Instead of making really greasy Fried Rice I love making this Shrimp Un-Fried Rice for dinner. It’s a great use of leftover brown rice with tons of flavor and most importantly a quick weeknight family recipe to prepare!
We’re just a few weeks into the beginning of the year and I’ve got healthy meals on top of my mind (not a surprise, since that’s generally where my culinary thought process revolves). I’ve been trying to focus on lean proteins, nutritious carbohydrates and of course tons of veggies when feeding our family.
Kenya is a big time brown rice lover, so we keep a bowl of it in the fridge at all times. I figure that if I keep a few cooked foods on hand at all times then I’ve got a meal minutes away on those busy nights. One of my favorite convenience foods are frozen wile shrimp from Trader Joe’s. I just run water over them to defrost and voila, within minutes I can sauté up this delectable dish of Shrimp Un-Fried Rice. With just a few other staple ingredients on hand like eggs, soy sauce, frozen edamame and sesame seeds I can transform Kenya’s beloved brown rice into a dish that has more than just a little pizzaz.
I loved going out for Chinese food when I was a kid, but for some reason it feels like there are fewer and fewer really delicious Chinese restaurants these days with our favorites like Chinese Chicken Dumplings, Pan Seared Dumplings, Orange Chicken and Mu Shu Chicken. My father in law and I were just having this conversation when he pointed out there used to be tons of authentic Chinese restaurants making high quality, clean Chinese food and it feels like they have all but disappeared.
I call this totally simple and delicious dish “Un-Fried Rice” because while it is still technically fried, unlike most Chinese food restaurants which cook their fried rice in tons of oil, this recipe uses the bare minimum to add plenty of flavor while keeping the dish lean and mean.
Let me know in the comments what you think of this recipe and tag me on social media!
Shrimp Un-Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 4 large eggs, whisked
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1/2 cup shelled edamame
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1/2 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 4 cups cooked brown rice
- 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
- 1 tablespoon diced scallions
Instructions
- Heat 1 teaspoon of the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the whisked eggs and cook for 1 minute stirring to make scrambled eggs, then remove to a plate.
- Heat the remaining 2 teaspoons oil, add the red bell peppers and cook 3-4 minutes, until soft. Add the edamame and garlic and cook 1 more minute.
- Add the shrimp and salt and cook 3 minutes, until they are bright pink.
- Add the cooked eggs, rice, soy sauce and sesame seeds and cook 2 minutes, just until heated through.
- Top with the scallions and serve.
Oh my GOODNESS I don’t usually comment on recipes but this rice was amazing!!! My husband and I have been trying to eat better, and our recipes turned into some variation of chicken every. dang. night. I wanted to change it up and be healthier without being boring. This recipe is exactly that!!! I added a couple dashes of maggi seasoning and it is absolutely incredible. I already can’t wait for lunch tomorrow to have the leftovers!! Thank you for sharing this recipe!!!!
I love healthy, quick family meal recipes! Thank you!
where did you find the cool kid friendly chopsticks pictured in this recipe???
This looks fabulous. I may have to try it, but unfortunately would have swap the shrimp. Allergies. Boo hiss. Love the idea of an un-fried rice though.
Yes! With the rice! Thanks for catching that!
When do you add the eggs back in? With the rice?
Solid point Rita! Thanks for your input 🙂
Good recipe. Not to nitpick, but using less oil is what Chinese families do at home for fried rice. Only Chinese takeout places make their fried rice drenched in oil – but it’s a bit like comparing Taco Bell to real Mexican food… Still glad that the recipe raises the profile of a meal that’s easy to make and can be healthy!
This looks even better than take out, great recipe!
We will check on that and work out a fix! For now, you could tell your printer to print only the page that the recipe is on! 🙂
When I print out the recipe – full page, instead of just printing out the one page shown, it printed out 4 full pages (with 9 pictures – 15 of the same bowls of rice). This is really a big waste of paper – it should only
print out the one page. Please fix. thanks.
Thank you for the nice recipe and have a great weekend!