Whenever I develop recipes and throw them into our weekly rotation, they have to check a couple of boxes. In no particular order but all equally important: it should take less than 45 minutes from start to finish, all the ingredients must be easily available, and it has to include a good amount of fibre and protein.
I don’t believe in meal-specific foods, so we eat anything from toast and eggs for dinner to salads for breakfast. These meals are usually quick to assemble, and are made with pre-prepped bits and bobs from the fridge and pantry. Lunch is the one proper meal I cook everyday. My husband is a vegetarian, so I use a lot of beans, eggs, tofu, and paneer to bulk up these meals.
This recipe uses a whole block of tofu, 6 eggs, and 400 grams of carrots. As much as you may like your vegetables, they can be a little one-dimensional without a bit of help. I find that chopping the carrots using a food processor (or one of those hand-held choppers) is really useful here. I don’t like big chunks of carrot in my fried rice, and keeping them small is key to using such a big amount of it for such a small quantity of rice. If you don’t own a gadget, channel your chopping skills to go as fine as you possibly can. Same with the tofu – cube it up really small so they absorb the flavours better.
Stock cubes are another essential here. I know they’re not the gold standard health-wise, but I’d argue that the nutrition you get from all those carrots and tofu more than outweighs the downside of two stock cubes. This is a hill I’m willing to die on.
CARROT, TOFU & EGG FRIED RICE
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw basmati rice (about 3 cups cooked)
- 200 grams firm tofu, cubed into tiny pieces
- 6 eggs
- 400 grams carrots, finely chopped
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 5 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 2 inch piece of ginger, finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons chilli flakes (or to taste)
- 2 stock cubes
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil (optional)
- Salt, to taste
Instructions
- Cook the rice as per package instructions. I usually soak the rice first for 15 mins, then cook with a 1:2 ratio of rice to water. Set aside to cool completely.
- It really helps to chop your carrots very finely here, so use a food processor or a hand-held chopping gadget for best results. I also use my processor for the onions, ginger, and garlic to keep things quick and easy.
- Heat oil in a large wide wok, and sauté onions, ginger, and garlic until lightly browned.
- Add the carrots, tofu, stock cubes, and chilli flakes. Cover and cook over a low heat until the carrots are just about tender.
- Push the carrots to one side of the pan. Crack the eggs into the other side and lightly scramble. Stir the eggs and carrots together.
- Add the cooled rice and toss over a high heat until it's all mixed through. Taste and adjust seasoning, adding more salt and chilli flakes if necessary.
- Take off the heat and toss in the sesame oil. Serve hot.
Notes
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