Simple Fried Rice and Chicken Spring Rolls....Leftover-Style

Ever get to the point where you have a fridge full of food, and yet nothing to eat? I found myself in such a situation over the weekend, which lead into a full-fledge fridge-busting operation. I had disposed of my half-head of cauliflower thanks to this soup that I made, but that didn't make much of a dent in my mish-mash of random ingredients. Or were they so random after all....?

I am occasionally amazed at how everything can come together, and this is one of those times. What started as "oh what the hell, just throw everything into a pot" turned into a rather cohesive meal, if I do say so myself. Leftover rice and ridiculous assortment of halves of veggies turned into fried rice. Cabbage slaw left over from one meal and chicken from another combined with a quick Asian dressing to make fresh spring rolls. I had myself a real dinner!

The final product will depend on the ingredients you have on hand, and I have left the ingredient lists somewhat vague to facilitate this. In the fried rice, I personally had on hand 1/2 zucchini, 1 carrot, half a jar of pickled baby corn, 1/4 of a red bell pepper, some celery, and half an onion. Your fridge contents and veggie preferences should lead you, though.This is one of the things that makes cooking fun!

Simple Fried Rice

Ingredients:

2 tbs peanut oil

3 c vegetables of choice, julienned or sliced to be about the same size

1 tbs tamari

1 tbs hoisin sauce

3 cups prepared rice

1 egg

1/4 tsp each salt and pepper

2 tsp sesame oil

Directions:

Heat the peanut oil in a large wok over medium-high heat. Add the vegetables, and stir fry for 5 minutes, or until they start to soften. Add tamari and hoisin sauce, stirring quickly to coat the vegetables. Stir in the rice and continue to stir-fry until rice is heated through (about 5 minutes).

Beat the egg, salt, and pepper together. Add into the rice, constantly stirring. Once egg is incorporated, drizzle sesame oil over rice and toss to coat rice evenly. Add additional seasoning to taste. Remove from heat and serve. Makes about 6 1-cup servings.

Leftover Spring Rolls

Ingredients:

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 tbs ginger, grated

1 tbs hoisin sauce

1 tbs tamari

1 tbs oyster sauce

1 tbs olive oil

1 tsp cumin

1 chicken breast, cooked, diced

2 c cabbage salad

8 spring roll wrappers, soaked according to package directions

Directions:

Whisk together garlic, ginger, hoisin, tamari, oyster sauce, oil, and cumin in a medium bowl. Toss the chicken with the dressing to coat. Add cabbage and toss to combine.

One at a time, lay a soaked spring roll wrapper flat on a cutting board. Using about half a cup at a time, arrange the filling on the rice paper to be wrapped. Roll the wrapper tightly around the filling, tucking the ends to the left and right toward the center as you go. Repeat until each wrapper has been filled.

At this point, you can deep fry the rolls to create a crispy texture, I personally prefer them as is. Makes 8 spring rolls.

Thai Rice with Coconut Milk, Lemongrass, and Lime

For some reason, no matter what I am making, I seem to only be able to use half a can of coconut milk at a time. I searched for a support group to help me with this problem, but none were to be found. Where is Fight Club's "Jack" when you need him?

I'm not a huge fan of freezing leftovers (little freezer space to speak of), so just making a double-batch of my usual coconut milk-utilizing recipes isn't much of an option. In a mini fridge-busting session, I came up with this super-simple, one-pot, vegan way to get rid of the other half of the can.

I am Jack's satisfied hunger.

Thai Rice with Coconut Milk, Lemongrass, and Lime

Directions:

1/2 can coconut milk (about 3/4 c)

2 green onions, thinly sliced

1 stalk lemongrass, tough outer layers removed, thinly sliced

1/2 tsp lime zest

1 tsp fresh ginger, grated

1 fresh chili, thinly sliced

1/2 c shredded carrots

1 c water

1/2 cup jasmine rice

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

lime wedges

Instructions:

Heat 2 tablespoons of the coconut milk in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the green onions and cook until soft (3-5 minutes). Add the lemongrass, zest, ginger, chile, carrots, remaining coconut milk, and water. Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes.

