On the Menu #1

That's right, Thai Eggplant! I know, these guys look like pretty poor specimens, and honestly, I'm far from happy with their condition (just look at those icky black calyxes!). However, I live in TN, and it's not even May yet, so unless I am growing them, or someone else is locally, these guys are going to always be a few weeks off the plant before I can get my hands on them. Really, I am lucky to get them at all. I put their age at minimum 2 weeks. I also got some Thai Basil at the international mega mart, Siam Queen I think. Again, the age of the cutting was pretty old, but I wanted the taste. Not to worry it was very cheap, 5 times the amount for fresh sweet basil in a local super market, and for half the price of that! I will have my own fresh plants within a couple of weeks...

I cleaned all these, separated the good from the bad and boiled up some rice as well. Now, the menu for tonight.

Thai Fried Rice For 2:
2 cups boiled long grain brown rice, H2O ratio: 1 to 1
1/4 cup small frozen shrimps
1/2 cup cubes extra firm tofu
Thai Eggplants
2 eggs
Carrot slivers or dice
Snow Peas
Mushrooms
Green Onion cut on the diagonal
Chilies
1 clove Garlic fine dice
1 tsp Ginger ground
1 Lime, halved
Fish Sauce or Soy Sauce
A sprig of basil leaves
1 tbsp Peanut Oil divided

Fried rice is a dish I have not yet mastered, but I am close. In the past I have used still warm, very hydrated rice. This can really get a nice flavor, but the consistency is very mushy. Well this time I boiled my rice with a 1 to 1 water to rice ratio instead of the traditional 2 to 1. This gives me a much more hearty grain to work with.

The ingredients are rather extensive, but for the most part easy to obtain or replace. Always prep every ingredient before your stir fry. Otherwise your Wok will turn into a black smoking crater while you try to cut up your tofu, or open your snow peas. That would be unpleasant.

The order is easy. First make sure your wok is clean and there are no black chunks from the last time you made Chinese. I admit, I will have to do this. Then, and I am cooking on electric *sigh*, set it on the number 1 burner and crank the heat up to high, red hot high.

Add oil, then ginger and garlic, and continue to add in veggies, shrimp and tofu stirring constantly. Make a well in the middle of the wok and add the egg. Let that get brown and crispy on the bottom and then add in the rest of your ingredients.

Cook until your rice is warmed up and serve with a fresh green onion on top and half of lime on the side. That's it. Churn each ingredient in quickly and cook it fast. Enjoy with a Singha beer or some tea.

If it doesn't taste exactly like the take out, no worries, it's your version.

All of those ingredients are optional, except maybe the oil and the rice I suppose. Personally, I like the hot chilies and the shrimp. My Wife does not, so our batches will be a little different. It's harder to do two different batches than it is to do one big one, but for me, the more times I practice, the better I get. This trick is to try it, and remember what you did when it turns out the way you want it.

I hope this helps. Let me know!