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Wednesday, November 2, 2022

An Early History of Egg Foo Young

Egg Foo Young

It’s basically a type of omelet, although some consider it a type of pancake as well. It usually contains various vegetables, and either meat or seafood, and is topped by a brown gravy. Along with chop suey and chow mein, it was hugely popular during the early 20th century, and even into the second half of the 20th century. However, it seems to have fallen out of favor and is much less popular now. When is the last time you enjoyed this dish?

I wanted to delve into the origins of this iconic dish, finding it was a fascinating subject, although some of the answers remain unknown.

Since the 19th century in the U.S., this dish has been known by a variety of spellings, including egg fooyung, egg foo young, egg foo yong, egg foo yung, and egg fu yung. In addition, there would be a wide variety of foo young variations mentioned over the years. Foo young has connections to an egg dish from China, although there is some disagreement on the matter. In Cantonese, there is a dish known as foo yung (fu 'jung daan) and in Mandarin it’s known as fu rong (fúróngdàn). Some sources claim that “foo young” means “Hibiscus egg” but that may not be fully accurate.

According to China to Chinatown: Chinese Food in the West by J.A.G. Roberts (2002), it’s said that foo yung means ‘white lotus petals,” which differs from “hibiscus egg.” However, more clarity is apparently given in Chow Chop Suey: Food & the Chinese American Journey by Anne Mendelson (2016), where it’s stated foo young is “the name of several flowers, including the beautiful white Chinese hibiscus.”

Why would this dish have a connection to flowers? Mister Jiu’s in Chinatown, by Brandon Jew and Tienlon Ho (2021), explained that “Fuh yuhng is actually classic Cantonese technique (the eggs are meant to bloom like “hibiscus” in the wok).” So it is more a symbolic connection for this egg dish.

In this Cantonese dish, Roberts also stated: “…the whites of eggs are used to create a delicate texture..” while Mendelson noted, “Some especially delicate versions used only egg whites.” She also mentioned that it “was a dish as simple as it was elegant.” Jew & Ho also noted, “Adding brown sauce, or ‘Chinese gravy,’ was an innovation of early Chinese cooks in America

When was foo young first introduced into the U.S.? We cannot be sure of the actual date, but the first documented reference I found was from 1866, meaning it extends back nearly as long as Chinese restaurants have existed in the U.S. It certainly could have existed prior to 1866, but we just need additional evidence to prove such a claim. The 1866 reference was a bit unusual, and not the type of foo young dish that might immediately have come to mind.

The Daily Alta (CA), June 2, 1866, reported on an elaborate Chinese feast in San Francisco, which consisted of 3 courses plus a dessert course, however there were multiple dishes, eight to ten, offered for each course. One of the dishes during the first course was “Foo Young Chee,” which was “Shark’s Fin & Eggs.” Unfortunately, there’s no further description of this dish, so we don’t know how similar it was to the egg foo young we now know.

The next foo young reference was also unusual, and may not have even included eggs. In the Boston Globe, July 8, 1874, there was a description of a dinner at Chinese restaurant in San Francisco and one of the dishes was Foo Yung Ap, which was a “dish consisting of pieces of duck fried in batter and stewed with mushrooms, green onions, and peas in the pod.” It might have contained eggs too, but that point was not mentioned in the article. Only the foo young in the name seems to indicate it also contained eggs. 

There wasn’t another foo young reference until 1896. During those past thirty years, foo young likely existed at other Chinese restaurants although we lack the documentation to support it. It may not have been a common dish though, and took some time to evolve into what we would come to know as this dish.

In the Boston Post, April 5, 1896, there was an ad for the Oriental Restaurant, located in Chinatown, which mentioned, "After the theater come and try our specialty of Chop Sooy, Boiled Noodle Soup, Chow Mein, Fon Young An.” Their menu was posted in a later newspaper, and it offered Fon Young An for 50 cents. In comparison, Chop Sooy was 25 cents, Chow Mein was 75 cents, and Plain Lobster was 50 cents. Fon Young An might have been an alternate spelling for Foo Young Dan, more commonly known as egg foo young.

The Washington Times (D.C.), September 6, 1898, noted: “Fou Young Dun is a most wonderful omelet, with meats and vegetables mixed with the egg,..” This was the first description of this dish, and the only omission was the lack of mention of any gravy. It’s possible that the early versions of this dish weren’t topped by any type of gravy, making it a later addition to the dish.