Stir in the rice and salt. Cover and simmer on low heat another 20 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in cilantro and finish with a squeeze of lime. Makes 2 servings.

Fried Rice Balls, Chocolate Banana Muffins, and Bentos--oh my!

I've been experimenting with bento boxes lately. I happened into a beautiful bento box that I've been trying to use. I love the concept of the bento, and the gods know I could use help finishing up leftovers. I've put together a few so far that I'd like to share here, as well as a couple of recipes that have made it into my bentos.

This was my first bento lunch. I made a sushi roll of smoked salmon, avocado, and green onion with some leftover sushi rice and partial package of lox leftover from breakfast. I also had some grilled shrimp from the night before, so I rolled that up with shredded carrot into a spring roll. My teeny sauce bottles held soy sauce and my own plum dipping sauce. To round out my meal, I had miso soup and some watermelon in a separate container.

My next bento saw some more of the grilled shrimp, this time in its originally prepared state. With rice leftover from Chinese takeout, I made the fried rice balls you see in the top section (recipe below). The bottom section had a salad of shredded carrot and fresh mushrooms, and a few watermelon balls. Again, you see the teeny bottle of soy and plum sauce.

My youngest offspring expressed an interest in taking a bento lunch to school, so this is what I packed for her this morning. Once again, we had leftover shrimp (the mild version from last night's dinner). Also included are carrot sticks and broccoli, corn salad, whole wheat tortilla cut into fun shapes, and a Laughing Cow wedge of spreadable cheese. For dessert, she had grapes and a chocolate banana mini muffin (recipe below).

So far, I'm having a great time making these little lunches, and I will likely be making many more in the future. Now on the the recipes!

Fried Rice Balls

Ingredients:

2 c leftover long grain rice

1 c water

2 tbs cream

1 egg, beaten

3 tbs onion, finely chopped

2 green onion stalks, finely chopped

2 tbs seaweed, finely chopped

1 tsp red pepper powder

1 tsp baking powder

4 tbs protein of choice, cooked and finely chopped (suggestions below)

1 tbs sauce of choice (suggestions below)

1 tbs toasted sesame seeds

2 tsp salt

1/2-3/4 c flour

oil for frying

Directions:

Mix water with rice in a medium sauce pan and bring to a very low boil. Cook until water is absorbed; remove from heat.

In a large bowl, beat together cream, egg, onions, seaweed, red pepper, and baking powder. Stir in the rice until evenly coated. Mix protein, sauce, sesame seeds, and 1 tsp of the salt into the rice mixture. Stir in flour, 2 tablespoons at a time, until mixture is thick enough to shape into balls.

Heat 1 inch of oil in a heavy pot over medium to medium-high heat. With floured hands, shaped the rice mixture into 2-inch diameter balls.

Fry the balls for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain the rice balls on paper towels. Sprinkle with remaining salt and serve.

Protein suggestions:

Salmon (used in the photo above)

Lentils

Shrimp

Edamame

Chicken

Tuna

Spam (a Korean favorite, of all things)

Sauce suggestions:

Plum sauce (used with the salmon in the photo above)

Teriyaki marinade

Fish sauce

Hoisin sauce

BBQ sauce

Sour cream

Chocolate Banana Muffins

Ingredients:

1 3/4 c flour

1/4 c cocoa powder

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 c unsalted butter, melted

1 c sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

3 ripe bananas, mashed

1/2 c semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350F.

Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. In a large bowl, beat together butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla, and bananas.

Stir flour mixture into the wet ingredients until just combined. Fold in chocolate chips. Spoon batter into greased muffin tins. For mini muffins, bake 15 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean; standard muffin tins take about 25 minutes to bake.