The plate my father ordered with every summer beer is this one – preserved eggs under a bloom of chopped chili, garlic, and scallion, sizzled in hot oil with soy and vinegar, the kind of cold plate that empties the rice bowl it is served beside. A home cook wrote it in seven steps with the recipe’s whole argument in the title: it is a summer drinking dish, and the chopped chili is what makes it rice-wrecking. I made it as written, and it is the plate I now serve whenever the evening calls for something cold and loud.
Duo jiao pi dan (剁椒皮蛋) is chopped-chili century egg – preserved eggs (pi dan) arranged on a plate and topped with a mixture of chopped chili, garlic, and scallion, dressed with soy and vinegar, and finished with hot oil poured over the aromatics. The original is a 7-step recipe from a summer cook who says it plainly: the chopped chili is genuinely rice-wrecking.
What Is Chopped-Chili Century Egg?
Chopped-chili century egg (剁椒皮蛋) is a homestyle cold plate: preserved eggs – the dark, creamy-centered eggs with amber translucent whites – are peeled, cut, and arranged on a plate. A topping of chopped red chili, garlic, and scallion is piled on, with soy sauce and vinegar drizzled over, and a splash of hot oil poured on top to bloom the aromatics. It is eaten cold as a drinking plate or a rice companion, and the recipe’s boast is direct: the chopped chili is really good with rice.
The method is the aromatics. The chili, garlic, and scallion are chopped fine and piled generously – the recipe’s amounts are “to your taste” but the spirit is generous – then the soy and vinegar dress the eggs, and the final hot oil wakes everything. It is the summer answer to the heavy braises: cold eggs, loud aromatics, and a plate that asks for cold beer or hot rice, your choice.
For the gentle-steamed side of the same egg, my silky steamed egg with minced pork is the soft, warm sibling of this loud cold plate.
1Steamed Egg with Minced Pork (Rou Mo Zheng Dan)A comforting, high-protein meal featuring silky Chinese steamed eggs made with milk, topped with a savory stir-fried minced pork and vegetable sauce. Better than takeout and ready in 35 minutes.Check out this recipe
Why This Version Works
- The chopped chili is the dish. The recipe’s title and its boast – chili, garlic, and scallion chopped fine and piled on.
- Preserved eggs are the canvas. Their creamy, savory character takes the loud dressing better than any boiled egg.
- Soy and vinegar first. The dressing goes on before the oil – salt and tang under the bloom.
- Hot oil at the end. The splash of hot oil blooms the garlic and chili – the recipe’s finishing move.
- Cold, loud, and fast. A no-cook plate (just the oil) that works as a beer dish or a rice dish – the recipe’s two claims.
Equipment Needed
- A small pan for the oil
- A knife for the eggs and aromatics
- A serving plate
Ingredients
- 4 preserved eggs (pi dan)
- 2-3 red chilies, chopped fine
- 3-4 cloves garlic, chopped fine
- 2 scallions, chopped
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp vinegar
- 2 tbsp neutral oil, heated
Ingredient Notes
Preserved eggs (pi dan): Four, peeled and cut – the creamy-centered eggs with amber whites. My silky steamed egg with minced pork is the century-egg-adjacent warm dish.
The chopped chili: Red chilies, chopped fine with the garlic and scallion – the recipe’s generous pile. The heat is yours; the recipe’s default is a friendly warmth. My green pepper and egg stir-fry is the cooked-chili egg plate.
Soy and vinegar: The dressing – light soy for salt and a spoon of vinegar for the tang that cuts the egg’s richness.
Prep & Mise en Place
Peel and cut the preserved eggs; arrange them on the plate. Chop the chili, garlic, and scallion fine and pile them over the eggs.
The sequence: dress with soy and vinegar, heat the oil until shimmering, pour it over the aromatics, and serve immediately.
Cooking Process
Step 1 – Pick a few Erjingtiao chilies
Pick a few Erjingtiao chilies. I’m a Sichuan girl who loves heat, so I added 3 bird’s-eye chilies – scale to the number of preserved eggs (making extra is great for noodles too).
Step 2 – Heat the pan dry, add the chilies, and stir-fry while pressi
Heat the pan dry, add the chilies, and stir-fry while pressing with the spatula – the chilies soften as they warm, and the pressing dries out their moisture for that roasted-chili flavor.
Step 3 – When the skin blisters and peels, pour the chilies out
When the skin blisters and peels, pour the chilies out.
Step 4 – Chop them while still warm
Chop them while still warm.
