Lawyer's life in an apron: Shrimp Fried Rice

Lawyer's life in an apron: Shrimp Fried Rice: I got back from work wondering what to do with the left over rice in my refrigerator. It was one of those days where I didn’t feel l...

Shrimp Fried Rice

I got back from work wondering what to do with the left over rice in my refrigerator. It was one of those days where I didn’t feel like some simple rice and cooked lentil gravy, but was rather enthusiastic about trying something new. As a lawyer, I spend most of my day reading huge bundles of papers, and day/night doesn’t matter- clients want everything YESTERDAY. All I want is to end my day in a completely different world. After glancing across the kitchen, I could see that I have the left-over rice, some vegetables, soya sauce and marinated shrimps. How about a fusion of Indian and Chinese ingredients to make some shrimp fried rice, especially to suit the taste of Mr. A who loves spices? I quickly chopped some onions and vegetables, made some ginger-garlic paste; tossed it all in the pan, seasoned it with pepper, salt and soya sauce. Mixed it together with shrimp and rice for a small Indo-Chinese treat. In this simple recipe, I have used ingredients that are easily available in most kitchens, incase one suddenly decides to cook Fried Rice.

Prep Time: 15-20 mins

Ingredients

1. Shrimp- 1 cup
2. Rice- 500gms
3. Chopped Beans- 1/2 cup
4. Chopped Carrots- 1/2 cup
5. Chopped Capsicum- 1/2 cup
6. Chopped onions- 2 or 3 tablespoons
7. Spring onion- 1/2 cup
8. Ginger garlic paste- 2 tablespoons
9. Pepper- 2 teaspoons
10. Soya Sauce- 2 tablespoons
11. Vinegar- 1 tablespoon
12. Salt

For Shrimp Marination

1. Chilli Powder- 2 tablespoons
2. Turmeric Powder- a pinch
3. Lemon juice- 2 tablespoons
4. Salt

Method

1. Fry rice grains. Boil water and put the rice along with some salt. Keep aside.
2. Marinate shrimp in Chilli powder, turmeric powder, lemon juice and salt for around 1 hour and cook in medium flame. Once cooked, fry the shrimp for about 2-3 mins.
3. In a pan, add oil and saute onions and ginger garlic paste. Once the onions turn light brown, add the vegetables and season with pepper powder and salt. In about 10 mins, add soya sauce and vinegar.
4. Mix this mixture thoroughly with the rice and shrimp, so that the flavors blend in well.
5. Fried rice is ready to be served.

Creamy Spicy Sausage Macaroni

A question that haunts every wife, mother and woman 'What to cook for dinner'. Dinner is that meal which comes at the end of a day, an easy day or an exhausting day. But everybody looks forward to a lovely dinner to wind up the day. The weather in Bahrain now is neither too cold, nor is it hot. Evenings are pleasant. Something creamy would be the best bet. Mr. A loves spice in his food. Maybe I could cook some creamy spicy sausage macaroni.

Ingredients

1. Macaroni- 500 gms
2. Tomato sauce- 1 or 2 tablespoon
3. Olive oil
4. Chopped Capsicum- 1 cup
5. Chopped Onions- 1 cup
6. Grated Carrots- 1 cup
7. Garlic- 4 or 5 cloves
8. Chilli powder/ chilli flakes- 1 tablespoon
9. Chicken Stock- 2 cubes
10. Chicken or sausages- 1 cup
11. Grated Parmesan- as per taste

For the Sauce

1. Flour- 1 and half tablespoon
2. Butter- 2 tablespoons
3. Milk- 2 cups
4. Cheese- 1 cup
5. Pepper- 2 tablespoons
6. Chicken stock- 1 cube

Method

1. For the sauce, melt butter and add the flour. Try to avoid lumps. Add milk, chicken stock and stir constantly to avoid lumps. Add grated cheese and pepper.
2. Boil the macaroni in water, 2 tablespoons of oil and chicken stock. Drain the water and keep aside.
3. Put olive oil in a pan and saute the onions, garlic, grated carrots and chopped capsicum.

1. Add Chilli powder, sausages and salt.

1. Pour in the white sauce, add macaroni and mix well.
2. Allow to simmer with the lid off for about 5 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Take off the heat and check and adjust the seasoning.
3. Garnish with Parmesan cheese.
4. Spicy creamy sausage macaroni is ready to be served.