American Fried Rice

Khaaw Pad American (or Khao Pad American) literally translates to ‘American Fried Rice’. At first I thought that this was a dish Thai people thought was popular in the US. But recently I heard that this dish was made up by Thai cooks during the Vietnam war era, to give US service men something the Thais thought they’d want to eat while over here in Thailand during breaks. This explanation makes more sense to me. It’s almost like the Thai cooks put all the things they thought of when they thought of American food, and fried them up with rice. And while this isn’t so much ‘Authentic Thai Food’, it’s become a popular dish 40 years later with kids — it’s one of the most popular lunch items at the university where I studied Thai. This recipe was requested by Diane in Brooklyn, NY. Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1 cup cooked jasmine rice, a bit dried out
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 2 1/2 tablespoons ketchup
• 1/2 tablespoon golden mountain brand soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons oil for egg & hot dogs, 1/2 teaspoon oil for frying rice
• 1 teaspoons butter (yes, really)
• 1/2 tablespoon raisins, soaked in hot water for 2 min and drained

Directions

1. Cook the rice, and dry out a bit, best is mostly covered overnight in the fridge. If you’re going to make it right away, cook with a bit less water than normal, and let air out for 10 minutes or so before cooking
2. Fry the egg in a good amount of oil (about 4 tablespoons) on high heat. The egg should bubble up and sizzle like crazy if the pan is hot enough. The edges should brown and get crunchy too. When browned, remove and set aside.
3. Cut the ends of the hot dogs in an X pattern, up about 1/3 of the way. This will create extra surface area to get crispy when you fry it. (See picture).
4. Fry the hot dogs in the oil, until crispy, set aside with the egg. Dump the remaining oil.
5. Fry the onions in 1 teaspoon of fresh oil on medium high until translucent, then add the butter. When the butter is melted, throw in the rice.
6. Stir well to mix, and fry for about 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
7. Add the ketchup, golden mountain soy sauce and raisins. Stir well and cook for another minute or two.
8. Put on a plate and top with the fried egg and hot dogs.

Note:

While this dish almost always has a fried egg as a side, the meat 'side' can vary. Usually you see fried hot dogs, fried sausage, fried ham or a fried chicken leg.