Shrimp Fried Rice

I have to be honest here. Up until now I haven't found a fried rice recipe that compares to good old Chinese take out... until now. This one definitely takes first place. It was very easy and came together quick. It can serve an army but great for lunches over the next few days. I made two cups of uncooked rice which makes something like 6+ cups of cooked rice. I found some great tips from Simple Recipes about not touching the food so much as it cooks in the wok. I tried my best to follow this rule and the final outcome was delicious little browned rice bits that remind me of, yes, the fried rice at our favorite little Chinese restaurant in town. Take a look at this recipe to follow her step by step guide to cooking fried rice. I think you can add what ever vegetables you want. I didn't have peas in the freezer and subbed edamame and added mushrooms and napa cabbage because I had some left over from making pot stickers over the weekend. I had scallions but forgot to add them so maybe add them to your ingredient list.

Shrimp Fried Rice

10-12 raw shrimp, shelled and deveined
1/2 t kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
1/2 t cornstarch
2 T canola, divided
3 eggs, beaten
6 C leftover rice, grains separated well

2 carrots, diced

1 C shelled edamame

5 mushrooms, chopped

1/2 a small napa cabbage, chopped

1 t fresh ginger, small diced

2 T soy sauce

1 1/2 t sesame oil

1 T butter

Toss the shrimp with the salt, pepper and cornstarch. Let sit for at room temperature for about 10 minutes.

Heat a wok or large sauté pan on high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of the cooking oil and swirl to coat pan. Add the shrimp, quickly spreading out around the cooking surface area so that they are not overlapping. Let fry, untouched for 30 seconds. Flip over and let the other side fry for 30 seconds, or until just cooked through. Remove the shrimp from the pan onto a plate, leaving as much oil in the pan as possible. Turn the heat to medium, let the pan heat up again. Add the eggs, stirring in a quick motion to break up and scramble the eggs. When the eggs are almost cooked through (they should still be slightly runny in the middle), dish out of the pan into the same plate as the cooked shrimp.

Use paper towels to wipe the same wok or sauté pan clean and return to high heat with the remaining 1 tablespoon of cooking oil, swirling to coat. When the oil is very hot, add the mushrooms and carrots fry for 1-2 minutes. Add the ginger, edamame and cabbage and cook for 30 seconds. Add in the butter and rice and stir well to mix in with the vegetables. Spread the rice all around the wok surface area and let the rice heat up, untouched until you hear the bottoms of the grains sizzle, about 1-2 minutes. Use the spatula to toss the rice, again spreading the rice out over the surface of wok.5 Drizzle the soy sauce all around the rice and toss. Add the the cooked eggs, shrimp and sesame oil, tossing to mix the rice evenly with all of the ingredients.

Let everything heat back up again, until the rice grains are so hot they practically dance! Taste and add an additional 1 teaspoon of soy sauce if needed.