Zucchini Fried Rice – Recipe!

There’s nothing I like more than a good bowl of fried rice made from yesterday’s leftovers.  Cold rice in the refrigerator has an immediate purpose the next day and that’s to be transformed into a steamy bowl of fried rice.  Since it’s summer and zucchini is so prevalent right now, I thought a vegetarian fried rice sounded so good.  I like zucchini, and there are so many recipes you can create with it; like my fantastic lemon ricotta zucchini bread, or perhaps in yesterday’s orzo recipe, or my chicken paillard with zucchini and fried rice is no exception.  The creaminess of the zucchini gets lightly crispy on its edges as does day-old rice, turning simple ingredients into a magnificent meal.

It all starts with cold rice, either leftover from a previous dinner or from take-out.  The star of the show however, is zucchini because it’s so perfect right now.  Dice up a zucchini, half an onion and a clove of garlic, and you’re ready to get cooking.  Pull out the tamari or soy sauce and some sesame oil for a quick splash of flavor and I added a couple shakes of red pepper flakes, not for heat, but to give the rice good balance.  The whole dish fries up quickly, so make sure you have mise en place.  What a fun little meal this makes.

Ingredients

1/2 white onion (about 1 cup), diced

1 clove garlic, minced

1 medium zucchini, diced

1 1/2 cups cold rice, white or brown

1/4 cup soy sauce, tamari or coconut aminos

1 tablespoon sesame oil

1 large egg, whisked

pinch of red pepper flakes

1/4 cup fresh parsley, roughly chopped

oil for cooking

(Serves 2)

To Prepare:

1. In a non-stick skillet or wok, add 1 tablespoon oil and place over medium-high heat.  Add onions and garlic and cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
2. Add zucchini and stir.  Cook for 3 minutes, just until zucchini begins to become creamy.  Add cold rice and break apart with wooden spoon, while incorporating into other ingredients.
3. Add soy sauce and sesame oil and stir.  Cook for 1 minute without stirring to create some brown edges on bottom.  Make a well in center of skillet with spoon and add egg.  Stir quickly to create soft scramble.  Stir into mixture.
4. Add red pepper flakes and stir.  Cook for 1 minute, then add most of parsley, stir.
5. Spoon into bowls and sprinkle with any remaining parsley.  Enjoy!