Chicken and Banana Fried Rice Recipe.

I’m finding myself attracted to recipes that seem like they just shouldn’t work. (From trusted sources) so when I read about this meal in Every Day With Rachel Ray Magazine I just had to try it. I’ve never thought about adding bananas to a savoury dish before and I wasn’t sure how it was going to go. It actually turned out really well.

Although it is not the most photogenic dish because everything is a little beige and I ran out of green onions because the original recipe called for 3/4 of a cup of whites AND 3/4 of a cup of greens so I didn’t have any left to sprinkle on top, it was good.

I’m going to add it to my recipe box as I’ll definitely make it again. The bananas were still fairly firm and added a bit of sweetness. The overall taste was a bit onion-y but in a pleasant way and the peanuts added a perfect amount of crunch. I think this would be a great dish to try out with kids who are reluctant to try new things. None of the ingredients are too weird but the combination is very unusual.

Note: You need to use rice that has been cooked and cooled so keep that in mind when you are making your plans.

Banana and Chicken Fried Rice Recipe
(adapted from Every Day With Rachel Ray Magazine)

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 3 bananas
• 3/4 lb cooked chicken breast (cubed or thinly sliced)
• Salt and pepper
• 3/4 cup thinly sliced shallot
• 2 finely chopped serrano chiles (or a squirt of Sriracha) 
• 3 cups cooked and cooled brown basmati rice
• 1 bunch thinly sliced scallion greens
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• Chopped salted peanuts

Directions
1. Heat 1 Tbsp of oil in a large non-stick skillet on medium-high heat.
2.  Cut the bananas in half lengthwise and lay them cut side on in the hot pan. Cook until golden 2-3 minutes. Remove them from the pan and cut them into bite sized pieces.
3. Wipe of the pan. Reduce the heat to medium and add 1 tbsp of oil to the pan. Add the shallot and cook for a few minutes until softened and slightly golden. Add the serrano chilies and cook for another minute.
4. Add the rice and chicken and bring the heat back up to high. Cook for about 3 minutes to toast the rice and heat the chicken. Stir occasionally.
5. Remove from heat and add the bananas and soy sauce to the pan. Stir gently. Top with the scallion greens and peanuts.

So, did they eat it?

This ended up being a hit with everyone at our house. It’s really pretty similar to typical fried rice, so if you like that, you’d probably like this too.