The Boston Herald, November 6, 1898, printed a review of The Canton, noting its beautiful décor, and dishes like chow mein, chop sooy, and fon young an. In the Pittsburgh Daily Post (PA), September 15, 1901, there was some discussion of Chinese restaurants in Pittsburgh, noting that you could obtain fou young dan for 25 cents. The Cleveland Leader (OH), July 29, 1902, mentioned that foo young don was served at a Chinese wedding supper. And in the Waterbury Democrat (CT), January 26, 1903, a menu was printed for a Chinese restaurant and it stated Foo Yung Dong was 25 cents, the same price as Chop Suey. The spelling might have differed, but these all appear to have been the same dish.

Another unusual foo young dish. The Saint Paul Globe (MN), July 26, 1903, mentioned that a Chinese restaurant menu offered Foo Young Dove & rice for 30 cents. A dove omelet? Well, during that time period, people consumed a far wider variety of birds than we eat nowadays. 

The Morning Herald (PA), December 13, 1907, also had an ad, with a menu, for a Chinese restaurant, noting Foo Young Dan cost 25 cents.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch (MO), August 2, 1908, noted that a main ingredient of egg foo young was onion. This is also the first time that the phrase egg foo young was mentioned in a newspaper. Other versions of foo young were also mentioned, such as in the Fresno Morning Republican (CA), February 7, 1909, which referenced Foo Young Ha, which cost 50 cents. The Los Angeles Herald (CA), August 17, 1909, also mentioned egg foo yung du.

Maybe the first recipe for egg foo young was presented in one of the first Chinese cookbooks in English. In the Chinese Cookery in the Home Kitchen by Jessie Louise Nolton (1911), there was a recipe for Eggs Fo Yong. It stated, “Cut into thin shreds one-half cupful Chinese cured pork, one-fourth cupful bamboo shoots, a half cupful each of celery and Chinese potatoes, and a little shredded onion. After all is cut, put in bowl and break over it a half dozen eggs. Mix all together and fry in small cakes that are flat like pancakes. Serve on an oval platter and pour over it the following sauce: One teaspoonful of each of the two sauces, a small half teaspoonful of sugar, a teaspoonful of rice flour or cornstarch and a little water. Mix in pan in which cakes were fried, and our over cakes in platter. Serve with rice and tea.”

This recipe seems to indicate that egg foo young had been fully realized by this point, including with a gravy. This was the first documented reference to gravy. The recipe didn’t include some of the vegetables that are sometimes included, such as bean sprouts and mushrooms, but that could simply be a variation. The cookbook also included recipes for Eggs Fo Young with Chicken, Eggs Fo Young with Lobster Yook, and Eggs Fo Young with Shrimp Yook. This also shows the various types of Egg Foo Young that were appearing, with different types of meats and seafood. Egg Foo Young wasn’t a monolithic dish, but one with multiple versions.

In the Knoxville Sentinel (TN), January 28, 1911, there was a discussion of a Chinese banquet in New York, that included Foo Young Ta, but no description was given. Then, The Eugene Guard (OR), April 13, 1911, printed a large restaurant ad with menu for the Smeede Hotel Restaurant, which served American and Chinese cuisine. In the section of Eggs. Mandarin Style, the offerings included: Egg Foo Yung for 35 cents, Shrimp Egg Foo Yung for 65 cents, Crab Egg Foo Yung for 60 cents, Lobster Egg Foo Yung for 65 cents, Oyster Egg Foo Yung for 65 cents, Chicken Egg Foo Yung for 75 cents, and Pork Egg Foo Yung for 35 cents. 7 different foo young options!

In the Richmond Times-Dispatch (VA), February 19, 1912, it mentioned a New Year’s feast at a Chinese laundry, which included “foo young doong (eggs, ham and mushrooms).” The Daily Picayune (LA), April 20, 1913, noted “foo yung donn, a sort of egg chop suey” and “knah toi donn, a string bean omelet.” It's curious why that wasn't named Stringbean Foo Young. And The Chico Enterprise, (CA) March 24, 1914, printed a restaurant ad which mentioned Foo Young Hai and “Hai” referred to “crab.” Another oddity was noted in the Leader-Telegram, February 20, 1916, which stated a new Chinese café has a dish called “Foo Young Sue.” There was no description as to what that entailed.

The Boston Herald, December 31, 1916, provided some cooking advice for home cooks to replicate Chinese restaurant dishes at home. The provided recipes include Foo Young Dan. “This is a four-egg omelet filled before turning with a half cup of minced ham and a half cup of onions that have been delicately fried in sweet lard. Omelets are very popular with the Chinese, and they fill them with vegetables and fish mixtures, and fine minced preserved fruits flavored with ginger.” This is the first time of any mention of fruit being added to foo young. I’ll also note that this recipe was repeated in other newspapers across the country, from New York to California.

