Egg fried rice for Liz

( This is part of a new project – virtual cooking for friends during #COVID19

This current coronavirus pandemic means that for many of us, disabled people with social isolation, are restricted to virtual meetings.

As it means no eating together – here’s a new project in that we would cook a dish with the friend in mind and share it here. The recipes here are not expert cooking but shared with love.)

I asked Liz Carr what she fancied, she said something with rice (she saw an episode of Ready, Steady Cook and it was a rice dish and made her hungry) so rice it is to be.

It is best with left overnight rice/ leftover rice. I’m not going to say how to cook rice – everybody has their own favourite method for cooking rice (jasmine or basmati). I prefer the easiest way, doing it in the rice cooker!

anyway, here are the ingredients

cooked jasmine rice (enough for 3/4 portions)
3/4 garlic cloves finely chopped
4 slices cooked ham, sliced or cubed finely
4 beaten eggs with soya sauce and pepper
spring onions, chopped
sliced chillie (optional)
3 tablespoons of vegetable oil

cooking method

When I was a child, I was never a rice lover but I did love the fried rice my mum made for me before school. It was a very simple fried rice. I guess it is the equivalent of an eggs on toast here in England. The rice is over leftover from the night before. Fresh rice would be too soggy.

You heat up oil in a wok (or large frying pan), add a clove of garlic so as to to flavour the beaten eggs you then add to the wok. I am using a induction hob here so it is quite easy to control the heat. When it is sizzles to the consistency you want, you take it out of the pan into a dish or bowl for later. You want it firmer than the scrambled eggs you would have on toast.

You add a bit more oil to the wok and put the chopped garlic in, taking care not to burn it, burnt garlic has a bitter taste. Add the rice, stir well, then the ham, the eggs and the spring onions. Keep stirring till evenly heated through and mixed up well. some people prefer to add the spring onions after the friend rice is done but I like cooked in.

Some people add peas, mushrooms etc and even sesame oil. For me its the simplicity that gives me pleasure, being able to savour the crispy rice mixed with the texture of eggs and ham. It does not need any extra flavouring because of the soya sauce and pepper added to the eggs. Its nice to have some sliced fresh chillie but only if you have it to hand. You don’t even need the ham. You can have variations on a theme. I ‘ve tried it with tuna fish.

Bon appetit, Liz. Hope you like it and let me know if you make it with Jo. I think it is a simple dish that we can make with store cupboard ingredients such as we’re reduced to in this ‘interesting’ period.

By Eleanor, assisted by James.

Eleanor ‘s love for all types of cuisine comes from being Malaysian born and bred. She started to cook at university at Canterbury and learn about French cuisine when she was a stay at home mum for more than 10 years in Strasbourg, France.

She is finding cooking on her own more problematic and gets her PAs / friends to help her do the heavy work so she can do some cooking from her wheelchair.

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