Recipe Break: Fried Rice

Taking a break from restaurant reviews, here's a recipe for some fried rice, good for a quick meal if you're not feeling like eating out. Feeds two and feeds well.

Ingredients

• Two large chicken breasts, or equal weight of beef or shrimp (or all three if you're feeling adventurous)
• Two eggs (beaten)
• Three cups of rice
• One large green (and/or red) pepper
• Mushrooms
• Two table spoons of chicken soup base
• Three table spoons of Chinese hot sauce
• A third of a cup of soy sauce
• Two table spoons of powdered garlic
• Two table spoons of powdered ginger
• Cooking oil

The show

First, wash the rice, set it in a pot/rice cooker along with water and the chicken soup base and let it be as it cooks.

Cut up the meat and mushrooms into tiny pieces. For shrimp, no need to cut if small enough. Cut the pepper(s) into pieces the size of match sticks. Set the meat aside from the vegetables.

In a pan, pour some oil, enough to make a thin layer throughout the surface of the pan. When the oil has heated up, add the meat and fry for 2 minutes. Add the hot sauce and soy sauce and fry for another couple of minutes. Then add the mushrooms and pepper(s), keep stirring.

In a separate pan, heat a similar amount of oil and pour in the beaten eggs, stir continuously as you fry them so that they break into small pieces. When fried (shouldn't take more than 2 minutes), dump the pieces into the pan with the meat and veggies. The meat should cook for a total of 15 minutes; that includes the amount of cooking time before and after the veggies and the fried eggs are added. The goal is to cook well enough that the mixture is wet, but not runny/watery.

When the rice is done (which it should at least almost be by now), pour it into the pan containing the meat, veggies and eggs and mix well. The final mixture should look homogeneous in color.

You should now have a product that is good to eat.

The end product

Korean Restaurant (because that's what it's really called)

After having dreams about kimchi and bulgogi at night, we decided that a Korean food run was way overdue. So today, we managed to find what is probably one of the least known Korean BBQ places in the city (I'm still sitting here trying to find a website to link to, but my efforts have been in vain so far). Having said that, the place is far from sketchy - in fact it is pretty nice and immaculate. It's your typical Korean_restaurant_in_North_America setting, with booths in the main area and small rooms along one side.

Kalbi Beef in Hot Pot

We ordered a bulgogi that came in a hot pot with a side of rice and a kalbi beef in another hot pot on a bed of rice with shiitake mushrooms and assorted vegetables. I concede that this wasn't the most mind blowing Korean BBQ I've had in my life, however, it was still very good. I will definitely go back to try out some of the other items off their BBQ. I especially liked the kimchi that came as one of the sides to our meal, which leads me to think that their kimchi entrees might be of special interest too.

Beef Bulgogi

Before I sign off, it's well worth mentioning the small Chinese section of their menu - yes, they cook Chinese food too, albeit being a predominantly Korean Restaurant, as the name so blatantly suggests. For appetizers, we had the deep fried dumplings and the hot sauce that came with it was spectacular, making for a great start to our meal.

Deep fried dumplings with sides

The address below is approximate and the directions obscure, as the restaurant doesn't seem to have a website (still looking), or the address at the entrance, so I'm giving it my best shot. I'm also attaching a Google map image to make the restaurant convenient to sight from a distance.

5928 Yonge St (approximate),
North York ON

Sandwiched between a red condo building with the Earth Indian Restaurant and a beauty parlour/Amin Income Tax/BMO, on your right if you're traveling north, past Yonge and Cummer.

Google Map Image

Jetsun's Juicy Burger

Looking for a good quick bite at a burger joint? Jetsun's Juicy Burger up in North York, as the name suggests, cooks up a decent patty. I was pretty hungry and a bit disappointed at first to see that there was no double burger on the menu, but realized why as soon as I held my burger.

The patty is thick and juicy and while it isn't the best burger I've had in my life, it is definitely very much above average and worth dropping by for lunch if you're in the area. Add some poutine and/or chili fries to your meal if you're in the mood for some extra grease.

Jetsun's does have a couple of other locations in town, namely Eglinton Avenue East and Queen Street West, so all is not lost if you don't feel like making the trip up past Yonge and Sheppard.

http://www.jetsunsjuicyburger.com
5165 Yonge St,
Toronto ON
M2M 5P5
647 350 5387