Shrimp and egg fried rice 蝦仁蛋炒飯

I've been flat out with work and life in general for the last couple of weeks. In addition to meeting the usual deadlines and finalising the paperwork for a new job, I was also studying for my RIAM Grade VIII violin exams, which included practical and aural/theory. The practical parts included three pieces and scales and arpeggios. I had the pieces ready shortly after I made up my mind to sit the exams in early March but I really had to scramble to get ready for the aural/theory. In the end, I think it went well.

The downside of being so busy was that I had no time to go grocery shopping. It was fine for a while as I had loaded up on meats when I last visited the butcher's, but for the last 3-4 days, I was hanging by a thread and had to be creative. Last night the fridge was practically empty. Luckily I still had some shrimp and garden peas in the freezer. I made a quick trip to the supermarket and picked up a tin of sweetcorn and a few stalks of spring onions, and voilà, shrimp and egg fried rice for dinner!

Shrimp & egg fried rice

I had made fried rice in the past but was never satisfied. The eggs were either goopy or disappeared into the rice. I later realised I was putting in the ingredients in the wrong order and at the right temperature. It's important to have all the ingredients cooked and ready to go, so all it needs is a flash in the pan, a very hot pan. To that end, I blanched the shrimp and peas first. The result was a delectable bowl of fried rice.

Ingredients

serves 3-4 

2 tbsp rendered lard (or any high quality high smoke-point oil, like coconut oil, beef tallow)
2 large free range eggs
4-5 spring onion, chopped & divided into white and green parts
2-3 C cold cooked wholegrain basmati rice (infused with turmeric)
2 C shrimp, peeled & deveined
1 C garden peas, shelled
1 C tinned sweet corn (preferably with no added salt or sugar)  
coarse sea salt, to taste
ground pepper, to taste

Method

1. Blanch the shrimp and garden peas and the run under cold water to stop cooking. Drain well and set aside.
2. Heat a large wok or casserole pan on high heat. Once the pan is hot enough, pour in the oil and swirl it around the pan to coat evenly.
3. Once the oil is hot enough, turn off the heat and crack the eggs into the centre of the pan. Scramble lightly and let the eggs set in large chunks. This does not take long so act quickly.
4. Turn the heat back on and add in the rice. If the rice has stuck together in lumps, break it up using your hands and sprinkle into the pan. Toss the rice and eggs together until well combined.
5. Add in the white bits of the spring onions. Using the back of a spatula, mix all the ingredients together.
6. Add in the shrimp, garden peas, and sweet corn. Toss and mix well for 1-2 minutes until all ingredients are heated through.
7. Season with salt and pepper as required.
8. Garnish with the green bits of the spring onion and serve.