Kimchee fried rice

Happy New Year everyone!! I can't believe I haven't posted anything since October 2011!!! I'm so sorry for the delay and I just want to thank you for your continual support of My Food Affair. So much has happened in the tail end of 2011. Mr. G and I bought a new home and we're engaged!!! My head is spinning and I'm dizzy with everything I have to do for 2012!! Yikes. Any chance you can suggest a wedding venue for us in Oahu? =P

Anyway, enough about me. Let's move on to the important stuff...FOOD!! Today I give you Kimchee fried rice. This recipe comes from A Dash of Sugar and Spice. I made some changes to the recipe to suit our tastes, but overall this is a simple recipe that's great for weeknights.

The key to good kimchee fried rice is good kimchee!! My friend's wife makes amazing kimchee and we're lucky to get a jar of it once in awhile. I used this pot of Korean gold for this dish and I think it really made a difference. The original recipe calls for soy sauce for additional flavor, but our kimchee was so flavorful, we didn't need any additional seasoning. Try it and let me know what you think!

Kimchee Fried Rice 

adapted from A Dash of Sugar and Spice 

1 1/2 cups kimchee, chopped 

1 cup of Portuguese sausage, diced (see note) 

2 cups cooked rice, heated 

2 tablespoons kimchee juice, as needed (see note)

1 teaspoon sesame oil 

1 teaspoon sesame seeds 

Black pepper 

2 eggs

Scallions for garnish, chopped, optional

1. In a large frying pan over medium heat, brown the Portuguese sausage until edges are brown and crispy. Remove from pan and place on a paper towel lined plate; set aside.

2. Remove some of the sausage fat from the pan, leaving about one or two tablespoons. Add the chopped kimchee to the pan and sauté them well until nice and tender, about 1-2 minutes. Add rice and mix well with the kimchee. Add the kimchi juice to moisten the fried rice (see note). Continue to stir until heated through.

3. Turn off the heat. Add sesame oil, sesame seeds, and the sausage; mix well. Season with black pepper and toss in scallions.

4. In a small skillet, fry eggs sunny side up or over easy (whichever you prefer). Place on top of the fried rice. Serve immediately.

Notes:

• *Original recipe calls for 4-6 strips of bacon, I used Portuguese sausage instead because that's what I had on hand.  
• *Original recipe calls for 1 1/2 tbsp of soy sauce. I didn't need the soy sauce because of the good kimchee.  Add soy sauce to suit your taste.
• *Take care when adding the kimchee juice.  If your kimchee is really wet, you might not need to add the juice.  Nothing's worse than soggy fried rice!