Pork Fried Rice

Lovey could live off fried rice.  Wherever we are living he will seek out the restaurant with the best fried rice and then keep said establishment in business.  He ran across a recipe for Pork Fried Rice in an issue of Cook's Country. Now, I am the dealer for his drug; his pusher man.  He likes having this on a regular basis.

The majority of the work is prep. Once all the prep work is done the actual cooking literally takes minutes and voilà it's done.


 
Trim the pork, cut it into 1/2" pieces and set aside in a medium bowl.


 
Mix up the marinade and toss into the pork. Let this sit for at least 15 minutes. Can do this step ahead of time, refrigerating up to an hour but don't toss together until 15 minutes before beginning.  


 
Oyster sauce glaze


 
I like this method of boiling the rice; to heck with steaming


  Prep rest of ingredients

Don't let the eggs dry out. Push to side while still wet

A little prep work but this is one of the easiest throw-together meals I enjoy making,

Pork Fried Rice
Adapted from the June/July 2017 issue of Cook's Country
Serves 4 to 6


Ingredients:
1 pound boneless country-style pork ribs, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
6 tsp. low sodium soy sauce, divided
2 Tbsp. packed brown sugar
2 tsp. cornstarch
1/2 tsp. baking soda
2 Tbsp. oyster sauce
1 Tbsp. dry sherry
1 Tbsp. ketchup
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
3 quarts water
2 cups long-grain white rice
3 to 4 Tbsp. vegetable oil, divided
3 large eggs
6 scallions, white and green parts separated and sliced thin
2 garlic cloves, mince
2 carrots cut into 1/4" dice
1/4 cup frozen peas, thawed
1/4 cup chopped miniature cocktail corn

Combine 3 tsp. soy sauce, sugar, cornstarch and baking soda in a bowl.  Add the sliced pork and toss.  Let pork mixture sit for a least 15 minutes, or cover and refrigerate for up to 1 hour.  In a separate bowl, combine the oyster sauce, sherry, ketchup, salt, pepper, and remaining 3 tsp. soy sauce; set aside.

Bring 3 quarts water to a boil in a large saucepan over high heat.  Add rice and cook, stirring occasionally, until just cooked through and tender, about 12 minutes. Drain rice in a fine-mesh strainer or a colander.

Lightly beat eggs in a small bowl and set aside.  Prepare scallions by thinly slicing and dividing the white from the green parts. Mince the garlic; set aside.  Dice the carrots and measure out your peas and miniature cocktail corn; set aside.

Heat 1 Tbsp. oil in a wok or a large nonstick skillet over high heat until just smoking.  Add pork in a single layer and cook, without stirring, until browned, about 2 minutes. Stir pork and continue to cook, stirring frequently, until dark brown on all sides, about 3 minutes longer.  Transfer to a clean bowl.  Note that, depending on the size of your skillet, you may need to cook your pork in two stages, using another Tbsp. of oil. 

Heat 1 Tbsp. oil in a now-empty skillet or wok over high heat until shimmering.  Add eggs and stir with rubber spatula until set but still wet, about 15 seconds. Push eggs to 1 side of skillet. Add remaining 1 Tbsp. oil, scallion whites, and garlic to the empty side of the skillet and cook until fragrant, about 15 seconds.

Add rice and stir to break up clumps and any large egg curds.  Cook until rice begins to sizzle and pop loudly, about 3 minutes. Stir in peas, corn, carrots, oyster sauce mixture, pork and scallion greens and cook, stirring constantly, until thoroughly combined, about 2 minutes.  Serve immediately.

  

Mother's Giblet Gravy

A simple, basic recipe for Thanksgiving gravy.  This must be served whenever turkey, mashed potatoes, and dressing are on the menu; it's the law.

When you prep the turkey, remove all the giblets. Rinse them off, place them in a sauce pan and cover with water. Add a carrot, some celery, and half an onion.  season the water with salt and pepper.

I also add the egg(s) to water so they can hardball while the giblets are cooking.

When the water comes to a rolling boil, skim off any nasty looking foam.  Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and forget about it for about 30 minutes.

Check the doneness of the giblets, turn the heat off and strain the solids.  Return broth to the sauce pan. When they are cool enough to handle, dice up the giblets and hard boiled egg and reserve in a small bowl until it is time to add to your finished gravy.

When your turkey is done, and removed from the roasting pan to rest on a platter, strain any solids off the bottom of the roasting pan and add the clear juices to the broth.  

Add corn starch - 1 Tbsp. for every cup of broth, to a ball jar.  Bring the broth to a boil. Prior to it coming to a boil but still warm, add enough broth to the corn starch and begin to blend it with a fork.  Put the lid on the jar and carefully (with a towel covering the lid) shake up your slurry until completely smooth.  Set aside.

Once the broth is at a rolling boil, give the slurry a shake to re-mix and slowly add, in a small stream, to the broth while whisking.  The gravy should thicken almost immediately.  Lower the heat and bring to a gentle simmer for several minutes.  Add your chopped giblets and eggs and allow to warm through.

Some Notes to Consider Before Making Your Gravy:

When prepping and seasoning your turkey for roasting, take into consideration that what you put in the roasting pan and the turkey may affect the taste of your gravy. I don't use anything sweet, such as fruits, because they simply don't make a tasty gravy. I like to use lots of carrots, onion, celery, garlic cloves and springs of fresh thyme or rosemary in the roasting pan.  I usually put lemon and onion inside the bird.  I use LOTS of seasoned butter under the skin of the bird.

If you need/want more gravy than your broth and juices combined make, use some boxed chicken broth to bring your broth to the desired amount that you want.

Do NOT add the dry corn starch directly to the boiling broth.  It will become a lumpy mess that you cannot fix and you will hate yourself.  I speak from experience.  ALWAYS make your smooth slurry in a jar first.

If you don't like the giblets/egg in the gravy, the gravy is still delicious on it's own.