We know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. This article explains how to use leftover rice to prepare a complete and appetizing dish to enjoy as soon as you wake up. By combining the typical English breakfast ingredients, bacon and eggs, with rice, you can create an exceptionally tasty recipe. Depending on your preferences, you can make traditional-style fried rice or give it an exotic touch by adding some spices and pineapple bits.
Ingrediants
Fried Rice with Bacon and Eggs
- 6 slices of bacon (or tempeh bacon if you're a vegetarian)
- 370 g of cooked white rice or 140 g of white rice still to be cooked
- 4 eggs, lightly beaten
- 3 shallots, finely sliced
- 3 teaspoons of soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons of sesame oil
Doses for 2 servings
Hawaiian Style Fried Rice
- 4 teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small red onion, chopped
- 75 g spring onion, chopped
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 small red pepper, finely chopped
- 630 g of cooked rice or 250 g of rice still to be cooked
- 165g pineapple, diced
- 4 slices of bacon
- 3 tablespoons of soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons of brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 4 eggs
- Salt and pepper to taste
Doses for 4-6 servings
Steps
Method 1 of 2: Prepare Fried Rice with Bacon and Eggs
Step 1. Cook the rice
You can boil it in a pot, use a rice cooker or steam it, depending on your habits. If you intend to cook it in a common pot, boil 350 ml of water and add the rice only when it boils. Then reduce the heat, put the lid on the pot and let the rice cook for 20-30 minutes. As an alternative to freshly cooked rice, you can use leftover rice from the night before. When the rice is ready, set it aside for later use.
The rice grains increase in volume during cooking becoming up to three times larger
Step 2. Cook the bacon
Put it in a pan and let it cook over medium heat until it becomes dark and crunchy; it will take about ten minutes. When ready, transfer it to a plate lined with kitchen paper so that it absorbs the excess grease. Some of the fat will have remained at the bottom of the pan; throw away part of it, keeping only a couple of teaspoons, you can use it to cook the rest of the ingredients.
- If you are a vegetarian, you can buy tempeh bacon at a store that specializes in organic and natural foods. It is a food that does not contain meat but replicates its flavor.
- Another alternative for those who don't eat meat is to use baked shitake mushrooms (sprinkle them with a generous amount of salt before baking to replicate the savory taste of bacon)
- Finally, if you prefer, you can use slices of ham or a sausage instead of bacon.
Step 3. Cut the bacon into small pieces
Wait until it has cooled down, then place it on the cutting board and cut it into 3 cm pieces. You will need to use a sharp knife. After you cut it, set it aside for later use.
Step 4. Saute the shallots in the fat released from the bacon
Heat the pan for 3-4 minutes using medium-high heat. When the fat is hot, add the chopped shallots to the pan and let them fry for 2-3 minutes over medium heat.
The oil should start to sizzle as soon as you put the shallots in the pan
Step 5. Add and sauté the rice as well
Pour it into the pan with the shallots and stir to combine. If necessary, shell the kernels with a spoon or fork. Keep stirring for 3-5 minutes or until the rice acquires a golden color. As soon as it's ready, move it to one side of the pan.
When steam starts to rise from the rice, it means that it is hot enough
Step 6. Prepare the scrambled eggs on the free side of the pan
Beat them lightly in a bowl and then pour them next to the rice. Keep stirring them with a wooden spatula even as they cook, until they reach the consistency you want.
Remember that the eggs will continue to cook while you cook the rest of the ingredients, so they will thicken and harden further losing their softness
Step 7. Add the soy sauce, sesame oil, and chopped bacon
Add 3 teaspoons of soy sauce, 2 teaspoons of sesame oil and the bacon bits to the pan. Do not stop mixing the ingredients until they are perfectly blended. When you are sure you have distributed them evenly, turn off the stove and serve the fried rice to the table.
Method 2 of 2: Make Hawaiian Style Fried Rice
Step 1. Cook the rice
Cook it separately in a pot filled with water. If you want to use a steamer, respect the proportions indicated in the instruction manual of the pot (generally to cook steamed rice you need to use 100 ml of water per 100 g of rice). If, on the other hand, you intend to boil it, the amount of water must be at least double that of rice. You can also use rice left over from the day before or pre-cooked rice if you are short on time.
Step 2. Cook and chop the bacon
Sauté it in a pan for 5 minutes using medium-high heat or until crisp on the underside. Then, flip the slices over and cook them for another 3-5 minutes on the other side. When it is cooked and crisp, remove it from the pan and chop it into small pieces (1-2 cm long).
If you are a vegetarian, you can use tempeh bacon or baked or grilled mushrooms as a substitute for bacon
Step 3. Heat the extra virgin olive oil in a pan
Throw away any grease that is left on the bottom after the bacon has been cooked or use a second clean pan. Heat 4 teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil over medium-high heat for 5 minutes or until it starts to smoke slightly.
Step 4. Fry the red onion, spring onion, garlic and red pepper
When the oil is hot, add the chopped red onion and other ingredients to the pan. Keep stirring as you let them cook over high heat. After 2 minutes, reduce the heat and wait for them to soften and release their delicious fragrance. This will take approximately 5-8 minutes.
Step 5. Pour and mix the soy sauce, brown sugar and powdered ginger into a small bowl
While the vegetables are cooking, you can start making the sauce. Blend the three ingredients until well blended. Be careful to dissolve any lumps.
Step 6. Add the rice, pineapple, and bacon to the pan
Stir thoroughly to mix them with the vegetables. Continue cooking over medium-high heat for another 5-7 minutes or until the last ingredients you added to the pan are hot. You will know you can continue when you see steam escaping from the rice.
Step 7. Add the soy sauce dressing
Slowly pour it into the pan and then stir with a large wooden spoon to distribute it evenly. At this point it is best to reduce the heat and continue to fry the rice with the other ingredients over medium heat. Let it cook for 3-5 minutes, then turn the heat to low and put a lid on the pan.
Step 8. Fry the eggs in a separate pan
Pour a teaspoon of olive oil or melted butter into the bottom of a clean pan. Break the eggs, drop them in the center and cook them for 2-5 minutes or according to your preference. If you want them to have a soft texture, cook them for a short time. Gently prick the egg yolks to see if they are cooked enough.
Check that the egg whites are fully cooked before removing the eggs from the pan
Step 9. Place the fried eggs on the rice and serve
Gently place them on the rice. If you want, you can add more flavor to the dish by adding spicy sauce or more simply salt and pepper (the taste of pink pepper flakes goes perfectly with this recipe). For convenience it is better to divide the fried rice into plates first and then add an egg for each diner.
