Delicious egg fried rice topped with juicy pork chop and smothered in tomato sauce and generous melty bubbly cheese is one of the Hong Kong cafe's (Cha Chaan Teng) classic popular foods. It's pure comfort food.
6largetomatoesdiced, or 400 grams canned diced tomatoes
4Tbspketchup
2tspsugaror as needed
Saltto taste
¼tspground pepper
Topping:
2cupsshredded cheeseor more as needed, I use mozzarella and cheddar combination
Instructions
Prepare the pork chops:
Use a meat mallet to tenderize the pork chops. I don't have one, so I just cover the meat with a cling wrap and just use a pestle to gently tenderize the meat
Put the rest of the ingredients, except for the cooking oil, for the pork chops to marinate them. It is best if you can marinate for at least one hour or overnight for a better flavor
Cook the egg fried rice:
I usually cook some rice the day before I plan to make this recipe. Let the rice cool down completely and then I store it in the fridge. This will "dry" the rice grains out, which is the best for making fried rice
Mix the rice with the eggs. Add the mixed vegetables and stir to combine. Preheat a large wok or skillet on high heat. Add 3 Tbsp cooking oil. Lower the heat to medium-high. Pour the rice mixture in. Everything seems so wet at this point. Just keep stirring. It will be heavy at first but as you cook the mixture it will get lighter and lighter because the eggs are cooked through as you stir them. Stir fry until the mixture is dry and then season with salt, pepper, and sugar to your preference. Add a bit of sesame oil. Stir to combine everything
Prepare the tomato sauce:
Preheat oven to 350 F (180 C). You can use canned diced tomatoes or fresh tomatoes. If you use fresh garlic and onion, add 1 Tbsp of cooking oil to the pan. Stir fry until the onion is soft, about 3 minutes or so. Pour the tomatoes into the pan, followed by ketchup, salt, sugar, and pepper. Continue to simmer until the tomato sauce is reduced and thickened slightly. Have a taste and add more salt and/or sugar as needed
Cook the pork chops:
Preheat a large skillet. Add 1 Tbsp of cooking oil. Add pork chops, in batches, and cook for about 2-3 minutes on each side. Remove from the skillet and continue cooking the next batch
Assembling:
Spread the rice onto an 8x12 inch casserole dish or baking dish. Lay the pork chops on top. Pour the tomato sauce on top, covering all the rice and pork chops. Topped with a generous amount of cheese. Make sure it covers everything
Bake at a middle rack for about 10 minutes or until the cheese melts and bubbly. Remove from the oven and serve while it's warm