Pork Fried Rice — The Boxing Day After Brayden’s First Christmas

Christmas 2021. Brayden’s first Christmas. Three months old. He slept through most of it. The household was Mama, Cody, Dustin, me, Brayden — plus Aunt Tammy who drove down for Christmas Day. Five adults and a baby at the kitchen table for Christmas Eve dinner. The first Christmas as a family of three (Dustin, me, Brayden) inside the larger household.

The recipe Saturday was pork fried rice for the Boxing Day dinner from leftover Christmas Eve pork. Cubed leftover pork stir-fried with cold cooked rice, peas, scrambled egg, soy sauce, ginger.

The recipe is below.

Pork Fried Rice

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 15 minutes | Total Time: 25 minutes | Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 lb pork tenderloin or boneless pork loin, cut into small bite-sized pieces
• 3 cups cooked white rice, day-old preferred
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup frozen peas and carrots, thawed
• 3 green onions, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated (or 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger)
• Salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Cook the pork. Heat 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add the pork pieces in a single layer, season with salt and pepper, and cook 4—5 minutes, turning once, until browned and cooked through. Remove to a plate and set aside.
2. Scramble the eggs. Add a small drizzle of oil to the pan if needed. Pour in the beaten eggs and scramble quickly over medium heat until just set, about 1 minute. Break into small pieces and push to the side of the pan.
3. Saute aromatics and vegetables. Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the pan. Add garlic and ginger and cook 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the peas and carrots and stir-fry 2 minutes until heated through.
4. Add the rice. Add the cold cooked rice to the pan, breaking up any clumps with a spatula. Press the rice into the pan and let it sit undisturbed for 1—2 minutes to develop a little color, then toss everything together.
5. Season and finish. Return the cooked pork and scrambled eggs to the pan. Drizzle soy sauce and sesame oil over everything and toss well to combine. Cook another 1—2 minutes until everything is heated through and evenly coated.
6. Garnish and serve. Remove from heat and top with sliced green onions. Serve immediately straight from the pan.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 410 | Protein: 30g | Fat: 13g | Carbs: 42g | Fiber: 2g | Sodium: 780mg