Sunday, January 9, 2011

Let's start with an easy favorite: Curry Fried Rice

Fried rice always seemed like a mystery to me--A dish that could only be made by Thai or Chinese restaurants, one that could never ever be duplicated properly at home and could only be cooked by those who had special secret knowledge. Part of that special knowledge involved how to cook rice. (!)
For my fried rice, i use a rice cooker. i highly recommend them. They are very inexpensive, very easy to use and save you so much time and aggravation. The best part: perfect rice. Your formulas for rice cooker are as follows: 1 cup uncooked rice=2 cups cooked.  1 ½ cups water for every cup of uncooked rice goes in your cooker. If not using a rice cooker, follow instructions on your package of rice. i recommend using plain long grain rice for this or jasmine rice. Also, if you have trouble with your rice and don't have a cooker, go pick up some steamed rice at your local Chinese/Thai place. i won't tell anyone, and it's a great shortcut and you'll have great rice.

Use *leftover* rice for this if possible. Cook the rice the night before, pick up from restaurant the day before or put rice in the cooker while you're getting ready for work and then when it's done, shove the whole pot in the fridge before you leave and it will magically turn into leftover rice before you get home to cook dinner. You don't technically have to use leftover rice, you can make this on a whim, but it's better with leftover rice. Also, i *highly recommend* using fresh ginger for this. i just made this again with fresh, and it was a bazillion times better.

Ok, let's less reading and more cooking, shall we?
Yum! Yum!
Curry Fried Rice
(recipe serves one with generous portion and leftovers, or two for smaller portion. i double this recipe for the two of us and we have lots of leftovers.) p.s. i love leftovers of this. i eat it for breakfast with sriracha and it starts my day magnificently. 

Equipment: Rice Cooker (or Chinese restaurant) (or pot with lid for cooking rice), Wok or non stick large chef's pan, knives, garlic press (if you have one), spatula (do not use metal spatula on non-stick cookware, instead use a silicone flipper) or wooden spoon, bowls and one plate to set aside ingredients as you cook, measuring spoons (or a magic eye), etc.

Ingredients:

3 cups cooked rice
1 cup frozen petite peas 
1 cup frozen edamame (can omit if you're allergic to or avoid soy but the nuttiness really works here)
2 small-med sweet onions (* if you dont have sweet onions or can't find them, drizzle a tsp or two of honey or agave over your onions while you cook them to sweeten them up.)
3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
1 tbsp ground ginger (or same amt fresh grated ginger)
½ tbsp muchi curry (*this is the hot curry. start here and go up if you want it hot. For regular curry powder, use at least 1 tbsp)
½ tbsp tumeric
1 tbsp dried parsley ( or 2 tbsp fresh)
about 4-6 tbsp sesame oil, or plain vegetable oil
8 oz can (approx) of pineapple chunks (more magic power for you if you use fresh- 1 cup)
½ tbsp sesame seeds
about 2 tsp honey or agave syrup 
½ tbsp soy sauce
2-3 eggs, beaten
1-3 tbsp reserved pineapple juice from can (optional)
salt and pepper to taste


Instructions:
  
Cook or gather or pick up your 3 cups cooked rice. 
Heat Wok or chef's pan on high until a flick of water goes SSSSS and add 1 tbsp oil,  and chopped onions. (plus honey or agave if not using sweet onion) Salt and pepper your onions, and after about 2 minutes, add your garlic and parsley. Cook about 3 more minutes or until onions are soft and fragrant. Add Edamame and peas to the pan and cook until soft, 5-10 minutes. Transfer everything into large bowl set to the side. Place pan back on heat, add 1/2 tbsp oil and pour in your beaten eggs.  Move around eggs in pan, peeling away from the sides, but forming a sort of egg patty until roughly set (bottom looks like cooked egg and top is creamy eggy glisteny) and flip. Cook another minute or two until egg is cooked through and remove from pan. Set aside on plate and break up egg with wooden spoon or spatula. Return pan again to heat and add 1/2 tbsp oil and pineapple.  Stir and add sesame seeds, soy sauce, and 1 tsp honey or agave.  Cook for about 2-5 minutes or until fragrant. Set aside. Return pan to heat, add 2 tbsp oil , ginger, curry and tumeric.  Leave on heat for around one minute and then add cooked rice.  Stir, flip, turn, and encourage your rice until all spices are evenly distributed and your rice is happily looking up at you, begging for praise on how bright it is, wanting you to be proud of how sunshiney it is. Sing a little Donovan tune to your rice (Sunshine Superman or Mellow Yellow will work nicely) then add all your previously cooked items and optional pineapple juice, mix in with your rice to distribute evenly and create magical fried rice. *Note: if you use leftover rice for this, your rice will seem a little dry when you first put it in and are distributing spices and oil. But don't worry, it will moisten when you add the other ingredients.

Serve with sriracha hot sauce if you like it spicy. Eat it for breakfast and see how much pep and disco you have while traveling to work or school.

Voila! Eat!

Sunshine came softly through my a-window today
Could've tripped out easy a-but I've a-changed my ways
It'll take time, I know it but in a while
You're gonna be mine, I know it, we'll do it in style
'Cause I made my mind up you're going to be mine...




2 comments:

  1. Love this idea and recipe. Curry is soooo perfect over the winter too! Excited to try this omnomnomn

    ReplyDelete
  2. YAY! :)!!
    i just edited this a little so make sure you check current version before you make it. yumyum!

    ReplyDelete