This crab fried rice recipe (aka “vanishing rice”) has been a long time coming. Allow me to explain…
Rewind to July of last year. That’s when I made this for the very first time, and it has been on repeat mode around here ever since. Each time thereafter, I’ve intended to photograph and blog about it, you know, being a food blogger and all. Well, as you can see, that hasn’t been the case until now. It’s almost as if someone was playing a joke on me, because every time I would turn around with my camera… POOF! Vanishing rice. It made for some very happy bellies, of course, but it also resulted in one despondent food blogger. True tragedy. Well, the good news is, because I am now a “seasoned” fried rice maker, this recipe has endured a serious refining process and has ultimately been upgraded from its original version. I amped it up a notch by throwing in some of my favorite Spanish spices, like pimentón and saffron, which marry beautifully with the traditional Thai spices. Served in my pretty Mexican bowl (in my American home), this crab fried rice is a trans-cultural delight!
¡Buen provecho! Or should I say ทานให้อร่อย!
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- small pinch of saffron threads (~1 teaspoon)
- 1 red pepper, thinly sliced (type determined by desired spiciness)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 Tablespoon fresh, minced ginger
- 1 cup fresh or frozen green peas
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 1 lb lump crabmeat, picked over for shells and shredded
- 4 cups jasmine rice, cooked
- ½ teaspoon garam masala
- ½ teaspoon pimentón (smoked paprika)
- 2 Tablespoons sriracha
- 1 Tablespoon fish sauce
- 1 Tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
- squeeze of lime
- sea salt
- Garnish:
- 3 tablespoons cilantro, chopped (or thai basil)
- ¼ cup green onions, light green and white parts, thinly sliced
- ¼ cup chopped cashews
- lime wedges
- furikake
- Cook/steam the rice according to package directions and set aside.
- Heat oil in a large wok or skillet over medium/high heat. Crumble in saffron threads and stir to release color and flavor, about a minute or two. Toss in the red pepper, peas, ginger and garlic and saute for about 2 minutes on medium heat.
- Pour in eggs and stir until done (like scrambled eggs) for about 2 minutes.
- Then, stir in crab, rice, garam masala, pimentón, sriracha, fish sauce, rice vinegar and soy sauce stirring for about 3-4 minutes. Squeeze in a good bit of lime to taste. Salt to taste. (If it's sticking to the bottom of the pan, pour in a big splash of good white wine or more rice vinegar to remove the sticking bits.)
- Serve hot with extra lime wedges, sriracha, cashews, green onions, cilantro/thai basil and furikake.
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