Recipes
Tangerine Pork Fried Rice
Serves 4-6
| Prep Time: 10 mins
| Cook Time: 30 mins
| Total Time: 45 mins
You may need: Spicy Tangerine
Discover The Recipe
This Tangerine Pork Fried rice is a twist on a takeout standard that everyone should know how to make at home. It's also easy to customize with any vegetables you want to use up from your fridge (or make completely vegan). In our recipe, we've added a unique flavor twist to this classic through the addition of our Spicy Tangerine blend soaked in fresh mandarin orange or tangerine juice. In many regions of China, the word for 'tangerine' sounds very similar to the word for luck. During Chinese New Year, when ripe tangerines abound, you'll find people gifting tangerines and restaurants cooking dishes with tangerine for good luck.
Dried tangerine peels add a nutty flavor and our recipe calls for adding fresh tangerine (or mandarin) juice to provide a refreshingly tangy-citrus flavor. Our spicy tangerine seasoning uses freshly dried and ground tangerine peels along with crushed red pepper and ginger powder. One of the first steps is to rehydrate the dried peels in the tangerine juice. This not only softens the peels but infuses the tangerine flavor in the dish. Plan ahead and make a large batch of rice for another meal, while using the day-old leftovers for this dish (or scale down the recipe as needed). If you don't like pork, add in diced chicken, shiitake mushrooms, or tofu. You can also try our delicious Tangerine Beef recipe using the Spicy Tangerine blend .
Ingredients
3 cups (cooked) rice (white or brown)
2 Tbsp oil (canola, olive, or vegetable)
1 lb ground pork
1 Tbsp fresh ginger, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 mandarin oranges or tangerines, juiced (1/3 cup)
2 Tbsp Piquant Post Spicy Tangerine blend
Salt & pepper to taste (optional)
2 eggs, lightly whisked
1 cup mixed vegetables (any combo of peas, edamame, carrot, cabbage, etc), diced if not small
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
Notes
This recipe works great for using leftover rice. If you cook steamed rice for another dish, make extra and refrigerate it overnight. Steamed rice tends to dry out overnight, which is perfect to use in stir-fry rice dishes.
If you're cooking rice just for this dish, the key to getting the textbook, "takeout" texture of fried rice (other than using day-old cooked rice) is to us slightly less water than called for on the package. You don't need to reduce it by much. For example, if you're cooking 1 cup of rice, you might be directed to use 2 cups of water. For our recipe, reduce that by 2 tbsp or so. The result will be rice that turns out al dente, or slightly chewy in the middle.
Fresh tangerines and mandarin oranges can be used interchangeably in this recipe. Fresh orange juice also works. Use store-bought orange juice in a pinch.
Save time and use frozen veggies: carrots, peas, corn, lima beans, and edamame all work great!
Optional ingredients add a little character and flavor but don't sweat it if you don't have them.
Instructions
Cook rice according to its package. **Use slightly less water than called for to get "al dente" or slightly firmer rice, which achieves the best results in this recipe.
Next, in a bowl, juice the mandarins or tangerines and add Spicy Tangerine spice blend. Then, stir and set aside for at least 5 mins. Prep garlic & ginger.
Heat a wok or large non-stick (or cast iron) skillet on Med. When hot, add oil then garlic and ginger, stirring for ~1 min. Immediately add in pork. Next, brown one side before stirring (~4-5 mins). Stir in tangerine spice mix & season with salt & pepper. Cook pork another 4-5 mins then remove to a plate. Add vegetables & cook ~3-5 mins. Add in rice and fry for 3-4 mins. Add in cooked pork. Cook for another 3 mins, stirring occasionally. Move rice and vegetables to side of the pan. Pour eggs in cleared area of the pan. Cook eggs ~1 min, then stir to lightly scramble eggs. Stir everything in the pan together -- the eggs, rice, pork and vegetables.
Whisk together soy sauce and rice wine vinegar. in a small bowl and then add to rice dish. Stir for 30 secs. Remove from heat. Taste and season with more soy sauce/rice vinegar, as desired. Garnish with scallions and anything else you like (bean sprouts, cilantro, etc).
