Whether you need a tasty side dish to complement your main course or you are looking for a loaded rice recipe to serve as your dinner meal, this turkey bacon fried rice checks all the boxes. Packed with savory vegetables and the delicious crunch of turkey bacon, this fried rice will not disappoint in flavor and nutrition.
My mom has always been an amazing cook. Growing up there were particular meals that really stood out to me and made me request them time and time again. This fried rice was one of them. As I got older she taught me how to make it and I’ve only swapped out some of the ingredients over time while maintaining the foundation of her cherished recipe.
Now that I keep kosher (per Leviticus 11) with my husband and daughters, I have swapped out pork bacon for turkey bacon. It tastes very similar, yet requires a little cooking oil to help it fry up nicely because it is not as fatty as pork.
One other major change to the original recipe is the use of tamari sauce instead of soy sauce. Tamari sauce is essentially soy sauce, but it is a gluten free alternative. I also make sure I buy the organic tamari sauce because conventional soy beans are highly sprayed with pesticides and genetically modified. Aside from this meal and few others, my family avoids soy products in general. This recipe also tastes great and very similar using coconut aminos so that is also a suitable alternative if you would like to steer clear of soy altogether.
Ingredients
Basmati Rice
Filtered Water
Turkey Bacon
Onions
Celery
Carrots
Peas
Garlic
Pasture-rasied Eggs
Organic Tamari Sauce (Gluten-free Soy Sauce)
Instructions
#1:
Cook your rice. White rice requires a water to rice ratio of 2:1. So for 1 ½ cups of uncooked rice, add in 3 cups of water.
#2:
Cook turkey bacon. In a large cast iron skillet on medium heat, add olive oil and turkey bacon strips and cook until crispy. Remove from the skillet onto a plate to cool. Turn off stove heat for now. When cool enough to handle, crumble into little pieces using your fingers. Set aside until later.
#3:
Dice onion, celery, and carrots to roughly pea-size. Remove skins from garlic cloves to prep for the garlic press or finely chop.
Preservation Tip: Don’t throw away your organic onion skins, or the celery and carrot ends. Add them to a ziplock bag and keep in the freezer to be added to and used to make vegetable and/or bone-based broths. They help develop the broth’s flavor and boost its nutrient profile!
#4:
Using the same skillet with the turkey bacon grease, turn the stove back on medium heat and add in your onions, celery, and carrots. Cook for 5-10 minutes until onions start to caramelize but not burn. Add in the frozen peas with a little splash of olive oil and mix into other vegetables. Cook for another 2-3 minutes. Press two (2) cloves of garlic into the mix and stir in.
#5:
In a small bowl, beat the eggs with a fork or whisk. Create a bare spot in the center of the pan by moving the vegetables to the sides of the skillet. Add in the butter to melt and then immediately pour in the beaten eggs into the center spot. Allow to cook for 1-3 minutes and use your mixing spoon to gently push the eggs around to help scramble them and prevent them from burning. Once they are cooked through, mix the scrambled eggs into the vegetables.
#6:
Add back in the crumbled turkey bacon pieces as well as a splash of Tamari sauce. Mix everything together well.
#7:
Dump in the cooked rice. Add in the remaining cloves of garlic (pressed or chopped), and the remaining tamari sauce over the rice. Mix garlic and sauce into plain rice briefly and then begin mixing all ingredients together until thoroughly combined and coated.
#8:
Cover the skillet with a lid and allow rice mixture to steam and fry for 3-5 minutes. Remove lid and mix up contents real good so nothing sticks to the bottom of the pan and burns. Allow rice to fry without the lid for another 3-5 minutes, stirring every minute or so. That’s it! Serve warm and add a little more tamari sauce if desired.
Enjoy & Shalom!
Turkey Bacon Fried Rice
This loaded fried rice is packed with the comforting and nutritious flavors from a variety of vegetables, turkey bacon, and tamari sauce. A great side dish to a roasted chicken or as a stand alone meal!
Servings: 4 people
Equipment
- Large Cast Iron Skillet (or other skillet)
- Rice cooker or separate pot/lid
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 Cups Basmati Rice
- 3 Cups Filtered Water
- 1 Tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 Package Organic Turkey Bacon 7-8 strips
- 1 Onion, diced (roughly 1 cup)
- 2 Stalks Celery, diced (roughly 1 cup)
- 1 Large Carrot, diced (roughly 1 cup)
- 5 Cloves Garlic, divided pressed or chopped finely
- 1 Cup Green Peas, frozen
- 1 Tbsp Grass-fed Butter
- 3 Pasture-raised Eggs, beaten
- 1/4 Cup Organic Tamari Sauce *gluten free soy sauce
Instructions
- Cook your rice. White rice requires a water to rice ratio of 2:1. So for 1 ½ cups of uncooked rice, add in 3 cups of water.
- Cook turkey bacon. In a large cast iron skillet on medium heat, add olive oil and cook until crispy. Remove from the skillet onto a plate to cool. Turn off stove heat for now. When cool enough to handle, crumble into little pieces using your fingers. Set aside until later.
- Dice onion, celery, and carrots to roughly pea-size. Remove skins from garlic cloves to prep for the garlic press or finely chop.
- Using the same skillet with the turkey bacon grease, turn the stove back on medium heat and add in your onions, celery, and carrots. Cook for 5-10 minutes until onions start to caramelize but not burn. Add in the frozen peas with a little splash of olive oil and mix into other vegetables. Cook for another 2-3 minutes. Press two (2) cloves of garlic into the mix and stir in.
- In a small bowl, beat the eggs with a fork or whisk. Create a bare spot in the center of the pan by moving the vegetables to the sides of the skillet. Add in the butter to melt and then immediately pour in the beaten eggs into the center spot. Allow to cook for 1-3 minutes and use your mixing spoon to gently push the eggs around to help scramble them and prevent them from burning. Once they are cooked through, mix the scrambled eggs into the vegetables.
- Add back in the crumbled turkey bacon pieces and add a splash of tamari sauce. Mix everything together well.
- Dump in the cooked rice. Add in the remaining cloves of garlic (pressed or chopped), and the remaining tamari sauce over the rice. Mix garlic and sauce into plain rice briefly and then begin mixing all ingredients together until thoroughly combined and coated.
- Cover the skillet with a lid and allow rice mixture to steam and fry for 3-5 minutes. Remove lid and mix up contents real good so nothing sticks to the bottom of the pan and burns. Allow rice to fry without the lid for another 3-5 minutes, stirring every minute or so. That’s it! Serve warm and add a little more tamari sauce if desired. Enjoy & Shalom!
Notes
*Coconut/liquid Aminos works wonderfully as a soy substitute for this dish. You may just need to add a little salt to taste.