Bacon Fried Rice

I know, I know, you're dubious. This seems like taking it too far. I was skeptical too, but my friend Kelly told me her parents used to make it for her all the time when she was a kid, and she had no notion that someone might find it unappealing until she got older and told other people about it. So I gave it a try, and you know? It's delicious! It's really not all that different from the bbq pork one finds in fried rice on occasion. And it strikes me as a surprisingly versatile dish, suitable for any meal of the day. If you think of the rice as doing potato duty for the day, it works well for breakfast, especially if you do like I did and throw some grated cheddar and hot sauce into it, otherwise it makes a great lunch or sleazy dinner (especially if you get creative and throw in some more vegetables, I imagine). I'm not sure that I made it the way Kelly and her family do, but here's what I came up with:

Bacon Fried Rice

2 strips bacon

Cooked Rice - it was half of what you get when you start with 1 cup of uncooked rice. Um. How much does rice expand when you cook it? Anyhow, proportions are obviously somewhat flexible

1/2 onion

1 egg

soy sauce

grated cheddar and some hot sauce 

Coarsely chop the bacon and throw into a pan over medium heat. As it cooks, chop the onion and add it to the pan. Let cook for a minute or two, or until the bacon is mostly cooked, then add the rice. Beat up the egg with some soy sauce and pour over the top. Turn the heat to high and stir-fry until the rice is crispy and the egg is cooked. If you're going with the breakfast-y variant, grate in some cheddar, stir until melted, and then serve, adding the hot sauce as desired. 

It sounds somewhat odd, I know, but you'll be surprised at how normal it tastes. Also - it's really not that greasy - no more so than normal fried rice. Actually, less so, it seemed to me. Two strips of bacon generate just enough fat to coat the pan - it's not the kind of meal that leaves your mouth all shiny. Honestly, it seems downright healthy.