More recipes were provided in the Chinese Cook Book: In Plain English by Vernon Galster (1917). The recipe for Eggs Fo Young required ingredients including Chinese cured pork, bamboo shoot, water chestnuts, celery, a green onion top, eggs, and a Chinese salty sauce. There were variations including Shrimp, Lobster and Chicken.

And The Chinese Cook Book by Shiu Wong Chan (1917), in a section on “Eggs,” included a Plain Omelet (Chow Don—eggs, ham, parsley), Pork Omelet (Fo Yung York—eggs, pork, onions, bamboo shoots, water chestnuts), Chicken Omelet (Fo Yun Guy), Shrimp Omelet (Fo Yung Har), Crab Omelet (Fo Yung High), Lobster Omelet (Fo Yung Lung Ha), and Bean Cake Omelet (Fo Yung Dow Fo).

The Chicago Tribune (IL), December 30, 1917, presented a restaurant ad, which noted “Oyster Egg Foo Young.”

Another recipe. The Courier-News (NJ), April 3, 1918, printed the following recipe: “Foo Young Dan (Four Egg Omelet). Make exactly as for any omelet, separating the eggs and yolks, beating each lightly and mixing lightly together with two tablespoons of water and a little salt and pepper. Cook and spread, when risen, with a mixture of bits of chicken, a few mushrooms and a bit of minced onion, that have been lightly fried in peanut oil. Fold and finish in the usual manner.” However, this recipe didn't include a gravy. 

The Trenton Evening Times (NJ), May 29, 1919, printed, “Omelets—Known by almost everybody by the Chinese name—Foo Young Dan (Chinese omelet). Consists of bamboo shoots, water chestnuts, Chira ham and Soy-bean cake, fried with peanut oil. Same can be made with egg, lobster or shrimp. Very well-known and delicious dish.”

In the Chicago Tribune (IL), March 26, 1920, there was an advertisement for “Oriental Show-You” sauce, and they offered people a recipe book, including a recipe for Egg Foo Young. The ad also stated that their sauce would bring out the flavor of this dish.

Recipe time again. The Lambertville Record (NJ), May 7, 1920, had a recipe for Foo Yung Wan (Chinese Omelet), and it stated: “Four eggs, two small onions (minced), two stalks of celery, four ounces of pork, a tablespoonful of soy, a quarter of a teaspoonful of salt, six lotus seeds (they may be omitted) and fine herbs to taste. Beat four eggs. Have ready half a small onion (minced) and two stalks of celery (chopped small). Chop up four ounces of pork very fine and fry a golden brown. Add a sprinkling of fine herbs to taste, with a tablespoonful of soy and salt; cook for five minutes. Add the egg and cook for three minutes without stirring, but take care to avoid burning. Fold one-half over the other and slip on a hit platter. Serve at once.” Once again, we have a recipe that didn't include a gravy. So, maybe gravy wasn't a standard addition to this dish yet. 

More Foo Young variations. The Bridgeport Times & Evening Farmer (CT), October 14, 1920, printed a restaurant ad which mentioned “Bat Bow Foo Young” for $1.00. Both Hanford Morning Journal (CA), February 18, 1921 and the Oregon Daily Journal (OR), February 15, 1921, mentioned “Foo Yung Har (Shrimp omelet). The Bridgeport Times & Evening Farmer (CT), May 28-June 25, ran ads for a Chinese restaurant, each week mentioning a different dish, including Chicken Foo Young with Green Peppers, Fresh Lobster Foo Young, Subgum Foo Young and Subgum Foo Young Don. Foo young could take on so many different forms. 

The Lexington Herald-Ledger (KY), January 13, 1922, detailed a celebration at a new Chinese restaurant, and one of the dishes was “Lobster Egg Foo Young Canton Style.” In a restaurant ad in the News Journal, (OH) March 3, 1922, it noted Egg and Shrimp Foo Yung for $1.25.

One more recipe. The Los Angeles Times (CA), August 5, 1922, offered a recipe for “Foo Yung Dan,” noting it was “…a recipe for Chinese herb omelet, foo yung dan. Place in a saute pan 1 cup of finely-minced young pork and cook until brown. Add ½ of an onion finely chopped, 4 stalks of tender celery, finely chopped, and 1.2 a teaspoon of salt. Cook 2 minutes. Add teaspoons of syou and 4 well-beaten eggs. Let cook 5 minutes without stirring. Be careful that it does not burn. Turn out on a hot plate and fold as for an omelet. Serve with steaming rice.” And again, no gravy in this recipe. 

