Small Recipes...Ham Fried Rice

This is one recipe from the Better Homes and Gardens Meals for One or Two that we liked.   The original recipe didn’t have enough soy sauce, garlic or ginger for us, so I increased it the next time I made this and we liked it better.  I keep ginger paste and jarred minced garlic on hand all the time because it’s less wasteful when you cook in small amounts.  I like the minced garlic in oil that I get from Aldi’s and the ginger paste in a tube I buy in the produce section of my local grocery.                  

This is quick and easy if you cook your rice ahead of time and keep it in the freezer like Myrna and I do.  I also keep cooked mushrooms and packages of ham in my freezer so I simply put those ingredients in the refrigerator to thaw overnight and I had a quickie meal for lunch the next day after we got home from our mid-morning walk

                              Ham Fried Rice

  2        large  eggs -- beaten

  2        tablespoons  cooking oil

  1        cup  ham -- finely chopped

  2        ounces  mushrooms -- chopped, drained

  3        tablespoons  green onion – sliced (optional)

  1        tablespoon  soy sauce (We like 2 tablespoons)

  1 ½    teaspoon  garlic -- minced 

     ½    teaspoon  ginger paste or 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger

  1 ½    cups  cold cooked rice

     ½    cup  peas and carrots, frozen, thawed

In 10" skillet or wok, cook eggs in 1/2 tbsp. of the oil, without stirring, until set.  Remove cooked eggs, cut into short narrow strips.

In same pan, cooked chopped ham, mushrooms, onion, soy sauce, garlic and ginger in remaining oil over high heat for 3-4 minutes.

Stir in the cold cooked rice, vegetables and egg strips, heat through.

**Chill rice before preparing this dish.  Using hot cooked rice causes the mixture to stick.