Inspired by the fire-kissed flavor of Japanese steakhouse and hibachi fare, especially at the Kani House restaurants in Georgia, this quick fried rice dish is a veritable comfort. Frying the shrimp first in oil, just until they’re cooked, and reserving them to add back at the end means they stay tender. Plus, you’re left with the most aromatic shrimp oil in which to fry the rice and vegetables. The shortcut of bagged frozen mixed vegetables comes in handy here, not least because they need only to be thawed by the skillet’s high heat. The yum yum sauce, a mayo-ketchup dipping sauce that is ordinarily reserved for grilled hibachi meats, tastes fabulous splattered over the finished rice — not unlike how artist Jackson Pollock flung paint on canvas.

SHRIMP FRIED RICE

Ingredients:
• 1/4 cup olive oil, plus more as needed
• 1 pound peeled and deveined medium shrimp, thawed if frozen
• Salt
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 1/2 cups frozen mixed vegetables (any mix of carrots, peas, corn and green beans)
• 6 cups cooked jasmine or other long-grain white rice, preferably cold and day-old
• 1/4 cup soy sauce, or to taste
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 4 large eggs
• Yum Yum Sauce, for serving

Directions:

Heat a very large nonstick or cast-iron skillet over high. Add the olive oil and shrimp and sprinkle with salt and the garlic powder. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the shrimp is no longer translucent and begins to turn golden at the edges, 2 to 4 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer the shrimp to a plate and set aside.

Add the onion and mixed vegetables to the shrimpy oil and cook, stirring occasionally, just until the onion loses its raw edge but is still crunchy and the vegetables are mostly thawed, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the rice and soy sauce and cook, stirring occasionally, until well combined and the rice begins to crisp underneath where it meets the pan, 5 to 7 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning with more soy sauce as needed.

Scooch the rice to one side of the pan, lower the heat to medium, and melt the butter on the empty side of the pan. Crack the eggs into the melted butter, break the yolks, and stir vigorously to scramble the eggs, cooking just until they have set but are still tender, about 1 minute. Stir the soft scrambled eggs into the rice, add the reserved shrimp and any accumulated juices, then remove the pan from the heat. Let the fried rice sit for a few minutes so that it can continue to crisp in the pan’s residual heat. (If you haven’t already made the yum yum sauce, this is the perfect time to do it.)

Drizzle most of the yum yum sauce over the fried rice in the skillet, leaving some back, if desired, to serve in a small dish on the side for dipping the shrimp.

Total time: 30 minutes, serves 4-6.

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