Alternatives & Substitutions
If you don't eat pork, try substituting ground turkey or beef instead.
Make this a vegetarian dish by substituting tofu, tempeh, or shiitake mushrooms for the meat.
Try using the Spicy Tangerine blend to make our delicious Air Fryer Orange Chicken, Tangerine Beef, Tangerine Chicken Chow Mein, or amazing Tangerine Firecracker Shrimp recipes.
The Spicy Tangerine blend is infinitely versatile. So, try making a lovely citrusy salad dressing: soak the peels in juice as per this recipe. After 5 mins, whisk the peels and juice together with 2 parts extra virgin olive and 1 part apple cider vinegar (or white wine vinegar).
Looking for a plant-based alternative recipe? Make our addicting vegan Sticky Orange Tofu, or our Vegan Chinese Stir Fried Noodles.
Make a unique breakfast! After soaking the spice blend in juice per this recipe, stir in reconstituted tangerine peels to plain greek yogurt.
Be sure to leave comments and feedback on your meals and experiments in the comments for others to read.
Post pictures of your masterpiece meal on social media and tag us. We repost!
Tangerine Pork Fried Rice
Serves
4-6
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
30 mins
Total Time
45 mins
Piquant Post spice you'll need: Spicy Tangerine
Ingredients
3 cups (cooked) rice (white or brown)
2 Tbsp oil (canola, olive, or vegetable)
1 lb ground pork
1 Tbsp fresh ginger, minced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 mandarin oranges or tangerines, juiced (1/3 cup)
2 Tbsp Piquant Post Spicy Tangerine blend
Salt & pepper to taste (optional)
2 eggs, lightly whisked
1 cup mixed vegetables (any combo of peas, edamame, carrot, cabbage, etc), diced if not small
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
Instructions
Cook rice according to its package. **Use slightly less water than called for to get "al dente" or slightly firmer rice, which achieves the best results in this recipe.
Next, in a bowl, juice the mandarins or tangerines and add Spicy Tangerine spice blend. Then, stir and set aside for at least 5 mins. Prep garlic & ginger.
Heat a wok or large non-stick (or cast iron) skillet on Med. When hot, add oil then garlic and ginger, stirring for ~1 min. Immediately add in pork. Next, brown one side before stirring (~4-5 mins). Stir in tangerine spice mix & season with salt & pepper. Cook pork another 4-5 mins then remove to a plate. Add vegetables & cook ~3-5 mins. Add in rice and fry for 3-4 mins. Add in cooked pork. Cook for another 3 mins, stirring occasionally. Move rice and vegetables to side of the pan. Pour eggs in cleared area of the pan. Cook eggs ~1 min, then stir to lightly scramble eggs. Stir everything in the pan together -- the eggs, rice, pork and vegetables.
Whisk together soy sauce and rice wine vinegar. in a small bowl and then add to rice dish. Stir for 30 secs. Remove from heat. Taste and season with more soy sauce/rice vinegar, as desired. Garnish with scallions and anything else you like (bean sprouts, cilantro, etc).
Notes
This recipe works great for using leftover rice. If you cook steamed rice for another dish, make extra and refrigerate it overnight. Steamed rice tends to dry out overnight, which is perfect to use in stir-fry rice dishes.
If you're cooking rice just for this dish, the key to getting the textbook, "takeout" texture of fried rice (other than using day-old cooked rice) is to us slightly less water than called for on the package. You don't need to reduce it by much. For example, if you're cooking 1 cup of rice, you might be directed to use 2 cups of water. For our recipe, reduce that by 2 tbsp or so. The result will be rice that turns out al dente, or slightly chewy in the middle.
Fresh tangerines and mandarin oranges can be used interchangeably in this recipe. Fresh orange juice also works. Use store-bought orange juice in a pinch.
Save time and use frozen veggies: carrots, peas, corn, lima beans, and edamame all work great!
Optional ingredients add a little character and flavor but don't sweat it if you don't have them.
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