Fried Rice!

One of my favorite restaurants to go to with my husband is a Japanese hibachi restaurant. The best part of hibachi? The fresh fried rice! Filled with veggies and goodness, who doesn't love fried rice? So tonight I decided to recreate my favorite restaurant side at home, for a fraction of the cost, plus I got to share it with my nearest and dearest!

In this version I used zucchini and broccoli, but you could add whatever veggies you prefer. Standard fried rice usually features onions, carrots, and peas, just add whatever you have on hand. This is a great way to get those who aren't usually very veggie friendly to get some greens! My baby brother (not so baby, actually 17) even ate the broccoli! I couldn't swing him on the zucchini, but I take 1 green as a win.

The KEY to good fried rice is that the rice needs to be cooked beforehand and chilled and dried out in the fridge before you fry it. Ideally, you could cook it the night before and leave it uncovered in the fridge to fry the following evening, I cooked mine about 3 hours beforehand.

Ingredients: (makes 6 servings)

3 eggs

2 Tbsp Vegetable Oil

1 Clove Garlic, minced

1 Zucchini peeled and chopped into 1 inch spears

1 C. Frozen broccoli florets

3 C. Cooked and chilled white rice

2 Tbsp. Butter

2 Tbsp. Soy Sauce (Or to taste)

Salt & Pepper to taste

Step 1: Whisk the eggs and add to a skillet heated to medium coated with non-stick spray. Cook through and remove from pan, chop.

Step 2: Add oil to skillet and saute garlic. Add zucchini and broccoli and cook until zucchini is soft. Add chopped and scrambled eggs to sauteed vegetables. Add rice one cup at a time until fully incorporated, top with butter and soy sauce and stir to combine. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve!

Shown here topped with teriyaki chicken I cooked, I didn't add that recipe because it was just chicken I marinated in store-bought teriyaki sauce and pan fried. I will post my homemade teriyaki chicken another day!

This was the perfect, easy weeknight meal. As long as you have the fore-thought to cook the rice beforehand it comes together very quickly, and deliciously! What's your favorite go-to weeknight meal?