OK. I really struggled with posting this. Not because the dish didn’t turn out delicious (because it did) but for other reasons, which I’ll explain in a moment. First, let’s talk about the reasons why I liked this meal. On Instagram Stories, I shared a snapshot of me making this dish and dubbed it as the ‘perfect hangover food’ and it was. I don’t know about you but if I overindulge in one too many cocktails, I usually have certain foods I crave the next day. They range from heavy starchy type things, to authentic Mexican food or loads of rice. Oh and a fountain Coke (preferably with fresh lime juice). This cheeseburger fried rice definitely fulfilled my starchy hangover needs.
I found the recipe over on Joy the Baker. Do you follow her? She’s great and I love following her on Instagram. I’m sure you’ve heard of her and even if you haven’t, you’ve probably heard of Drake on Cake, right? She’s the brilliant mind behind that Instagram account. I never knew I needed to see Drake lyrics on cakes but I do.
Anyway, Joy’s photos of her cheeseburger fried rice looked so yummy I had to pin it and file it away to try later. And so I did. It was flavorful, tangy and most of all, it was crazy easy. You don’t know you ‘need’ this rice until you try it and I’m glad I did. But here’s my conundrum: I wasn’t sure if I should post it. I was having a real life crisis about it. I never want to be insensitive or disrespectful of someone’s culture and yes, that even means food culture.
Could I be overthinking this? Probably.
Is it valid, though? Also probably.
To be completely honest: I still don’t know. I thought I’d share it anyway for a couple of reasons: (1) it was delicious and (2) to maybe start a conversation on what it means to be appropriate and respectful to people’s food culture. I DON’T HAVE THE ANSWERS.
Cheeseburger fried rice – a conundrum.
A food-related tip: leftover rice makes the best fried rice. If you find yourself in a position where you’ve made a ton of rice one night and you don’t want to waste, make some fried rice the next day! Don’t let it go by the wayside.
For this dish, I went to my local Chinese restaurant and purchased rice there. The texture is so much better than anything I could ever create. I used the left over rice to make cheeseburger fried rice. I reused the rice boxes too – another action I wasn’t sure about. The truth is: I don’t know if any of this is disrespectful.
Did we enjoy the rice? Uh, yes we did.
Will I make it again? Maybe.
At any rate, I’d still like to share the recipe with you in case you’d like to taste the deliciousness. I didn’t really edit the recipe so you can head over to Joy the Baker for the details. The only change I made was with the pickles. I used pickles from Cochon Butcher instead of the suggested gherkins. Cochon’s pickles are delicious and we had a jar in the fridge from our recent trip to New Orleans. If you’re going to New Orleans, please stop by this place and if you feel so inclined, buy the pickles. I’ve never felt so strongly about a jar of pickles in my life.
So what do you think? Am I overthinking this recipe?
