Chik'n Fried Rice

Making fried rice at home is always something that daunted me. Until now, the closest I got was buying the frozen fried rice and tossing it into a frying pan. Last night, I conquered my fears. It actually turned out really well! There were a few things I want to work on (see "notes"), but overall it was a huge success. This recipe makes 4-5 servings and was inspired by this post by Rachel Schultz.

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 60 minutes

Ingredients
One (1) cup of frozen peas & carrots
One (1) bag of Quorn chik'n tenders**
Two (2) cups of rice, uncooked -- I used Lundberg's brown short-grain rice
3 1/2 cups of veggie broth
Two (2) tablespoons of butter -- you can also use oil if you want to make this dish vegan
Two (2) cloves of garlic, minced
Three (3) tablespoons of sesame oil
Three (3) eggs -- leave out the egg to make this dish vegan
1/4 cup of soy sauce
One (1) cup of bean sprouts

Directions
In a large pot, combine rice, broth, and butter and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat, cover and let simmer for 45 minutes.
Remove from heat and let rice steam for another 10 minutes.*

While the rice is steaming, heat the sesame oil and garlic in a large frying pan or wok.

Toss the chik'n tenders and frozen veggies into the pan and heat. (You may need to cover the pan so it steams while they are cooking for faster results.
Crack the eggs directly into the pan and stir into the mixture until they are completely scrambled.

Once everything in the pan is cooked, add the rice and mix together.
Pour the soy sauce on top, mix together and remove from heat.
Top with small handful of bean sprouts and serve warm.
Enjoy!

Notes
*Continue to check your rice to see if it is the consistency that you'd like. If making the rice is too daunting a task, make instant rice and toss that into the pan & fry it up!
**Next time, I plan to marinate the chik'n tenders, or at least fry them up with some soy sauce or sriracha or something! They were a bit bland, but overall added a great texture and were filling. You could also add tofu instead of the chik'n, or completely leave out the protein altogether.