Then, in the Los Angeles Times (CA), October 10, 1922, there was an advertisement from the Southern California Egg Council which presented a recipe for Egg Foo Yung. The ingredients included: 5 eggs, well beaten; 1 ½ cups bean sprouts; 3 green onions, finely cut; ½ pound pork or ham, finely cut; 1 dozen button mushrooms, finely cut; 2 tablespoons Chinese Sauce; ½ teaspoon salt, and a pinch pepper. The directions were simple, “Stir this mixture well and fry in small frying pan over slow fire. Brown both sides.”

And one more recipe. The Nebraska State Journal, November 16, 1923, printed a recipe for “Foo Yung.” It stated, “Beat four eggs well; have ready half a minced onion and four sticks of celery. Chopped fine. Put in the frying pan four ounces of pork, chopped fine, and fry until brown. Now add the herbs with a dessert spoonful of syau, and finally the beaten eggs. Let cook for five minutes, without touching, but be careful to keep from burning. Fold one-half over the other, and slip on the platter. Serve at once with rice.” Where's the gravy? This recipe was reprinted in newspapers across the country, including Utah, Indiana, New Jersey, Delaware, South Dakota, Tennessee, Wisconsin, Washington D.C., Massachusetts and Arizona.

More Foo Young variations. The Traverse City Record-Eagle, June 26, 1924, printed a large menu for a new Chinese restaurant, which had a section for Egg Foo Young. The options included Egg Fooyoung for 50 cents, Ham and Eggs Fooyoung for 65 cents, Chicken Eggs Fooyoung for 75 cents, Lobster Eggs Fooyoung for 80 cents, Fresh Shrimp Eggs Fooyoung for 75 cents, Asparagus Eggs Fooyoung for 75 cents, Green pepper Eggs Fooyoung for 60 cents, and White Mushroom Eggs Fooyoung for 80 cents.

The Detroit Times Extra (MI), September 28, 1924, presented a recipe for Egg Foo Young, noting: “Three-quarters cup fresh pork, veal or chicken, sliced fine, ½ cup onion sliced, ½ cup celery, shredded, 4 eggs, chop suey sauce, 2 cups bean sprouts if desired. Slice the meat into very thin, small pieces and boil for about 10 minutes in a pan with a little water. Put the onion and celery into the same pna; season with chop suey sauce and salt to suit your taste; then cook them all together for several minutes. Drain the liquid into a bowl and save it for gravy. Cool off the ingredients in a large bowl. When it becomes cold, add beaten eggs and a teaspoonful of corn starch; then mixed all together, adding the bean sprouts. Now heat 2 tablespoons of lard or olive oil in a skillet. Fry the mixture as you would three pancakes. Brown both sides. In making a gravy take the liquid you saved; add chop suey sauce, a pinch of salt and sugar, thicken slightly with flour. Serve this with hot rice or bread.” Finally, we see another recipe calling for a gravy. 

As for another variation, the Charlotte Observer (NC), December 7, 1924, made note of Turkey Egg Foo Young with French Mushrooms. Sound like a good Thanksgiving dish. 

Comparison recipes! The Evansville Press (IN), May 6, 1928, provided two recipes for Egg Foo Young, indicating how the first recipe could be improved; “The first recipe didn’t call for any gravy and the cakes really need some sort of sauce. By draining off the liquor a piquant sauce flavored with celery and onion and pork was obtained.” So, it could have been during the 1920s that gravy started to become more common, enhancing the dish. 

The Detroit Times Extra (MI), November 25, 1928, also had a recipe for Egg Foo Yung. “Mix in large bowl 4 eggs, 1 ½ cups of bean sprouts, 3 green onions finely cut, ½ cup of roast pork finely shredded, 1 dozen button mushrooms chopped fine. One teaspoon of Chinese sauce, ½ teaspoon of salt, pinch of pepper. Stir this mixture well and make eight pancakes. Fry in a shallow pan in very hot oil. Cook until both sides are well browned. If gravy is desired make the usual manner except season with Chinese sauce.”

And the Dallas Morning News (TX), October 19, 1929, added: “Eggs foo young are cooked into cakes and served with brown gravy of the ordinary kind, mixed with La Choy sauce.” It continued, “The recipe for egg foo young calls for two eggs, an ounce of diced ham, a half ounce of bean sprouts and a half ounce of celery for each person served.”

A simple recipe was provided in an advertisement in the Columbus Evening Dispatch (OH) January 24, 1930. The ad was for canned Fuji Bean Sprouts, and their Egg Foo Young recipe stated, “Drain one can of Fuji Bean Sprouts and beat three eggs well. Mix thoroughly. (If preferred add ham or bacon.) Fry mixture like a pancake in hot skillet with plenty of oil.”

