It's A Keeper: 5-Vegetable Fried Rice with 5-Spice Pork

I hope you had a very merry Christmas! My sister-in-law made an amazing dinner that included both turkey and ham, two kinds of stuffing, Rachael Ray's green beans with onion, rolls, and both kinds of cranberry sauce (I prefer the scary jelly one shaped like a can). If you have as many leftovers as we did, check out this Thanksgiving leftovers recipes post. Most will work for your Christmas leftovers, too!

Since it's been non-stop big, crazy complicated meals for awhile, I thought I would share something that I made a couple weeks ago that is super simple and full of unique flavor. Plus, I have been on a fried rice kick lately. Since I royally messed up my attempt at Bacon Fried Rice by failing to use enough water when making the brown rice, I tried to redeem myself by making 5-Vegetable Fried Rice with 5-Spice Pork. I was kinda skeptical about the 5-spice powder because I am generally not a huge fan of it, but I decided to give it another try. I'm glad I did because this MYOTO (Make Your Own Take Out) recipe hit the spot. I made the whole recipe and the leftovers didn't last long.

I hardly changed anything in this recipe, although I did use brown rice again (and used enough water when preparing it). I was surprised by how quickly this came together, even with all the chopping. If I hadn't made the brown rice (which took about 45 minutes), it would definitely have been done within 30 minutes, if you can chop at a normal rate.

2 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 cups long-grain white rice
5 tablespoons vegetable oil [I didn't end up using all 5. I just sorta played it by ear and looked at whether I needed more as I went along.]
1 pound thin pork loin chops, thinly sliced [Take the time to really thinly slice it. It will save cooking time and make it easier to eat with the rice.]
Salt and freshly ground pepper
2 teaspoons Chinese five-spice powder
2 large eggs, beaten
1/2 pound shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
2 small carrots, shredded (a couple of handfuls)
1 scallion, thinly sliced on an angle
1 cup fresh or thawed frozen peas [No need to thaw them if you don't have time. They will warm up nicely when you throw them into the rice, even if they're frozen.]
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
One 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated or minced
1/3 to 1/2 cup tamari (dark soy sauce) [Don't substitute regular soy sauce if you can find Tamari. I really think it makes a difference.]

1. In a medium saucepan, bring the broth and 3/4 cup water to a boil. Stir in the rice, cover and cook over low heat for 18 minutes. [As I noted above, I made brown rice, but I did make it with chicken stock instead of water.] Fluff with a fork and spread on a baking sheet to cool. [I just piled it on a plate, since that will fit in the dishwasher!]

2. In a large, deep nonstick skillet or wok, heat 2 tablespoons oil over high heat. Season the pork with salt, pepper and the five-spice powder; add to the pan and stir-fry for 3 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

3. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in the skillet, then add the eggs and scramble for 2 minutes. Push the eggs to the side of the pan, add the remaining 2 tablespoons oil and lower the heat to medium. Add the mushrooms, red bell pepper and carrots and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Add the scallion, peas, garlic and ginger and stir-fry for 1 minute. Add the cooked rice and crisp it for a couple of minutes. Stir in the tamari and reserved pork.