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Springtime Fried Rice

Prep Time:  10-15 minutes

     Cook Time:  8-10 minutes

     Serves:  2

This is not chic fare; it’s come-in-from-the-garden-(or-get-home-from-the-market)-and-fix-a-good-meal food.

Ingredients

  • 2 Tbsp. peanut oil, divided
  • 1 to 1 1/2 cups chopped spring vegetables (snap peas, asparagus, broccoli, etc.)
  • 1 1/2 to 2 cups leftover cooked basmati, jasmine or medium-grain white rice
  • 2/3 cup cooked cubed meat, poultry or tofu
  • 3 to 4 Tbsp. chopped garlic shoots or scapes, or ramps
  • 1 to 2 tsp. minced fresh ginger root
  • Bottled chili garlic paste, to taste
  • 1 tsp. dark sesame oil
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 3 Tbsp. chopped green onions, or more to taste
  • 2 Tbsp. soy sauce, or to taste

Directions

  1. Heat a large, heavy skillet (cast iron works great) or wok over high flame until a drop of water evaporates almost instantly upon contact. Add 1 tablespoon peanut oil and swirl pan to coat bottom. Wait a few more seconds, then add spring vegetables and cook, tossing, about 2 minutes.
  2. Keeping the flame high, add another tablespoon peanut oil, wait 10 to 15 seconds and then add rice. (If the rice is clumpy, break it up as you add it.) Let mixture cook undisturbed for a minute or so, then scrape it up and toss it well.
  3. Add meat or tofu to the top and let rice cook undisturbed for another minute or so, then toss well. Keep cooking, tossing frequently, until rice is toasty-looking and everything is heated through, another 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in garlic or ramps and ginger root, and cook, tossing, about 30 seconds.
  4. Push mixture to outer edges of pan and add sesame oil to the middle, swirling pan to distribute oil. Stir chili paste into beaten eggs, then add the mixture to the center of the pan. As soon as the eggs set on the bottom, turn them over in sections and let the other side set. Coarsely chop up the eggs and toss with rice mixture.
  5. Add green onions and soy sauce and toss-cook the mixture another moment or two. Adjust flavorings, then give it one more quick toss and serve up.

Notes

Suggestions The big hang-up about cooking fried rice is how it can stick to the pan. A non-stick pan works nicely to prevent this, but it also inhibits the tasty, signature singe (called wok hei) that a wok or heavy-gauge skillet affords. When using either of those, get the pan very hot before adding the oil. This cuts back on the amount of time required to heat the oil, which in turn means the oil has less time to break down and get gummy (read: cause the rice to stick). As important as when the oil is added is the condition of the rice itself. Moisture in just- cooked rice is what makes it sticky, and that’s why most fried rice aficionados use chilled, day-old rice instead. If you didn’t cook it forward, however, you can use freshly cooked rice—but spread it out and let it air- or fan-dry for an hour or more before proceeding. Also key: Throughout the cooking process, keep your heat high. (If burning threatens, reduce heat to medium-high, but bring it back up when you can.) And don’t crowd the pan, which lowers heat, creates moisture and, again, that’s when things get sticky. For larger amounts, cook in batches.