The post Thanksgiving/Christmas and pre New Year’s time feels like a bit of a lull in the kitchen. The house is full of hungry people but its not really a festive time worthy of a big meal. Plus the chef needs a rest! So for a quick weeknight dinner that comes together with simple ingredients packed with flavor, I suggest an easy fried rice.

Every culture has a fried rice! While most of us think of the ubiquitous Chinese fried rice, there is also the Arroz Con Pollo (Latin America), Thai Fried Rice with the unmistakable flavors of Thai basil and lime, Nasi Goreng (Indonesia), multiple varieties of fried rice from South India (Coconut rice, Lemon rice, Tamarind rice etc). No surprise most of these are from warmer rice growing parts of the world! There are degrees of complexity and flavors from region to region but ultimately it is a super versatile combination of rice, vegetables and protein of your choice. I suspect most of these recipes were born from whatever ingredients were on hand at the time. The sauces are as varied as well that put on the flavor stamp of whatever cuisine profile you are attempting.

I have found that when trying to go low sodium, traditional soy sauce is a huge issue. To combat that, I have come up with a fried rice that relies more on ginger, garlic and green onions for the flavor with just a sprinkle of liquid aminos on top for the essential umami that soy provides. This results in a more delicately flavored fried rice where each ingredient can be seen and tasted rather than being drowned in the soy. Added bonus is that you are not thirsty for hours afterwards!

Ingredients

First of all, this is not an exact science so adjust quantities to your taste. Also, experiment with whatever ingredients you have on hand. Each time it will turn out a bit different! If you want some heat, add some finely chopped green chillies.

• Vegetable oil
• Finely chopped fresh ginger and garlic
• Sliced green onions (use all of it the white and green parts)
• Diced vegetables of choice (I like cabbage, colored bell peppers, grated carrots, mushrooms, peas etc)
• Coconut aminos (this is the soy substitute)
• Powdered ginger and garlic
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Mrs Dash Salt-Free Original Seasoning Blend
• Eggs to scramble (optional)
• Diced cooked chicken, cooked shrimp, tofu or other protein of your choice (I used Bell & Evans chicken tenders)
• Cashews for crunch

Method

This is a 3 step process:

The Rice

Cook some white or brown rice using your favorite method. For this recipe I used basic long grain white rice, cooked in my rice cooker. No salt or spices – just plain steamed rice. Let cool. Using leftover rice from the fridge is even better!

The Vegetables

• Heat some oil in large sauté pan. Add the finely chopped garlic and ginger. Sauté for a minute on medium heat.
• Add chopped vegetables. I used cabbage and orange bell peppers for this recipe.
• Add some ginger and garlic powders to up the flavors. Sauté for about 5 minutes or so till the vegetables are just cooked (no mushy veggies!).

The Proteins

• Separately, scramble eggs with some freshly ground pepper and Mrs Dash No-Salt seasoning. This is totally optional.
• Prep your protein
  • Shrimp: For pre-cooked shrimp, do nothing but add in the end so you don’t overcook it. If raw, sauté separately so its just cooked with some oil and maybe a squeeze of lemon.
  • Tofu: If using tofu, go with extra firm and press it down to remove excess liquid. Season it with powdered ginger and garlic and toast in oven separately.
  • Chicken: You can use any cubed pre-cooked chicken. I used chicken tenders that I had marinated with garlic powder, paprika, Mrs Dash No-Salt seasoning, lemon juice and olive oil and baked for 10 minutes at 400F.

Putting it all together

Add the rice and proteins to the vegetable mixture in the sauté pan till warmed through. I like having equal amounts of veggies and rice. Top with green onions. Take the pan off the heat. Add a dash of the liquid aminos on top. This is the crucial sodium reducing, umami enhancing step!

Chef note: Having cooked rice and protein in the fridge will make this even faster. I prefer fresh veggies to frozen for this recipe since frozen veggies tend to release water during cooking. Also, if you are really smart about it, you could do all the cooking in one pan – reducing the wash up time later!

Serve topped with a few roasted cashews for crunch! So good!!