Country Ham Fried Rice
Cook time: 15 minutes
Serves: 4 as a side, 2 as a main
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 cups cooked rice, ideally 1-2 days old
- 1 cup country ham, chopped
- 2 cups assorted seasonal vegetables, such as carrots, green onions, rapini, and radish, chopped in equal sizes
- 3 tbs cooking oil or fat (such as olive oil or reserved bacon fat)
- 1 clove garlic, grated
- 1 inch fresh ginger, peeled and grated
- 1 tbs honey
- 2 tbs soy sauce
- 1 tbs hot water
- 1 egg
- sesame seeds and chopped green onion ends for garnish
PREPARATION:
This recipe comes together quickly at the stove, so have all ingredients prepped and ready before beginning to cook. Place the grated garlic, ginger, honey, soy sauce, and hot water in a small bowl and whisk to combine until the honey has dissolved into the sauce. Set aside.
Warm a cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add two tbs cooking oil and, once heated through, add the vegetables, reserving green onion ends for garnish, if using. Saute until beginning to soften, five to seven minutes, before adding the ham. Toss the ham with the veggies and continue to cook over medium heat for two to three minutes. Add the rice to the pan and mix with the veggies and ham before drizzling the sauce overtop. Stir the entire mixture together until very well combined, the sauce fully blended with the rice. Use a large spatula to spread the rice over the bottom of the pan into a flat layer. Allow to cook, undisturbed, for two minutes. Use the spatula to turn the rice over, tossing and then flatting over the base of the pan once more. Cook again, without touching, for two minutes before flipping the rice. Repeat the same process one to two more times until the rice is well browned and crispy throughout. Once done, spread the rice to the edges of the pan, creating a hole in the middle. Add remaining tbs of cooking oil to the hole and crack the egg overtop. Use a fork to whisk the egg and, once scrambled, stir the egg into the rice mixture. Remove from the heat and transfer to a serving dish. Garnish with sesame seeds and green onion ends and serve.
From Season 5, Episode 1