Thai Pineapple Fried Rice
A Thai staple, pineapple fried rice is a little less well-known than its Chinese counterparts, but is no less delicious. Caramelized chunks of pineapple join ginger, garlic, carrots, cashews, curry powder, and more to create this sweet-salty-spicy Thai treat. Serve the fried rice inside the hollowed-out pineapple for a fun and whimsical presentation. (Photo source: Jared Kent)
| Yield: 4 servings | Time: 1 hour and 30 minutes active; two hours passive |
Ingredients
1 ½ cups long-grain basmati or jasmine rice, lightly rinsed
1 large pineapple
6 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
¼ cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
3 tablespoons sesame oil
3 tablespoons chili-garlic paste
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon curry powder
2 tablespoons minced ginger
6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, diced small (about ¼ inch)
6 green onions, thinly sliced on a medium bias (whites and greens)
3 carrots, peeled and shredded (about 2 cups)
1 ½ cups roasted cashews
1 bunch cilantro, roughly chopped, stems included, with a few leaves reserved for garnish
salt and pepper to taste
For serving
cilantro leaves
1 lime, cut into 4 wedges
Preparation
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the rice into the boiling water and boil for 5-7 minutes until cooked but with a little bit of bite in the middle. Strain the rice out of the water through a fine mesh strainer and rinse under cold water to cool it down. (Just like boiling pasta.)
Transfer the rice to a bowl or container and refrigerate for two hours.
Meanwhile, split the pineapple in half lengthwise, keeping the crown (leaves) intact.
On each half of the pineapple, locate the core of the fruit and use a small knife to cut under the core at an angle on either side. Scoop the core out of the fruit, it should look like a long V.
Use a large spoon or ice cream scoop to scoop out the rest of the flesh from the pineapple, be sure not rip through the skin. Roughly chop the pieces of pineapple into about 1/4 inch chunks.
In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, chili-garlic paste, brown sugar, and curry powder.
Once the rice is cooled down, heat half the oil over high heat in wok or large pan with sloping sides. Add the cubes of pineapple and cook on high heat 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly caramelized.
Add the ginger, garlic, peppers, green onions, carrots, and cashews into the pan. Cook on high heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring frequently, until the vegetables start to wilt. Scrape everything out of the pan into a bowl, leave the pan on high heat.
Pour the other half of the oil into the pan and heat. Add the rice and the bowl of liquid ingredients to the pan. Cook on high heat for 3-4 minutes, stirring constantly, until the rice is heated all the way through.
Return the rest of the cooked ingredients back into the pan, add the chopped cilantro, and stir to evenly combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper and remove from heat.
For serving, scoop the hot rice into the two hollowed-out pineapple boats. Garnish each boat with a few leaves of picked cilantro and two wedges of lime.
Note: If you would prefer not to hollow out the pineapple, you can always just peel and dice the pineapple normally and serve the fried rice in bowls.
Zero-waste tips
• Save the core of the pineapple to blend into a smoothie.
• Once you’re done with the pineapple boats, you can rinse them, cut them up, and ferment them to make homemade pineapple vinegar.
