My do-it-yourself answer to the Japanese Steakhouse experience

Okay, so in all honesty, you aren't going to see my flinging shrimp at Rick to catch while he's sitting at the little bar in my condo as I cook, but I do like to make my version of the type of meal that you'll find at one of those hibachi-cook-it-in-your-face kinda places.  I'm a huge fan of them, and actually, my mom and I went to Yamatos while she was in town last weekend for my graduation.  Since Rick wasn't able to go, I thought I'd do the next best thing for him and fix it for him at home.  No, I don't have a hibachi grill, but a nice, big ole pan will work pretty well in my opinion.  This meal is another one that makes Rick's favorites list.


There are probably about a thousand ways to make fried rice, but personally, I go for simple and easy.  The only thing to keep in mind when making it is to use leftover rice or rice that has had a little while to cool (think a couple of hours here).  You can add whatever your heart desires to it...onions, carrots, peas, eggs.  In this version, I don't add anything.  Same thing goes for the veggies.  I usually do a sweet onion and a zucchini, but I've also been known to add mushrooms.  Since Rick doesn't like them, I don't include them that often anymore.  I wasn't in the mood for broccoli so I didn't include it.  Again, go with whatever strikes your fancy!


The one thing that makes this experience perfect is shrimp sauce.  You know what I'm talking about...that delicious pink sauce that they always serve at Japanese restaurants.  I do have a recipe for it, but a couple of years ago, I stumbled across a bottle of it near the seafood at Food Lion.  Imagine my delight and surprise to find it!


Two more things before I post the recipe.... First, I'd like to apologize for not having a picture of our meal, but it was scarfed down rather quickly last night. Also, I am happy to report that my blog has been include at petitchef.com!  Nothing makes me happier than having cooking site find me and ask me to list my blog on it!  I don't know if you've ever checked out the website, but it's really cool!  They've all kinds of different recipes and great pictures! Definitely check it out!  I love checking out different cooking blogs and all of the fantastic recipes I can find for inspiration.  Being new to the cooking blog world, I love venturing out from my old standard epicurious.com.  


Here's the recipe for your dining enjoyment!


Do-It-Yourself Japanese

For the day before (or a couple of hours before)

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups uncooked rice


Directions
Cook rice per instructions and store in the refrigerator overnight (or for a couple of hours to cool down).


For the day of:
Ingredients
Pre-cooked rice
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined, seasoned with salt and pepper

1 or 2 NY Strip Steaks, cut into 1-2 inch pieces, seasoned with salt and pepper
1 zucchini, quartered and cut into two inch pieces

1 sweet onion chopped
Toasted sesame seeds

Peanut oil
Sesame oil

Directions
In a large pan or wok (wok is better when you have a large amount of rice), heat a mixture of 1 tablespoon peanut oil and 1 tablespoon sesame oil over medium high heat.  Add rice to the pan and season with sesame seeds.  Fry for a few minutes (around 5) and use a spoon to break up the rice.  Add soy sauce and continue to cook.


In a separate pan, add 1/2 tablespoon peanut oil and 1/2 tablespoon sesame oil and heat over medium heat.  Add zucchini and onion, season with sesame seeds, and cook until they are tender.  Add soy sauce and cook for an additional minute.  Remove from the pan, place in a medium bowl, and cover to keep warm. Add steak to the pan and cook to desired doneness.  Add shrimp to the pan and season with sesame seeds.  Cook until the shrimp are pink.  Add the shrimp and steak to the vegetable mixture and mix. 


Place fried rice on a plate and top with shrimp mixture.  Serve with shrimp sauce.


Enjoy!