Fried rice is a delicious way to use up leftovers. The vegetables used in this recipe are just a suggestion; fried rice is a classic fridge-raid dish that tastes great with nearly everything. Fried rice is wildly popular in Asia; it’s a common street food as well as a home cooked favourite, and the Indonesian variation, nasi goreng, even serves as its national dish. The soy and mirin we use in this recipe gives a more Japanese flavouring, which is complimented by the addition of crispy fried kelp as a topping. In our opinion, this dish is made by the introduction of different textures – the soft rice, crunchy vegetables and crispy seaweed combo ensures that each mouthful is unique and interesting. If you don’t have any leftover rice, cook fresh and refrigerate overnight for best results.
This recipe serves 4.
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
400g long grain rice
1 leek, diced
2 cloves of garlic
3 carrots, peeled and diced
200g corn
20g dry winged kelp, crushed into 1cm pieces
2 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tbsp mirin
1 tsp Arctic Seaweed Salt
Directions:
1)
Heat a large frying pan or wok with 1 tbsp of oil over a medium heat. Add the leek and fry for 5 minutes, or until soft. Add garlic and stir through well. Cook until aromatic.
2)
Add carrot and corn, then bring the heat down to low. Let the vegetables fry, stirring occasionally and adding a splash of water if they stick to the bottom of the pan.
3)
In a new frying pan, heat the remaining oil over a high heat until smoking. To test if the oil is hot enough, drop a small piece of dry winged kelp into the pan. The seaweed should bubble and begin to change colour almost immediately. When the oil is hot enough, add the remaining winged kelp and stir so that all of the seaweed is coated in oil. The winged kelp pieces will shrink a little and turn golden brown. After 10-15 seconds, remove the winged kelp and transfer onto some paper towel, and pat down to remove excess oil. Allow to cool.
4)
Take your cooked rice and add it to the pan with the vegetables. Stir until combined and heated through, and add the soy sauce, mirin and salt. Once all the rice mixture is coated, add most of the fried winged kelp and stir through.
5)
Garnish with the remaining fried winged kelp, serve and enjoy!
If you enjoyed this winged kelp fried rice, you might like the following recipes:
Whole leaf dried winged kelp. Similar to Japanese wakame, winged kelp has a fresh and slightly nutty flavour. We use winged kelp as the base for many of our products due to its versatile nature and well-balanced flavour profile. Simmer the dried winged kelp in hot water for a couple of minutes for a vibrantly green vegetable that will liven up a huge variety of dishes. Garnish your soups and salads with small pieces of rehydrated kelp to enhance flavour, nutrition and texture. Get creative in the kitchen with this delicious ocean vegetable.