Step 5 – Season the chopped chilies with salt, chicken powder, light
Season the chopped chilies with salt, chicken powder, light soy sauce, sesame oil, oyster sauce, sugar, and vinegar, then mix well (my mouth is watering already – I also use this dressing for noodles).
Step 6 – Peel the preserved eggs, cut each into quarters, and arrange
Peel the preserved eggs, cut each into quarters, and arrange on a plate.
Step 7 – Drizzle the prepared chopped-chili dressing over and serve
Drizzle the prepared chopped-chili dressing over and serve.
Common Mistakes When Making This Plate
1. A flat, raw-garlic bite. Cause: oil poured cold or not enough. Fix: heat the oil until shimmering – the bloom is the dish.
2. A timid topping. Cause: skimping on the chili and garlic. Fix: the recipe’s spirit is generous – pile it on.
3. A dull, one-note dressing. Cause: missing the vinegar. Fix: the tang is what cuts the egg’s richness.
4. A bitter oil taste. Cause: overheated oil. Fix: shimmering, not smoking.
5. Slippery, sliding eggs. Cause: watery cut surfaces. Fix: pat the eggs dry before arranging.
6. Too hot or too mild. Cause: the chili amount. Fix: adjust to your heat – the recipe’s seasoning is yours.
Variations
More chili: Add a spoon of chopped pickled chili for a fiercer plate – my green pepper and egg stir-fry is the cooked version, and fish-fragrant eggs the saucy-spicy one.
Scallion-heavy: Double the scallion for a milder, greener pile – and with silky steamed egg, green pepper and egg stir-fry, and sauce stir-fried eggs the egg shelf is complete.
Sesame oil: A few drops with the hot oil for nuttiness – and with tomato egg noodles and cucumber and egg stir-fry with ham, the egg table is full.
The egg shelf: With silky steamed egg with minced pork, fish-fragrant eggs, and 10-minute chives and eggs, the egg drawer is complete.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a preserved egg? Pi dan – eggs preserved in an alkaline mixture until the white turns amber and the yolk creamy; fully safe and fully cooked by the preservation.
Is it spicy? As spicy as your chilies – the recipe’s default is friendly heat, and the rice-wrecking claim is real.
Can I make it ahead? Assemble, but pour the hot oil at serving time – the bloom does not keep.
What do I serve it with? Beer, or rice, or both – the recipe’s two stated uses.
How long does it take? Ten minutes, most of it the chopping.
How to Serve
Serve as a cold plate with beer or over rice – with silky steamed egg with minced pork and green pepper and egg stir-fry for an egg table, or beside 10-minute chives and eggs for a fast dinner.
Storage & Reheat
Best eaten immediately; refrigerate leftovers up to 1 day. Do not reheat – it is a cold plate. Never leave it out more than 2 hours.
Allergen Notice
This recipe contains egg and soy (soy sauce). It is free of gluten (if using gluten-free soy), nuts, dairy, fish, and shellfish.
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.
About the Author & Recipe Development
I am Lin, a professional Chinese chef and food writer with a decade in restaurant kitchens before turning to recipes. This xiachufang cook’s chopped-chili century egg is my father’s summer beer plate, and the recipe’s confidence – the generous pile, the hot-oil bloom, the rice-wrecking boast – is exactly why it works. I tested it as written. I have not tested the pickled-chili variation, so that is your experiment, not my claim.
Authoritative References
USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service – Safe Temperature Chart for egg and cold-plate storage guidance.
Chopped-Chili Century Egg (Duo Jiao Pi Dan): Summer Beer Plate
Equipment
- Small pan
- Knife
- Serving Plate
Ingredients
For the Plate
- 4 preserved eggs (pi dan)
- 2-3 red chilies, chopped fine
- 3-4 cloves garlic, chopped fine
- 2 scallions, chopped
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp vinegar
- 2 tbsp neutral oil, heated for the bloom
Instructions
- Pick a few Erjingtiao chilies. I’m a Sichuan girl who loves heat, so I added 3 bird’s-eye chilies – scale to the number of preserved eggs (making extra is great for noodles too).
- Heat the pan dry, add the chilies, and stir-fry while pressing with the spatula – the chilies soften as they warm, and the pressing dries out their moisture for that roasted-chili flavor.
- When the skin blisters and peels, pour the chilies out.
- Chop them while still warm.
- Season the chopped chilies with salt, chicken powder, light soy sauce, sesame oil, oyster sauce, sugar, and vinegar, then mix well (my mouth is watering already – I also use this dressing for noodles).
- Peel the preserved eggs, cut each into quarters, and arrange on a plate.
- Drizzle the prepared chopped-chili dressing over and serve.
Leave a Reply