Saturday, September 20, 2008

Fried Rice


I love this dish. Why? Because there are no set rules. With the addition of a particular herb, spice or ingredient, you can adapt fried rice to whatever cuisine or global flavour you're craving. Your only limitation is your imagination. So open the fridge and let your creativity soar! Another reason why fried rice is so incredible is because it's similar to stew or curry in that you can use up a lot of leftovers or dying vegetables that may have passed their peak but can still be used in a meal such as this.


Ingredients:
5 cups of leftover rice
1 cup of finely chopped ham
1 finely chopped large onion
1 tbsp. pureed garlic (approx)
1 tbsp. grated ginger (approx)
1/2 cup of corn
1/2 cup of sliced celery
1/2 cup of sliced carrot
1/2 cup of sliced yellow pepper
1/2 cup of sliced brocoli tops
salt and pepper
splash of soy sauce
splash of chicken broth


Method:
Fry onion, garlic and ginger in olive oil with a dab of sesame (for flavour).
Add ham and saute. Add veggies and saute.
Add rice at the end and fry while mixing quickly.
Season with salt and pepper and a splash of soy sauce.
Can add splash of chicken broth, but not too much or rice will be soggy.
Can garnish with chopped green onion, cilantro, parsley, or mitsuba.
Enjoy immediately with a bowl of soup or a green salad or some barbecued chicken or steak....

** Also good with added bacon, shrimp, sliced steak, or charsiu pork. Be creative and colorful!
** By the way, my rice is 1/3 white rice, 1/3 brown rice, and 1/3 japanese barley - cooked together in rice cooker. (I don't cook white rice anymore as my Japanese husband has high blood sugar ... anyway mixed rice is much healthier.)

1 comment:

Bev said...

This is my favorite way to use leftover rice. I fact my husband would rather have this.