Healthy Shrimp Fried Rice

One food I find myself indulging in is fried rice.  I love how it shows up on your plate in a perfect mound of buttery goodness.  Unfortunately all that flavor comes with a price, in the form of calories!  Not wanting to deprive myself (because I can be a binge eat like no ones business), I decided to try out this recipe from Cooking Light.

Like all recipes, I modified this healthy shrimp fried rice recipe to my tastes and dietary needs (read less calories) and simplified the cooking techniques.  I was not in the mood to wash my steamer so I sauteed the broccoli in my pan instead.  The Sriracha definitely gives this a kick.  Enough of one that we didn’t give any to my daughter as she’s not big on spicy foods. Good thing I always keep a few vegetables and rice held back.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup broccoli florets
• 2 cups assorted peppers cut in 2″ strips
• 1-2 cups sugar snap peas
• 1 tbsp grated fresh ginger (use a microplane to grate)
• 1 cup long-grain brown rice, chilled (make the day ahead if possible)
• 12 oz peeled, deveined shrimp
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 4 tsp canola oil
• 1/4 low-sodium soy sauce
• 2 tbsp rice vinegar
•  1 tsp Sriracha

Directions:

1. Heat 1 tsp of canola oil over medium-high heat and cook broccoli, peppers and snap peas for 2-3 minutes until crisp tender.  Do not overcook the broccoli!  Take it out earlier if necessary.  Remove all vegetables from the pan and set aside.
2. Add 1 tbsp of canola oil and cook grated ginger for 10 seconds.  Add rice and stir fry for 5-7 minutes or until rice is nicely browned.  Add rice to the bowl of vegetables.
3. Wipe the pan clean with paper towels and add 1 tsp sesame oil.  Sautee the shrimp for 1 minute then add the soy sauce, vinegar and Sriracha to the pan.  Bring to a boil.  Cook for 2-3 minutes or until the mixture starts to thicken slightly.  Add the vegetable and rice mixture and cook another 1-2 minutes, making sure everything is heated through.  Stir frequently to ensure nothing burns.

Lighten up your weekend meal with this #healthy fried rice #recipe bit.ly/JmTiK8

— East 9th Street (@East9thStreet) April 29, 2012