Taro fried rice

“This is my own concoction. It uses seafood and taro and is closest to a fusion of Thai and Chinese fried rice. When making fried rice, I prefer to cook the rice the day before, then refrigerate it overnight. Freshly cut cucumber pieces served as a side dish make a refreshing accompaniment.” Poh Ling Yeow, Poh & Co. 2

• serves

  8

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  15 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• ¾ cup dried shrimp
• 4 Chinese sausages (lap cheong), roughly chopped (see Note)
• 125 ml (½ cup) vegetable oil
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
• 350 g taro (see Note), cut into 5 mm dice
• 5 cups cooked rice
• 60 ml (¼ cup) fish sauce
• pinch of sugar (optional)
• 1 egg
• finely chopped spring onion (scallion), to serve
• crispy fried shallots (see Note), to serve

Soaking time 10 minutes

Instructions

Rinse the dried shrimp, then place in a bowl with 125 ml (½ cup) water and leave to soak for 10 minutes. Drain, reserving the soaking water.

Place the soaked shrimp and Chinese sausage in a blender or small food processor and blend until finely chopped.

Heat 80 ml (⅓ cup) of the oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute or until fragrant. Add the shrimp and sausage paste and taro, and stir-fry, sprinkling over some of the reserved soaking water to help soften the taro, for 5 minutes or until the taro is tender. Add the rice and cook, stirring continuously to break up any lumps, for 5 minutes. Add the fish sauce and season with salt and sugar, if desired.

Make a well in the centre of the rice and tip in the remaining oil. Crack the egg into the oil in the centre, quickly stir to break it up, then scoop the rice from the side of wok over the egg, stir-frying for 1 minute or until the egg is cooked. Add most of the spring onion, reserving some to serve. Stir to mix well, then transfer to a bowl or plate.

Scatter with the remaining spring onion and fried shallots, then serve.

Note

• Chinese sausages (lap cheong) and crispy fried shallots can be found in Asian grocers and select supermarkets. Taro can be found in the freezer section at Asian grocers.

Photography, styling and food preparation by china squirrel.

Poh & Co. 2 Thursdays at 8.30pm on SBS.

View recipes and more from Poh & Co. on our program page.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.