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Filled with shrimp, egg, fresh pineapple, and crunchy cashews, this pineapple fried rice is a complete meal in a bowl.
Pineapple fried rice is one of my favorite Thai takeout orders, but it’s even better homemade because you can really load it up with the good stuff: extra shrimp, lots of eggs, and juicy bites of fresh pineapple everywhere. This version gets its classic Thai restaurant flavor from a combination of soy sauce and fish sauce, along with curry-flavored rice and just a hint of sweetness. For a fun restaurant-style presentation, you can even serve it in a hollowed-out pineapple half. Best of all, it all comes together in about 30 minutes.
Contents
What You’ll Need to Make Pineapple Fried Rice
- Shrimp: Adds protein and makes fried rice hearty enough to serve as a main dish. Buy peeled and deveined shrimp to save time.
- Eggs: A classic fried rice ingredient that adds richness and texture.
- Shallots and green onions: Shallots provide a mild, sweet onion flavor, while scallions add freshness and color.
- Jasmine rice: Day-old rice works best because it is drier and less sticky, which helps the grains stay separated. But don’t feel like you have to plan ahead: microwaveable jasmine rice used straight from the package works wonderfully here and is what I use most often.
- Soy sauce, fish sauce, curry powder, sugar and white pepper: This combination gives the rice its characteristic sweet-savory Thai flavor.
- Fresh pineapple: Adds juicy sweetness that balances savory flavors. Fresh pineapple is the best here.
- Cashew nuts : Add a delicious crunch and salty contrast to the sweet pineapple. They are optional, but I like the texture they provide.
- Access the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step by step instructions
Step 1: Cook the shrimp. Season the shrimp with a pinch of salt. Heat 1½ tablespoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add shrimp and cook until just opaque, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate, leaving the oil in the pan.
Step 2: Scramble the eggs. Pour the eggs into the pan and scramble until just cooked. Transfer them to the plate with the shrimp, they will be added to the rice later.
Step 3: Cook the shallots and reheat the rice. Add the remaining 1½ tablespoons oil to the pan. Add shallots and cook, stirring constantly, until softened and fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the rice and cook, breaking up any lumps with a wooden spoon or spatula, until heated through, a few minutes.
Step 4: Finish. Stir in soy sauce, fish sauce, curry powder, sugar, white pepper and remaining 1 teaspoon salt. Stir until the rice is evenly coated and fragrant. Then add the pineapple, cashews (if using), green onions, cooked shrimp and scrambled eggs and mix until everything is hot and well combined.
Pro tip: For a heartier fried rice, don’t hesitate to add a handful of cooked peas or a few diced carrots with the pineapple. You can also replace the shrimp with diced chicken.
Step 5: Serve. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Then serve hot and enjoy!
More Fried Rice Recipes You May Like
Pineapple Fried Rice
This pineapple fried rice is sweet, savory and full of flavor: the perfect all-in-one weeknight meal.
Ingredients
- 12 ounce extra-large shrimp (24 shrimp), peeled and deveined, thawed if frozen
- Salt
- 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
- â…” cup finely chopped shallots (3 to 4 shallots)
- 4 cups cold cooked jasmine rice (day-old or microwaveable rice is best)
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 4 teaspoons fish sauce
- 1½ teaspoons curry powder
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- ¼ teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1 cup fresh pineapple diced
- ½ cup roasted and salted cashews (optional)
- 4 green onions, light green and dark green parts, thinly sliced
Instructions
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Season the shrimp with a pinch of salt.
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In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs and â…› teaspoon salt.
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Heat 1½ tablespoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add shrimp and cook until just opaque, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate, leaving the oil in the pan.
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Add the eggs to the pan and scramble until just cooked. Transfer to the plate with the shrimp (they will be put back together in the dish).
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Add the remaining 1½ tablespoons oil to the pan. Add shallots and cook, stirring constantly, until slightly softened and fragrant, about 1 minute.
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Add the rice and cook, breaking up any lumps with a wooden spoon or spatula, until heated through, a few minutes. Add the soy sauce, fish sauce, curry powder, sugar, white pepper and â…› teaspoon salt. Stir until the rice is evenly coated and fragrant.
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Add the pineapple, cashews (if using), green onions, cooked shrimp and scrambled eggs. Stir until everything is heated through. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Serve hot.
Remarks
- For rice, you have several options. Day-old cold rice works best because the grains are drier and less sticky. Freshly cooked rice will also work: simply spread it out on a baking sheet and let it cool for about 30 minutes. For the simplest option (and the one I use most often), use two microwaveable packets of jasmine rice straight out of the package, without reheating them first. I particularly like the Veetee and Royal brands.
- Preparation/freezing instructions: The dish is best freshly prepared, but leftovers reheat well. Store cooled fried rice in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat leftovers in the microwave or in a skillet over medium heat until hot. If the rice seems a little dry, add a little water before reheating. To freeze, let the fried rice cool completely, then transfer it to an airtight container and freeze it for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.
Nutritional information
Per serving (4 servings)Calories: 571kilocaloriesCarbohydrates: 62gProtein: 32gFat: 21gSaturated fat: 4gCholesterol: 255mgSodium: 1120mgFiber: 3gSugar: 9g
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional information on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutrition information is provided as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. Data is calculated via an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these numbers should only be considered estimates. Different factors such as types of produce or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and how ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information of a given recipe. Additionally, different online calculators provide different results based on their own nutritional data sources and algorithms. To get the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your favorite nutritional calculator.
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