I know I have written before about how much I love fried rice so I won't bother to go into it again. The inspiration for this fried rice came from the bahay kubo fried rice we tried at Umi Nom a few weeks ago. The fried rice there had chicken, Chinese sausage, shrimp, garlic, egg and soy sauce. We had leftover chicken adobo from the other night, plus I picked up some Chinese sausage and other fun ingredients down in Chinatown this evening with fried rice in mind. I'm actually really excited about some of my other purchases (including a whole duck, pork belly, and steamed buns like the ones David Chang uses for his steamed pork buns), which I will be using in future meals/blog posts, but we will get into those later. Tonight is all about fried rice. And baby bok choy, which I served to satisfy my rampant springtime cravings for fresh vegetables.
Along with the leftover chicken adobo and the Chinese sausage, my fried rice included garlic, ginger, Chinese chives, carrots, eggs, mushroom soy sauce, fish sauce, and sesame oil. I subscribe to the more the merrier philosophy when it comes to fried rice. Can you tell? Anyway, this fried rice was a welcome departure from my standard fried rice recipes. I have never added fish sauce to fried rice before, but I though that the salty, funky flavor would go well with my other ingredients. And this was my first time ever using mushroom soy sauce, so that was kind of exciting too. Generally I don't add soy sauce or any other liquids to my fried rice, except for a touch of sesame oil, so this was a whole new way to make fried rice for me. The reason we added so many liquids this time was because the fried rice at Umi Nom was wet, or at least more wet than my fried rice, and I figured if I was going to steal the idea of using Chinese sausage and chicken in fried rice, I might as well try adding some soy sauce, etc. to my rice as well. The other thing that differentiated their fried rice from my fried rice is that they didn't make the egg pancake and then chop it up, which leaves the fried rice flecked with little pieces of fried egg. Instead, they poured the beaten eggs down over the rice while frying it. Doing the eggs that way ensures that each grain of rice is coated in a thin coat of eggy goodness, rather than each bite being seeded with fried egg. Cooking the eggs in the rice also serves to make the rice a little wetter and denser, which sounds kind of strange but can be really nice. Now our fried rice was by no means as crazily delicious as the one we had at Umi Nom a few weeks ago, but it was nice. Or as Alex said, "most deliciously tasty."
And if you're craving vegetables, try the baby bok choy. It was faintly sweet from the oyster sauce, and seasoned with garlic and ginger. This cooking method works for almost any Chinese greens, but I particularly enjoy it with baby bok choy.
Recipes after the jump!
Fried Rice with Chinese Sausage and Chicken Adobo
INGREDIENTS:
4 tbsp vegetable oil
1 cup sweet Chinese sausage, thinly sliced on the bias
1 cup sweet Chinese sausage, thinly sliced on the bias
6 cloves garlic, finely minced (roughly 2 tbsp)
1 tbsp finely minced ginger
4 cups leftover rice (preferably refrigerated overnight)
1 tsp kosher salt
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 tbsp mushroom soy sauce
1 tbsp fish sauce
3/4 cup cooked chicken adobo, removed from the bone
1/3 cup Chinese chives, minced
2 medium carrots, grated
1 tsp sesame oil
3 scallions, whites and greens, sliced
Heat a wok or large saute pan over medium heat. Add oil. Once oil is hot, but not smoking, add Chinese sausage. Stir-fry sausage until crispy around the edges, about 2 minutes. Remove from wok with slotted spoon and drain on a paper towel-lined plate. Add garlic and ginger to wok. Stir-fry until fragrant and beginning to turn golden, about 1-2 minutes. Add rice and salt. Stir-fry briefly with a spatula or spoon to break up any lumps in the rice and to coat each grain in the oil, about 1-2 minutes. Add lightly beaten eggs. Stir-fry until eggs have soaked into the rice, about 1 minute. Add soy sauce and fish sauce. Stir to combine. After the rice has soaked up the liquids, add chicken and Chinese sausage. Stir-fry until chicken is warmed through, about 2-3 minutes. Add Chinese sausage, carrots and Chinese chives. Stir-fry until sausage and vegetables are evenly distributed throughout rice, about 1 minute. Drizzle with sesame oil. Mix thoroughly. Taste and add additional soy sauce, fish sauce, or sesame oil to taste.
Top rice with scallions and remove from heat. Serve.
Sauteed Baby Bok Choy with Garlic and Ginger
INGREDIENTS:
1 tbsp vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
1 lb. baby bok choy, stems removed and larger bok choy cut in half lengthwise
1 tsp kosher salt
2 tbsp oyster sauce
1/2 cup chicken stock, less 1 tbsp reserved to make cornstarch slurry
1 tsp cornstarch, mixed with 1 tbsp chicken stock to make slurry
1 tsp sesame oil
In a 12-inch saute pan with a lid, heat vegetable oil with ginger and garlic over medium-high heat. Once garlic and ginger start to turn golden, add baby bok choy. Stir to coat bok choy with garlic and ginger-infused oil, about 30 seconds. Add salt, oyster sauce, and chicken stock. Stir with tongs to combine. Once liquids come to a boil, cover with lid and steam until bok choy is tender, about 2 minutes. Remove bok choy with tongs. Add cornstarch slurry to sauce. Turn heat to high. Allow to reduce and thicken slightly, about 1 minute, then add sesame oil. Stir to combine.
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