by Hui Leng Tay
Stuffed Egg Rolls with Rice
Create stuffed egg rolls with some eggs and leftover fried rice. It brings new life to the leftovers.
INGREDIENTS | SERVES 2
3 or 4 eggs
¼ cup finely chopped green onions
Salt and ground white pepper, to taste
4 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided use (2 tablespoons each batch)
3 cups leftover fried rice, microwaved
In a small bowl, whisk the eggs with green onions, salt, and pepper. Set aside.
Add half the oil to the rice cooker, cover, and set to Cook. When the base of the cooker pot gets warm, add about half the quantity of the whisked egg (in each batch). Make sure the eggs cover the base of the pot in each batch. Allow the eggs to cook in the oil about 8 to 10 minutes, covering the rice cooker occasionally, until a thin round “plain omelet” is formed (taking care not to let the egg to burn under prolonged cooking). Remove the omelet and set aside on a paper towel to drain the oil. Repeat with remaining whisked egg.
To assemble, lay the omelets on a flat surface, place rice in the center of each, fold up the edges, and roll up to enclose the rice.
APPENDIX
Basic Rice Cooker Features
Rice Cooker Size
Rice cookers measure size or capacity by cups, ranging from 1 to 10 cups (10 cups equivalent to about 1.8 liters). The smallest rice cooker is about 0.6 liter and can cook up to 3 cups of rice, whereas the largest rice cookers, typically those for commercial use, are about 4.2 liters and can cook about 23 cups of rice. You should not buy an extremely small or large unit unless you need it. A larger unit also is more expensive to operate because it draws higher voltage and power. The recommended rice cooker size for a family of three to four is 1.8 liter, which can cook up to 10 cups of rice and allows enough real estate within the inner pan to do other cooking besides cooking rice. Generally, because serving size differs in the East and West, the exact measurement of a “cup” in the rice cookers also differs. For example, one Japanese cup is 200 milliliters, as compared to one American cup, which is 240 milliliters. Be aware of such differences and adjust any recipes accordingly.
Rice Cooker Pan
The range of inner pans is almost as varied as that of pans you would choose to use on the stovetop. Rice cookers now come with nonstick pans, anodized aluminum pans, and even stainless steel pans. Choose a rice cooker with the inner pan you prefer to work with. For example, if you do not like to spend too much time cleaning, choose a rice cooker with a nonstick pan. An anodized aluminum pan may allow better dissipation of heat for cooking.
Rice Cooker Lid
The basic models usually come with a metal lid. If there is no extra cost for it, a clear glass or plastic lid is best, as this helps you to “eyeball” cooking or steaming without lifting up the lid and losing heat while cooking.
Steamer Trays
Depending on the model, rice cooker units may come with a steamer basket or perforated metal tray that sits above the rice so that steaming can be done as the rice cooks. The inner pan can also be filled with water to boil, and in effect, steam the food in the steamer tray. There are other models that even have a small tray or pot that sits right at the bottom of the rice cooker pan, above the cooking element. A steamer tray is considered a very useful accessory, allowing the rice cooker to serve “double duty” as a steamer.
Cook and Warm Switch
This switch automatically switches to Warm when the inner thermostat in the rice cooker detects the temperature exceeding a pre-designated Cook temperature limit (usually 100°C to 120°C or 212°F to 248°F). The Keep Warm mode usually operates at about 65°C or above, which means some rice cookers can safely keep rice warm for up to twelve hours. This switch can be intentionally turned to the Keep Warm mode when cooking other food and when heat (temperature) control will be helpful. For example, when you stir-fry in the pan, start with Cook function. When the next step calls for simmering at slightly lower heat, switch the cooker manually to Keep Warm. Most basic Cook and Keep Warm rice cooker models allow you to do this. Read the rice cooker manual to learn what can or cannot be done.
Fuse Protector
Nothing is more important than safety when operating an appliance, especially an appliance such as the rice cooker, which might be left unattended during cooking. This will trip the fuse and prevent possible fires.