Fried Rice, Benihana Style

A little back story for you, the Irishman's family loves Benihana. For as long as I've know him (so 14 years now), his family has had a Christmas Eve tradition of eating dinner there (and at least 23 other times in a single year). When I finally asked what the Benihana obsession was about, his answer consisted of two words: fried rice.

So, being the perfectionist that I am, I set off to duplicate his favorite fried rice. (This is where I pause to commend myself on being the world's best wife. Ok, carrying on...) Following the Irishman's careful instructions (given in a Japanese accent), I started recreating this legendary fried rice. It took a couple of tries to get all of the elements correct, but I think I finally got it. I'm not sure that it's completely perfect, but in the words of my eloquent husband, "It's pretty damn good!"

Ok folks, here are our ingredients: Celery, Carrots, Onions, Garlic, Sushi Rice, Chicken Breasts, Butter and Soy Sauce. I want to bring your attention to my Nama Shoyu soy sauce. It's unpasturized soy sauce so it naturally has less sodium, but more importantly, it is the best tasting soy sauce in the world. Seriously, it's that good. I unabashedly bring my own bottle with me when I go to my favorite sushi restaurant and I have been to known pour some on my fingers and lick them. Did I just say that? Moving on then.



First, we're going to get our rice started. I did 2 cups of rice and 2 1/2 cups of water because the Irishman consumes ridiculous amounts of this rice every time I make it. While the rice is cooking, you have time to get everything else done.



Next, I season the chicken breast with salt and pepper and cook it in a little bit of olive oil until it's lightly golden. (Chef's tip: put the chicken breast in between two pieces of saran wrap and pound it with the bottom of your skillet until it's an even thickness. This prevents the chicken from being overcooked on the skinny end and it makes it easier to dice after it's cooked)



After I take the chicken out of the pan to let it rest, I add a little bit more olive oil to the pan along with the celery, onion and carrot. For 2 cups of rice, I used one good sized carrot, two stalks of celery and 1/2 of a large vidalia onion. (Of course, you can add whatever additional veggies you want at this point.)



I like to let the veggies cook on medium heat about 7-9 minutes until they're nice and soft. While they're cooking, I'm going to make my garlic butter. First, chop up 3 cloves of garlic:



Then, mix it into about 3 Tbs. of softened butter. (If you didn't happen to leave your butter out in preparation for this recipe, just pop it in the microwave for 10 seconds or so.)



Now, the veggies are still cooking, so I'm going to go ahead and dice up my chicken.



Ok, this is when everything starts coming together. Go ahead and add the rice and garlic butter in with the veggies (the rice should be done by now). Mix everything together and then flatten it all out and let if "fry" for about 5 minutes.



Now, just add in your chicken and as much soy sauce as you'd like and you're done! I'm not going to give you a set amount for this because, well, I obviously have a problem when it comes to over-consumption of this soy sauce.



On a final note, I left the room after we finished dinner (during which the Irishman ate more than half of the huge pan of rice) and when I returned to the kitchen, this is what I saw:



In other words, you must go make this recipe immediately. Thank you. Now, please excuse me while I go hide the remainder from my husband so that he has something to eat for lunch tomorrow.