The Idaho Falls Post (ID), November 21, 1930, in an ad for a Chinese restaurant noted: “Foo Young Egg—A dish as ancient as the China Wall and as rare and delicate as the Lotus Flower. Foo-Young is served with a savory sauce which is full in flavor—delighting the palate—and intrigues to the bursting point a lagging appetite.”

The Honolulu Star-Bulletin (HI), January 28, 1932, offered ten Chinese egg recipes, including Egg Foo Yung, Chicken Foo Yung, Shrimp Foo Yung, and Pepper Foo Yung.

More variations. The Colusa Herald, (CA), March 5, 1932, printed a restaurant ad, which included Foo Yung Hai for 50 cents and Foo Yung Ha for 50 cents. The Chicago Daily News (IL), April 16, 1932, had a recipe for Lamb Foo Young. One of the more unusual types was mentioned in The Lexington Herald (KY), May 6, 1934. The writer received an invite from the Manchu ex-emperor and empress. He noted, “They had received a gift of raspberries from the country and were going to have raspberry fu-yung...” A fruity foo young dish! At the World’s Fair, the Chicago Daily News (IL), June 22, 1934, stated you could enjoy “chestnut fu yung.”

The Schenectady Gazette (NY), June 1, 1934, mentioned, “Chinese egg foo yung is an omelet made with bean sprouts or mixed vegetables and a little cold shredded chicken, and served with a thickened soy bean sauce.”

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer (WA), July 28, 1935, printed a recipe for Crab Meat Egg Foo Yung. The Visalia Times-Delta (CA), September 24, 1936, published a restaurant menu, with the various dishes: Chicken Fu Yung for 60 cents, Shrimp Fu Yung for 50 cents, Roast Pork Fu Yung for 50 cents, Ham Fu Yung for 50 cents, and Plain Fu Yung for 35 cents.

Recipe contest winner! The Omaha World-Herald (NE), November 14, 1936, held a recipe contest and the winning dish was Foo Yung Ha (shrimp), made with shrimp, soup stock, onion, bean sprouts, dried or canned mushrooms, water chestnuts, eggs, and cornstarch.

The Sunday Oregonian (OR), February 21, 1937, stated “…egg foo yung. The latter pleases nearly every American palate. It is an omelet containing chopped pork, water chestnuts, bean sprouts, bamboo shoots and other Chinese vegetables.” And The Sunday Star (DC), August 29, 1937, described it as a “tasty but rather heavy egg foo young dinners that is a cross between an omelet and an overgrown pancake.

In the famed cookbook, Cook at Home In Chinese by Henry Low (1938), there is a chapter on Eggs, which begins with a recipe for Gravy For Omelets, made with chicken stock, salt, sugar, gourmet order, black sauce, cornstarch and pepper. The recipe also states, "This may be used on any omelet, but the Chinese usually serve omelets dry." So, the addition of gravy to foo young appears to have been intended to appeal more to an American palate. 

Then, the cookbook presented recipes for a wide variety of foo young dishes, including Foo Young Don (Plain Chinese Omelet), Tar Sheou Foo Young Don (Omelet Cantonese), Jing Dun (Steamed Omelet), Subgum Foo Young (Subgum Omelet), Lot Tsui Foo Young (Green Pepper Omelet), Moo Koo Young Don (Mushroom Omelet), Hong Yun Young Dow (Almond Omelet), Gai Foo Young (Chicken Omelet), Subgum Gai Foo Young (Chicken Subgum Omelet), Foo Tot Yeung Dow (Ham Omelet), Hai Yeung Don (Crab Meat Omelet), Loong Ha Yeung Don (Lobster Omelet), Ha Foo Yeung (Shrimp Omelet), and Chow Kwei You Tse (Shark Fins with Scrambled Eggs). 

More variations. The San Francisco Chronicle (CA), June 20, 1939, reviewed a Chinese restaurant, which offered seven “omelettes,” including Foo Yung Don (pork), Foo Yung Hi (crab), Foo Yung Har (shrimp), Subgum Don (scrambled eggs, meat and vegetables), Foo Yung Gai (chicken), and Ham or Pork Omelette, Canton Style.

Foo young in the U.S. extends back at least to 1866, and for the next 75 years, was hugely popular, as well as available in a diverse variety of different types, containing a multitude of varied ingredients. the addition of gravy to foo young evolved in the U.S. over time, and apparently was added to appeal more to American tastes. Maybe it's time for egg foo young to make a big splash again, for Chinese chefs to create some new and imaginative foo young dishes. 

What type of foo young dish would you like to see?

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