Beef and Vegetable Fried Rice

Beef and vegetable fried rice is a wonderfully aromatic dish. Ginger, garlic and sesame oil add a sweet biting flavor to the dish, the snow peas add nice color and texture. The dish is best served served immediately after stir-frying.

Ingredients -

1 pound Ground Beef
2 cloves Garlic, crushed
1/4 teaspoon Ginger
2 teaspoons Peanut Oil
1 Red Pepper, cut into 1/2" pieces
6 ounces package Frozen Snow Peas, defrosted
3 cups cold Cooked Rice
3 tablespoons Soy Sauce
2 teaspoons Sesame Oil
1/4 cup Scallions, sliced

Preparation:

1. In a skillet over medium heat, brown beef, garlic and ginger for 8 to 10 minutes.

2. Remove beef from pan, and drain off any remaining drippings. Beef mixture should be free of as much liquid as possible.

3. Heat wok or large skillet to high heat. Add peanut oil. Heat thoroughly and bring oil to temperature just below smoking. Do not allow oil to burn.

4. Add red pepper and snow peas to the wok or skillet and stir-fry for 3 minutes.

5. Add rice, soy sauce, sesame oil, beef mixture and stir-fry an additional 5 minutes.

6. Remove from heat, add scallions and serve immediately.

The Beef and Vegetable Fried Rice recipe makes 4 servings.

Variations and Recipe Ideas:

Fried Rice Tips -

Cooling Cooked Rice

Most chinese or asian style fried rice dishes call for cooked rice. The rice should be long grain chinese rice boiled or steamed and refrigerated for a day or two prior to stir-frying. When you do not have time to wait, place cooked rice on a cookie sheet, spread the rice as thin as possible and refrigerate for as long as you possibly can, preferably several hours.

Fried Rice Tips -

Crunchy, Firm Vegetables

Take a basic fried rice recipe and experiment by adding your favorite vegetables. Remember, the best vegetables to stir-fry remain crunchy after cooking (asparagus, baby corn, broccoli, etc ).

Fried Rice Tips -

Rice Varieties

For variety, try using different types of long grain rice's in your fried rice recipes. Always use a little less water than the recipe calls for to achieve drier rice for stir-frying.