they hold together in the curry. My guide to boiling eggs has more on getting the yolks the way you want them.

1. Heat the cooking oil in a pan.
2. Add the potato and cook for 3 minutes.

1. Add the carrot and continue cooking for 2 minutes.
2. Remove the vegetables from the pan and set them aside.

1. Using the same pan, sauté the onion for 2 minutes.
2. Add the garlic and ginger. Continue sautéing for 1 minute.

1. Add the curry powder. Stir for 20 seconds.
2. Add the fish sauce. Cook for 30 seconds.

1. Pour in the Nestle All-Purpose Cream and water. Stir and let the mixture come to a gentle simmer.
2. Return the potato and carrot to the pan. Cover and cook over low to medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the potato becomes tender.

1. Add the red bell pepper and long green peppers. Gently stir and simmer uncovered for 3 minutes.
2. Add the boiled eggs and season with Maggi Magic Sarap. Transfer to a serving plate and serve with warm rice.

Make sure the potato is tender before the peppers go in. Give it a few more minutes if a fork still meets resistance.

What to Serve with Egg Curry

• Warm rice – Spoon the curry and plenty of sauce over freshly cooked white rice.
• Garlic Fried Rice – If you have day-old rice, fry it with garlic and serve the curry over that instead.
• Atchara – Sweet and sour pickled papaya goes well with the rich curry sauce. A little on the side is enough.
• Ensaladang Talong – Grilled eggplant with tomato and onion in vinegar. It keeps the meal meatless.
• Fried Tilapia – Serve the crispy fish with the curry and rice when you want a bigger meal. The curry sauce is good on the fish too.

Storage

• Refrigerator: Refrigerate leftovers promptly in a covered container for up to 3 days. The sauce thickens as it cools, so add a little water when reheating and warm the eggs gently in the sauce.
• Freezer: Finished egg curry does not freeze well, since boiled eggs turn rubbery after freezing and the potato goes grainy. If you want to work ahead, make the sauce through the potato and carrot simmer, freeze that for up to a month, and add freshly boiled eggs and the peppers when you reheat it.
• Reheating: Warm the curry in a pan over low heat, adding a little water if the sauce is too thick, until it is steaming hot without letting it boil, so the cream stays smooth. Avoid microwaving the whole boiled eggs because they can burst.

More Filipino Curry Recipes

• Seafood Curry – Shrimp, mussels, and squid cooked quickly in coconut milk and curry powder, with the squid added last.
• Beef Curry – Beef simmered with curry powder, cinnamon, and cloves in milk until tender. Coconut milk can take the place of the milk.
• Pork Katsu Curry – Breaded fried pork chop over rice with a homemade Japanese curry sauce thickened with a roux.
• Japanese Curry – Thinly sliced beef with carrot and potato in a sauce finished with cheese and a little coffee.
• Curry Noodles – Noodles simmered in a curry broth with fried tofu, pechay, and scrambled egg.

• Nestle All-Purpose Cream – One 13.5-ounce can of coconut milk. Keep the water, and shake the can before opening so the cream and the thin milk are mixed.
• Maggi Magic Sarap – Half a chicken bouillon cube crumbled in, or a quarter teaspoon of salt plus a little more fish sauce. For a vegetarian version, use salt in place of the fish sauce as well and a vegetarian seasoning instead of the Magic Sarap.
• Yellow curry powder – Madras curry powder can work, but check the label because some blends are much hotter. Start with the same amount and adjust to taste.
• Long green peppers – A whole jalapeño or serrano. Leave it whole for flavor only, or slice it if you want the sauce hot.
• Red bell pepper – Green bell pepper, or a handful of green peas added in the last 2 minutes.
• Potato – Kalabasa (squash) cut into cubes for a slightly sweeter curry. Check it while simmering because it may soften faster than potato.

Egg Curry is best served while it is still hot, with freshly cooked rice and plenty of the curry sauce. Make sure each serving has some potato and carrot along with the eggs, and spoon a little extra sauce over the rice. It turns boiled eggs, a couple of vegetables, and a few pantry basics into a proper dinner.