I get so excited when a dish I create gets rav reviews and it's even sweeter when the reviewer had the nerve to turn his nose up when he heard the ingredients.
He thinks I am not aware that he always asks what's in it befire he takes a mouthful.
Now I turn that around to "take a bite and see if you can guess".
HA!! Take that!!
The man went back for seconds and thirds. The beauty of this dish is the amount of substitutions that can be used but I have to insist that those subs be of the same food group.
Like, for instance, the Hawaiian chicken should be another Asian flavored chicken. The salty Spam, a ham steak.
Peas and carrots can come out of the freezer in a box.
The only rules are in the technique. There is an order to which the foods enter the pan and the time needed to let the pan do it's work.
I am not a snob to shortcuts as long as you do not mess with the 5 food senses.
You want salty, bitter, sweet, sour and umami in this dish or it will taste like leftovers thrown into a big skillet.
You my think this is such a dish but only one ingredient was in another meal and that was
this chicken (which on it's own was excellent and the inspiration for this).
I made the rice a few days ahead so that it had time to dry out, but leftover Chinese take-out rice will also work. If you are Diabetic you should take the time to make converted rice, the best rice (besides Basmati) for diabetics.
If you have never eaten Spam, this is the perfect dish for your first time. It really tastes like a canned ham and there is no spice for the kids to crinkle their noses at.
Let's get cooking.....
Hawaiian Fried Rice
makes 6-8 servings
* 3/4 cup rice, cooked in 1 1/2 cups salted water, day old best
* 1 small container Spam, 1/4-inch dice (sub: ham steak)
* 1 cup chopped cooked chicken (rotisserie is fine but Teriyaki even better)
* 1/2 cup carrots, julienned
* 1 cup red onion, diced
* 2 eggs, beaten
* 1 can chopped water chestnuts (about 3/4 cup)
* 1/2 cup pineapple bits
* 1 cup scallions, green parts sliced
* 3 garlic cloves, minced
* 1 cup peas
* 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
Sauce:
* 1/3 cup shoya (good quality soy sauce)
* 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
* 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
* 2 tablespoons freshly grated ginger
* 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
* 1 cup cilantro leaves, chopped (optional but not mandatory)
1. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet. Drop a piece of Spam into the oil and when it starts to sizzle, carefully drop in the remaining Spam. Stir to coat in the vegetable oil and then let it sit, over medium heat until the meat crusts (about 5 minutes). Stir and repeat.
2. Add the onions and cook another 3 minutes. Add the garlic and the carrots. Lower the heat and cook until the carrots wilt.
3. Remove the Spam mixture to a bowl, add a teaspoon of more oil and add the eggs to the pan, swirling to the edges. Cook until the bottom sets and flip the egg into a rough omelet. Cook another minute and remove to a dish. Chop into 1/2-inch pieces.
4. Add the remaining oil to the skillet, up the heat to high and add the rice, stirring to coat. When the rice starts to obtain color, add the water chestnuts, pineapple, peas, chopped chicken, green onions, eggs and cook for 3 minutes, stirring constantly so the rice does not stick.
5. Add the pork mixture back to the skillet and stir to heat through.
6. Pour the sauce over the rice and stir to evenly coat the rice mixture.
7. Remove to a serving bowl and sprinkle with the cilantro or more chopped green onions (I used chives from my garden).
You could add diced red peppers if you have them and if I had a fresh jalapeno, I would have added that. A little spice would have been nice.
