Fried rice?

Tonight I took a three hour long nap only to wake up and realize there was nothing to make for dinner. On nights like these you have to resist the urge to just order a pizza. I didn't wake up hungry but I had a hankering for Chinese food. So off to the store I went, in search of something I could quickly throw together. I snagged some sliced pork sirloin, shitakes, snow peas, a can of pineapple, and some peas and carrots. I was set.

I never had fried rice with pineapple until I met P. I'm not sure if it is a Cantonese thing or not but it is really wonderful especially with shrimp. So get a wok or a big skillet throw in your veggies, pineapple, scramble some eggs in it and throw in the rice. Add a little salt but avoid the soy sauce else it will be too salty and soggy.


I nosed around the internet for some interesting sauce ideas to toss in with the rest of the meal. Cut up the bits of pork and marinade them in soy sauce (low sodium of course), honey, red pepper flake, and a good bit of grated ginger. Scale down the proportions according to how much pork you have and how spicy you want it. It would probably be a good idea to let the pork mingle in the sauce for at least an hour but I never plan ahead. Just let it sit while you make the rice and get everything else ready. In a skillet, brown the pork and reserve the leftover liquid. Normally you always use peanut oil for stuff like this but since it is so incredible bad for you I never use it. I say just use a really mild olive oil -- I promise it won't taste funny. Once the pork is cooked take it out and set it aside. Keep the pan hot and add a couple cloves of garlic and a good splash of orange juice and a tad of mirin to kinda deglaze the pan. Let that reduce down a bit then add your veggies. I let the snowpeas wilt down then added sliced shitakes towards the end so they would keep their shape. Toss in the reserved marinade, the pork, and give it a stir. As always, this is way better than takeout and no delicious MSG!