Plantain Shrimp and Pork Fried Rice
Sweet plantains and lots of shrimp and pork give this fried rice dish a unique flavor! For me, it’s all about the habanero hot sauce. The kick from the hot sauce combined with the lime juice in this recipe to give the whole thing a bright and fresh flavor!
The inspiration for this recipe
I have been on a real plantain kick lately. I always love them, but the past few months or so I have been eating them a ton! That is why I thought that they would be nice mixed into fried rice, so I tried to think what else would be good in the mix. I was thinking about chimichurri, but instead of making chimichurri, I just added a ton of garlic and parsley. Some pork and shrimp rounded out the dish, and the last minute addition of a habanero based hot sauce took it to the next level
Prep all the ingredients
Fried rice is best with day old rice, but I find that if I boil the rice and spread it on a sheet pan, I can use it for fried rice in a few hours. I know boiling rice is a sin for many people but if it helps me make same-day fried rice it is a win for me.
Start the pork for the fried rice
Get your pan super hot and add the pork first with some salt and oil. You want to get some nice browning on the pork before the next step.
Plantain and onions in the pan next. Get everything nice and brown!
Adding the rice
Garlic, and then all the rice! Toss it in the oil and let it cook in the pan for a few minutes to get some texture.
Finish the plantain pork and shrimp fried rice
After the rice gets some texture from frying in the pan, add the finishing ingredients. Soy sauce, worcestershire, habanero hot sauce, lime juice, rice vinegar, shrimp, and herbs! I used basically whatever leftover herbs I happened to have from the week. It was mostly parsley, with a little cilantro and basil in there.
Serve the plantain pork and shrimp fried rice
Once the shrimp is cooked, remove from heat and serve! I served it with some limes and more hot sauce. So good!
I knew this was going to be great but it was really next level! Everything I added really worked together to create a perfect harmony of fried rice perfection.
The plantains are the star here though, and give the whole dish a great complex sweetness.
Twists on this recipe
You could make plantain fried rice without the shrimp and pork for a vegetarian dish. I personally would use some “fake” meat to give it a bit of texture, but you could also do mushrooms. You could also skip the shrimp if you wanted just pork. I was on the fence about adding egg to this and didn’t at the last minute, but that would be good too. And like I said, I used a mix of leftover herbs but you can just do parsley or create your own mix.
I wrote this recipe for a regular pan, but if you want a guide for making fried rice in a wok, I love this recipe.
For more fried rice, check out my breakfast fried rice, or this Italian sandwich fried rice.
Plantain Shrimp and Pork Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 1 cup rice
- 1/2 pound pork shoulder cut into small pieces
- 1/4 cup diced onion
- 1 blackened ripe plantain peeled and diced
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons worcestershire
- 1 tablespoon habanero hot sauce or more if you can take it!
- juice of 3 limes
- 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 10 shrimp cut into 4 pieces each
- 1 cup packed diced herbs I used mostly parsley with some cilantro and basil I had leftover
Instructions
- I typically do not boil rice but I find that when doing fried rice, it helps to keep it less starchy and you are able to use it in a few hours instead of having to wait a whole day
- Bring salted water to a boil and add 1 overflowing cup of rice. Stir to combine and turn the heat to a low simmer. Simmer until the rice is tender. Strain and spread it out onto sheet pan. Drizzle on some olive oil and toss to coat. Allow to sit uncovered on the counter for 20 minutes, then transfer to the fridge to fully cool.
- Preheat a large frying pan over high heat. Add the pork with a splash of oil. Cook the pork to brown on all sides, about 8 minutes total
- Add in the onion and plantain and cook 5 minutes to brown the edges of the plantains.
- Add in the garlic and cook 2 minutes.
- Add the rice and toss to combine. Cook for 5 minutes, tossing once or twice, to add the fried texture to some of the rice.
- Turn heat to medium and add in the soy sauce ,worcestershire, lime, rice vinegar, and hot sauce. Toss to coat.
- Add in the shrimp and herbs and toss. Cook 2 minutes stirring often until the shrimp is cooked.