The Morning After...

Unfortunately, my partner had to get up and go to work this morning.  I felt so bad for him, as he stumbled around to get himself together for work.  SIGNS OF A GOOD TIME!!

After he left, I slept for a little while longer.  I figured it was time for me to take a break, after all the entertaining we had done the night before.  But when I finally started stirring, I realized that I was hungry!  And there is nothing better than the quintessential Filipino breakfast after a long night of wine, beer, and Maker's Mark... Fried Eggs and Fried Rice.

I wanted to take this opportunity to talk to you all about this breakfast.  I know that in an earlier post, I've talked about the memories that this dish has brought me.  It makes me feel good, to say the least, when I eat eggs and fried rice.  It's also perfect for getting rid of a hangover.  LOL.

So let's talk about making fried eggs.  Everyone has their own method.  There are different techniques... should I flip my eggs?  Should I not flip them?  Do I break out my cast iron?  Or will my nonstick work?  Well... I'll give you my methods to try.

I ALWAYS use a nonstick pan for eggs.  ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS.  I mean... I can make eggs in a regular pan... but I like knowing that my eggs will slide right out of the pan.  I also find that I don't have to use as much fat to make sure that the eggs come out.  I can just use the fat to add flavor to my eggs... and trust me... butter is great!  LOL

I also like to use silicon utensils, heat proof to about 500 degrees.  I swear, what did people do before silicon?  

So let's talk about how I do this.  I start the pan by using a non-stick spray and some butter for flavor over medium heat.

Warm non-stick pan with a little butter and nonstick spray, and my trusty silicon spatula

Once the pan has warmed up, I break my eggs into the pan and allow them to set.

Eggs in the pan, beginning to set.

So now, let's talk about flipping your eggs versus not flipping them.  Believe it or not, I'm a little klutzy in the kitchen.  When I was younger, I used to try so hard to flip my eggs, and completely run the risk of breaking the yolk.  I don't really like my eggs over hard, but I don't like my eggs "sunny-side up"... I find that when eggs are done that way, they are ENTIRELY too runny.  So, how did I fix the issue?  I just stopped flipping the eggs.

"But wait... if you don't like your eggs sunny-side up... how do you cook the top of the egg without flipping it?"  Ha-ha!  You just cover them for a minute or two, until the tops set...

Eggs covered... and being set

After about a minute or two, you lift the lid off the pan, and check to see if your eggs are done to the consistency that you like.

Eggs... the way I like them.

 So let's talk about fried rice.  It is a pretty simple process.  Firstly, you can't make fried rice with a newly made pot of rice.  Your rice needs to be at least 24 hours old, preferably kept in the fridge.  The older the rice, the better.

So, you are going to need:

Old Rice
2 tbsp. of soy sauce
Granulated Garlic Powder
Dried Onion

Soy sauce, onion and garlic


So, now you ask, "why don't you use fresh garlic and onion for this?"  My answer to you is, if you are hung-over, or are just trying to quickly make your breakfast, why in the world would chop onions and garlic?  Using the dried stuff just makes my life easier.  When I'm trying to be extra fancy with it, then I'll break out the real garlic and onion.  But for me... it's just breakfast.



Now, here's the process...


The rice goes into a warm pan.  as your rice begins to heat up, add in your dry garlic, onion and soy sauce. 

Rice goes into the pan

Soy sauce, garlic and onion added

So here's the fun part... Now that the pan is hot, start moving the rice around with your silicon spatula.  Mash the rice down, stir it through and just ensure that your soy sauce, garlic, and onion starts to thoroughly combines with the rice.  After about 5 minutes of moving the rice around in the hot pan, then your rice is done!

Fried rice and eggs.

Here we go!   I hope you enjoy the quintessential Filipino breakfast!  Can you add a breakfast meat?  Of course you can!  If you want to get real Filipino with it, find some longanisa (Filipino breakfast sausage) or SPAM!  Yeah, I said it, SPAM.  It's good stuff... trust me...

Onward and upwards...

-Vince