If I had this bowl of Mango Coconut Fried Rice in front of me right now, I’d tell you to load on the Sriracha. As in, pour a whole bottle on. Because, as Chels mentioned in her previous post (about our GLORIOUS weekend!), we’re both feeling a little bit under the weather this week. OK, A LOT BIT. Truth be told, I haven’t been in the kitchen in over a week. As a matter of fact, tonight was the first time I ate anything of any sustenance since Sunday afternoon. Which basically means anything that wasn’t tea, water, or broth. And even broth was questionable as the thought of it began to make me feel sick to my stomach. You know, I was thinking I might need a detox after the last couple of weekends of fun. And I certainly got one. One that was quite easy to follow. Because I had no choice. I was always under the impression you were supposed to feed a cold, but this one did not want nourishment.
Last night I sent my wonderful fiancé (who has been taking loving care of me in all my coughing glory) to 7-11 for, “Please. Something cold. Something sweet. But fruity sweet. It can’t be chocolate. Or cream. No ice cream. Popsicle. Sherbet. Yes, sherbet!” A small tear may have run down my cheek as I’m quite dramatic when I’m sick. Anyway, you should know that they don’t sell sherbet at my local 7-11. But they do sell these:
When was the last time you had one of those? I haven’t had one since back in the days when they teamed up with The Flintstones. And despite the fact it says, “orange treats” on the side of the package, it was really the only thing I could bear to stomach. It gave me a few calories and got me through a few more hours. You might say that Push-Up Pop saved my life.
And if you’re feeling a bit congested or under the weather, maybe this Mango Coconut Fried Rice can save yours. If it does, let me know. I’d probably want to consider myself a hero.
Mango Coconut Fried Rice (Serves about 8):
Print this recipe!
- 1.5 C brown rice
- 14 oz. light coconut milk
- 3 mangos
- 1/4 C Sriracha, plus more for seasoning
- 2 T lime juice
- 14 oz. extra-firm tofu
- 2 T olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 green pepper
- 1 red pepper
- 3/4 C chopped carrots
- 1 C frozen peas
- 2 large eggs
- 4-6 green onions
I forgot to include the eggs and the garlic in my ingredient photo. Two of the most important ingredients in any fried rice dish, if you ask me! You can ignore the habaneros in the first photo, too… I wasn’t quite aware of how much Sriracha I was going to be adding to the dish when I started it… and it totally canceled out the need for habaneros.
Start with your rice. Now, all fried rice recipes call for “leftover rice.” But if you’re me, you don’t ever have leftover rice in your house. At least, not enough to do anything with. After all, I don’t eat a ton of rice and when I do, it’s usually in takeover and I don’t have cups and cups left over.
I wanted to make it from scratch anyway because I wanted to make a special coconut rice. Which basically means that I brought 1.5 C brown rice to a boil in 14 oz. of light coconut milk and 1 C water. Then I lowered it to a simmer, covered the pot, and cooked until water/milk was dissolved and rice was fluffy. I made sure to put it in the fridge right when it was done.
I try to eat brown rice whenever possible, instead of white. 1) because I think it tastes better and 2) because it’s healthier. But you can do whatever you want!
The next step is to make the tofu marinade. I peeled and pitted one mango and put it in the blender, along with 1/4 C of Sriracha and 2 T lime juice. Blend it all together until smooth.
Drain tofu, pressing out as much water as possible and then chop into bite-sized cubes. Place tofu in a dish and mix with marinade. Pop into fridge for at least 2 hours and up to overnight for even more flavor impact.
Once tofu is done marinating, bake it in the oven at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. Then, remove from oven, flip tofu, and bake for another 20 minutes.
While the tofu is baking, make sure all those vegetables are chopped up. You’ll also want to peel and chop the remaining two mangos, as well.
In a wok or frying pan over medium heat, add the olive oil and then toss in the garlic, peppers, and carrots. Cook for about 7 minutes, until veggies begin to soften.
It was at this point, I realized my little tiny wok was not going to get me through this meal.
So, I got out another frying pan and acted like I was a line chef in my very own restaurant.
And here I added the rice, mango, and tofu and tossed everything together, cooking until the rice was heated through.
It was here that I added in the peas, too (I hate overcooked peas, so like to wait until close to the end) to add them in.
Now, in the center of the rice (or the center of each of the rice dishes!), make a well. And into the well, crack the eggs(s). Scramble the egg with the spatula and mix into the rice. Here’s where you can add a little more Sriracha on top if you desire. And why wouldn’t you? Sprinkle the green onions on top.
Dig into this light but super flavorful dish!
I loved how summery it felt with a little bit of citrus and fruit, but a whole lot of spice. In fact, you probably want to stay away from this dish if you don’t like spice (or just use mango instead of Sriracha… with soy sauce for seasoning!), but it sure does help when it comes to clearing out your sinuses.
Plus, it’s just plain tasty. Though I let my tofu marinate for quite a while, it wasn’t overpowering my any means and I definitely would have eaten it on its own if needed. But I wouldn’t say no to a little fried rice either. Never would.
This post was a joy for me to write for several reasons. For one, I’m psyched that I’m actually craving this rice right now and would eat a big bowlful if I had it in front of me! Food! Is good! Yay! And the other reason is that Chris and I got a beautiful large All-Clad wok as one of our wedding shower gifts. Which means the next time I make this dish, I can make it in one glorious wok.
Also, tomorrow is Friday; but that should speak for itself, yes? Let’s hope I can work on making myself 100% completely better over the next couple days!
How are you feeling this week?
[Sues]
