Fried Rice

Barrett makes the BEST fried rice! He is graciously allowing me to share his recipe with you all. This is definitely a hit with our entire family.

Ingredients:
8 mushrooms (shitake would be authentic but we usually use crimini because they're cheaper) finely chopped
3 tbsp oil (either peanut or evoo)
2 eggs, lightly beaten with a pinch of salt
4 scallions (white and green parts) thinly sliced
1/4 cup minced carrot
2 large cloves garlic minced
Pinch of red chile flakes (optional)
1 tsp minced peeled fresh ginger (Barrett tries to sneak in quadruple this amount, but the flavor is then too strong. Can you tell he loves ginger?)
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
3 cups cooked rice (we use jasmine rice but you can use plain white or brown rice instead; we also cook our rice in chicken broth for extra flavor)
1 cup cooked meat diced (you can use pork, beef, chicken, shrimp, ham, etc. We generally use bbq pork from the deli section of the grocery store)
1/2 cup frozen peas defrosted (sounds like an oxymoron)

Directions:
Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a wok or large skillet over medium heat. Pour in eggs, swirl the pan so the egg forms a large thin pancake. Lift the edge of the egg to allow any uncooked egg to run to the center. As soon as the egg has set, turn it out of the pan onto a cutting board. Cool, cut into 1 inch pieces.

Wipe out the pan with a paper towel and heat the remaining oil over high heat. Add the scallions and carrots and stir fry for 1 1/2 minutes. Add the mushrooms, garlic, chile if using, and ginger and stir fry for 1 minute more. Add the soy sauce, sesame oil and rice and stir fry for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the meat, peas and reserved egg, cook, stirring until heated through, about 2 to 3 minutes.

Can garnish with sesame seeds and scallion.

Note that the meat and vegetables used are suggestions for traditional fried rice, but you could use whatever you have on hand that needs to be used up. Enjoy!