A delicious Chinese dish that's better than takeout!
Prep Time: 10 minutesminutes
Cook Time: 50 minutesminutes
Total: 1 hourhour
Servings: 6entree-sized servings.
Ingredients
The rice:
1 3/4cupsmedium-grain brown rice (such as jasmine)
3cupswater
1tablespoonsunflower oil
1teaspoonsalt
The eggs:
6large eggs, well-beaten with a big pinch of salt
1tablespoonsunflower oil
2tablespoonstoasted sesame oil
The veg:
6scallions, sliced on the diagonal 1/4" thick, soaked in cool water to clean any sandy dirt stuck in its crevices, drained well
2medium or 4 small carrots, sliced thinly on the diagonal
1poundasparagus spears, fibrous ends snapped off, sliced into 2" diagonals
1/2poundsnap peas, stems pulled off
The flavorings:
2tablespoonssunflower oil
2tablespoonstoasted sesame oil
2-3teaspoonsminced, fresh ginger
2large cloves garlic, minced
2tablespoonstamari or soy sauce (more to taste)
1/2small bunch cilantro, cleaned well and chopped
1tablespoontoasted sesame seeds
Instructions
Cook the rice:
Place the rice in a mesh strainer, and shake under running water for about 30 seconds to clean the rice of dust and starch. Drain well. In a large saucepan with a snug-fitting lid, combine the rice, 3 cups water, sunflower oil and salt. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat to very low and cover the pot. Let cook until all the water is absorbed, about 40 minutes. Check the rice for doneness; if it isn't soft enough, add a few tablespoons more water and continue cooking. When the rice is done, let stand off heat, covered, for 10 minutes, then use a large fork to gently fluff and separate the grains of rice. Use immediately, or cool to room temperature (about 2 hours), then chill until needed, up to 3 days.
Scramble the eggs:
In a medium (6") skillet, heat the oils over medium heat until they shimmer. Add the beaten eggs. Let cook for 30 seconds, then use the tines of a fork to pull the cooked, outer edges inward. Repeat this a few times. When the eggs are mostly cooked, use a spatula to break them up a bit and flip them over. When fully cooked, slide the eggs onto a plate and set aside.
Fry the veg and rice:
Have all your ingredients measured out, prepped, and waiting for you in various bowls next to the stove, goshdarnit!
Heat the sunflower and sesame oils in a large wok over high heat until the oil shimmers. Add the ginger and garlic, and cook, stirring constantlywith a wooden spoon or spatula, for 30 seconds.Add the scallions and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add the carrots, and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Repeat with the asparagus, then the snap peas. The vegetables should be crisp-tender; cook longer if needed.
Add the rice and tamari, stir to combine, cook to heat through, then gently fold in the egg, cooking and stirring gently to heat everything through. Remove from the heat and stir in the chopped cilantro. Taste for seasoning, adding more tamari if needed.
Serve the fried rice immediately, sprinkled with sesame seeds. Leftovers keep well for 2-3 days.
Notes
As I droned on about in the post above, be sure to have all ingredients prepped and ready to go before you heat up your wok.A wok is the ideal vessel for cooking the stir-fry (though I've found that the eggs stick less in my cast-iron skillet). Lacking a wok, cut the recipe in half (or cook it in two batches) and use a large, 10" skillet.If you start with pre-cooked rice, you'll need 6 cups for this recipe.To make this dish vegan, substitute 8-12 ounces of cubed, extra-firm or nigari tofu, cooked in sunflower oil until golden and crispy, for the eggs.Many other vegetables can stand in for the ones I used here: shiitake mushrooms, spinach, cabbage, bok choy or other greens, English peas, broccoli, cabbage, or anything else you like. If you enjoy spice, drizzle some hot chile oil over the finished rice. I use sunflower oil for a flavorless cooking oil, but coconut would probably be a worthy substitute.Nutritional values are based on six servings.