Shrimp Fried Rice

Rice is a primary food staple in the Philippines and in most asian countries. It has been, for centuries, an affordable source of nutrition in a region where poverty and hunger is common. Due to its benefits and versatility, its popularity has spread worldwide these past years. This grain is the cornerstone of the Filipino cuisine, an integral part of most recipes from the main dish, to beverages, and to desserts. You’ll hear Filipinos claiming “my body feels different if I don’t eat rice for a day”. In the Philippines, as children, we were scared to wolfing down our plate clean by our grandmas saying “every grain of rice you’ll throw, you’ll spend eternity picking them up one by one”. Older and wiser, I know now that God does not punish us as so described. Yet, I still can’t discard day-or-even-3 day old rice, and not because I follow a frugal way of life. I certainly make massive contributions to our community dumpster with stuff that could have been re-used by another. I think for me it’s more of knowing that somewhere, there’s a family that’s having only rice and a dash of salt for dinner.

There are many creative ways to re-vamp leftover rice. Good ideas include cold salads, soups, omelets, and of course, this quick shrimp fried rice recipe below.

Makes 6 Servings

6 cups cooked rice
1/2 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/2 chicken breast, sliced to slivers 1/4 inch thick
1 cup frozen peas and carrots, thawed
1 small onion, finely chopped
3 eggs
2 tbsps soy sauce
vegetable oil
salt and pepper

Peel shrimps. Devein by running through back horizontally, creating a “butterfly” shape when cooked. Slice chicken breast.

Heat up oil in a heavy, wide skillet or wok. Add lightly beaten eggs and scramble, making sure eggs remain moist. Remove eggs from skillet and set aside.

Saute chicken until cooked. Make sure not to dry them out. Remove from skillet and set aside.
Add oil to skillet as needed. Saute shrimp until pink. Remove from skillet and set aside.
Again, add oil to skillet as necessary. Saute onions until translucent. Add peas and carrots. Saute for 2 to 3 minutes.

Add cooked rice and stir constantly so rice does not stick to bottom of skillet, around 4 to 6 minutes. Add cooked chicken and shrimp. Stir constantly. Mix in soy sauce. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add scrambled eggs and mix in.

Remove from skillet. Garnish with chopped green onions if desired.

TIPS:
1) Good additions include fresh pineapple cubes, luncheon meat (SPAM) or ham cubes, cured meat (chinese sausage, BBQ pork etc.), cashew nuts, and raisins. With all these add-ons, the rice can be the main entree instead of just a complementing side dish. A meal in itself!
2) Old rice takes lesser time to prepare in this dish than freshly-cooked rice.

 

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