Early Look: Chengdu Tomato & Egg Noodles (Patreon)

Sometimes a dish is just in the right time and the right place, and this was definitely the case with Chengdu tomato and egg noodle soup. The dish isn't rocket science: it's more or less just fried eggs and cooked noodles, all smothered smothered in a rich tomato broth.

The genesis traces to the early 00s. China's post-reform Tomato and Egg generation had begun to grow up, started to hit the bars on the weekend. It's around this time in Chengdu, a nightlife district began to form around Yulin road — centered around a legendary club called “Empty Bottles”.

And while the entire world loves to cap off a bibulous night with some sort of midnight snack, I think it’s fair to say that Sichuan people are particularly enthusiastic fans of the genre. So a noodle shop around the corner from Empty Bottles formulated a dish to appeal to the crowds of young, newly minted drunks — a comforting mix of Tomato soup, Fried Eggs, and of course, noodles. The name of the shop was “Huaxing Jiandanmian”, and the concept proved to be a smash hit... and quickly spread around the city.

While today, it may not be the most famous Sichuan noodle dish in the world, in Chengdu it has firmly ensconced itself in the pantheon nevertheless. And frankly speaking? This recipe is probably one of the very most delicious we’ve shared on this channel. It’s just… really good, you really have to try it.