Hey Fam! I hope wherever you are in your week – you’re hungry! I’m going to keep this one short and sweet because I cannot wait for you to see this recipe! We all know I love anything with vinegar – I may or may not have gone slightly over the top with this one but I think you’re going to like it. Fried rice is something I grew up eating as a treat when we would order Chinese food (very rarely). I always liked it but I was never a fan of the egg or pea situation it always had going on. I wanted to create one of my own and add in something a little tangy and a little sweet as well. I used a short grain brown rice – it’s actually sushi rice, fun right? It’s on the starchier side so it gets sticky and delicious. The combo of the rice, sticky sweet and salty eggplant and refreshing mango are everything I could want in a bowl.
Yes, you heard that right, sticky eggplant. WHAT DOES THAT MEANNNNNN?! I made a sauce that reduces down to a ‘sticky’ consistency and threw my quick seared eggplant into it to marry together. To continue on the mango train I used a little bit of mango jam for the ‘sticky’ component in the eggplant sauce. I also used my favorite coconut aminos– I’m not sure how I’ve survived this long without them in my life. I like it so much better than soy sauce. If you’ve never had them it’s savory but also a little bit sweet and not as intense as soy sauce.
In other news – I really hope you like this one because we loved it and basically ate in silence. If you make it, let a sista know! Tag me on IG, send me an email, share a comment – anything!
Have you tried these buddha bowls yet?
Mango Fried Rice with Sticky, Sweet and Salty Eggplant
Ingredients
- 1/2 C Short Grain Brown Rice
- 1/2 C Carrot Diced
- 1/2 C Fresh Mango Diced
- 1/4 C Scallions garnish
- 2 C Eggplant Diced
- 2 C Chopped Kale
- 1/4 C Rice VInegar For Cooked Rice
- 1/4 C Sugar For Cooked Rice
- 2 Tbs Olive Oil
Sticky Sauce
- 2 Tsp Fish Sauce
- 1/2 C Coconut Aminos
- 2 Tbs Mango Jam I like Crofters Organics
- 1/4 C Rice Vinegar
Instructions
- Bring 1 Cup of water to a boil and pour in brown rice. Cook for 25-30 min or until tender and water has evaporated
- While the rice is cooking mix 1/4 C rice vinegar with sugar and heat in the microwave until sugar has dissolved (30 sec - 1 min)
- Bring a medium size frying pan or skillet to medium high heat and add olive oil and carrots. Cook until tender
- Once the rice is cooked turn the heat off and stir in vinegar/sugar mixture until combined.
- Remove carrots from frying pan and set aside. Add 1 tbs of olive oil to the pan (wipe it out first if necessary) and add in diced eggplant. Cook for 5 minutes or until brown - remove and set aside.
- In a small sauce pan add all of the sauce ingredients, whisk until combined on medium/high heat. You want the sauce to boil and thicken. This will take around 5-10 minutes
- Add 1 tbs olive oil, rice, carrots, mango and kale back into a frying pan on medium/ high heat until kale is wilted.
- Add cooked eggplant into sticky sauce and stir until coated.
- Divide rice mixture into bowls and top with sticky eggplant and scallions.
