Sometimes when I’m at the grocery store, I don’t have a meal planned in my head, and usually grab whatever appeals to my eye.  This past week, I grabbed me a nice little bunch (actually, leeks are not little, they’re like mutant green onions but milder tasting). After a few days of ignoring them in my fridge, I decided I had to think once-and-for-all what to do with my new friends. I wanted something hearty (I was running all over the place at work today seeing patients) and easy. Also, I’ve been wanting to make pineapple fried rice for some time now, but always ended up forgetting to buy pineapple at the store. Not so this time!

This simple, eggless fried rice is full of hearty, fun textures and flavors from the bite of the day-old brown rice I had begging for attention in my fridge, to the tartness of the pineapple, and the hint of saltiness from the lean bacon. This is a simple, healthy recipe to make – you’ve got your whole grains from the rice, and it’s not overloaded with grease as in take-out fried rice (One serving of my fried rice is 281 kcal and 10 grams of fat.  The same amount of fried rice from a popular take-out chain, for example, can cost you up to 450 calories and 14 grams of fat!  Kind of a lot if you consider you’re eating other stuff on the side too).  Also, you have to add lots of garlic. Garlic and fried rice are a must-have for anyone.

Bacon, Leek, and Pineapple Fried Rice

2 Tbsp olive oil, divided

2 slices lean bacon, chopped

2 cups leeks, thinly sliced (I sliced and quartered mine – you can cut it however you fancy)

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup canned pineapple chunks in juice, drained, cut each pineapple chunk in half again

3 cups of brown rice, leftover from the day before (newly made rice is too moist and you may end up with a soggier texture)

2 pinches garlic powder

2 – 3 tsp low-sodium soy sauce

Black pepper to taste

1.  In a  large frying pan, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over high heat.   When the oil starts to smoke, add the bacon and let it brown briefly.  After about a couple of minutes, add the leeks and garlic, sauteeing for about 4-5 minutes, or until leeks are soft.  Season with black pepper.  Place the bacon-leek mixture into a separate bowl.

2.  In the same pan, add another 1 tablespoon of olive oil.  Add the pineapple chunks when the oil starts to smoke.  After the pineapple gets a little browned (about 2-3 minutes), add the brown rice and break up the rice with your spatula.  Add the garlic powder, soy sauce, and black pepper to taste.  Allow the rice to lightly brown, pressing on the rice with your spatula and then flipping the rice back and forth.  When the desired texture is achieved, add the bacon-leek mixture and thoroughly combine.  When all the ingredients are evenly distributed, turn the heat off and serve.  Serves 4, about 1 cup fried rice each.

Nutrition Facts (per 1 cup serving): 281 kcal, 10 g fat, 42 g carbs, 5.8 g protein