This week the Caf took us on a little Asian trip with its shrimp fried rice, though the overall quality leaves something to be desired.

I was very excited for fried rice this week because it’s a classic “when-mom-isn’t-home-and-you-can’t-cook” meal for a lot of us (at least where I come from). The overall flavour of this shrimp fried rice is quite palatable with the slight shrimp-y flavour permeating throughout. However, considering that the shrimp might have been frozen, there is no real deep seafood flavour, and I felt like there isn’t enough seasoning. The rice is cooked through and the grains are separated, but the stir-frying process might have left it a little dry.

I tried to solve this by adding some lettuce and some La Choy sauce, and it worked out very well. While the viscosity of the sauce hydrates and softens the rice, it is also tangy, sweet and has a hint of chili, which really adds an Asian flavour profile to the dish. The lettuce, though a bit of a wild card in fried rice, brings a fresh bite that I never knew fried rice needed.

I’d say give this shrimp fried rice a try with my twist (or your own twist!)