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Thai Pineapple Fried Rice

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Thai Pineapple Fried Rice

When I was at the grocery store I noticed that they still had a lot of cheap pineapples and I remembered that I had recently come across a recipe for a Thai pineapple fried rice in my bookmarks that sounded really good. I had not thought of adding sweet, juicy and tangy pineapple to a fried rice dish but the idea immediately stuck in my mind. I also noticed that the recipe called for a healthy dose of curry powder and combo’d with the pineapple it kind of reminded me of the curried pineapple banana bread that I had recently made and really enjoyed. I was already sold on the dish and the shrimp, cashews and raisins just took it over the edge! I only made a few changes including using brown rice and fresh peas since I had already picked some up at the farmers market. Whenever I make stir-fries, I clean, slice, chop and make sure that I have everything ready and on hand before turning the heat on as things move quickly after you start. The Thai pineapple rice was pretty easy to make after the prep work was done and the results were fantastic. The finished dish was so vibrantly colourful and the curry gave it an amazing aroma. The juicy pineapple and succulent shrimp worked really well with the curry flavours in this fried rice. The curry and chilies added the perfect amount of heat that was balanced by the pineapple and the raisins while the cashews added a nice contrasting texture. I have been raving about how good this fried rice was since I made it. I have a feeling that this dish will enter my regular rotation and given that you could easily use canned pineapple you could easily make this dish year round. You could also easily make a vegetarian version by omitting the shrimp and making a few ingredient swaps.

Thai Pineapple Fried Rice

Thai Pineapple Fried Rice

Prep Time:15 minutes Cook Time:10 minutes Total Time:25 minutes Servings: 4
ingredients
  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • 2 shallots (sliced)
  • 3 cloves garlic (chopped)
  • 1 red chili (chopped)
  • 1 red pepper (diced)
  • 1 egg (lightly beaten)
  • 3 tablespoons chicken stock (or vegetable broth)
  • 3 tablespoons fish sauce (or soy sauce)
  • 1 tablespoon curry powder
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/2 cup cashews (roasted)
  • 3 cups cooked rice (preferably a day old)
  • 1 cup pineapple (cut into bite sized pieces)
  • 1/2 pound shrimp (cooked, optional)
  • 1/4 cup peas (fresh or frozen)
  • 1/4 cup currants (or raisins)
  • 2 green onions (sliced)
  • 1/4 cup cilantro (chopped)
directions
  1. Heat the oil in a pan.
  2. Add the shallots, garlic, chillies and red pepper and stir-fry until fragrant, about a minute.
  3. Add the egg and stir-fry for a minute.
  4. Add the chicken stock, fish sauce, curry powder and sugar and stir-fry.
  5. Add the cashews and stir-fry for 30 seconds.
  6. Add the rice, break up any clumps and stir-fry for a few minutes.
  7. Add the pineapple, shrimp, peas and raisins and stir-fry to mix them in.
  8. Remove from heat and serve garnished with chopped green onions and cilantro.
Similar Recipes:
Pineapple and Shrimp Fried Quinoa
Chicken Fried Cauliflower Rice
Thai Cucumber and Pineapple Salad
Curried Pineapple Banana Bread
Pad Thai
Prawn and Pineapple Curry
Pad Thai Omelette
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  3. ChichaJo says

    June 26, 2009 at 1:48 am

    It really looks so vibrant…this reminds me of a pineapple rice I had in a little Thai place near my university (back in the days!)…your's looks much nicer though 🙂

    Reply

  5. Mrs Ergül says

    June 26, 2009 at 2:16 am

    Oh! I had totally forgotten to try making this dish! Sprinkle a handful of fried shallots over and this will make it even more complete! In some Thai restaurants, they will plate this fried rice in the empty pineapple halves!

    Reply

  9. sugar & spice says

    June 26, 2009 at 2:56 am

    ooh wow – I've always been wanting to fry some of this on my own after savouring it at various street stalls and Thai restaurants in KL.

    Your recipe looks real good – I'll make some and post it on my blog once i'm done.

    Thanks for the recipe

    Reply

  15. Nina Timm says

    June 26, 2009 at 5:48 am

    Kevin, you pushing just the right buttons here to get me inspired for cooking. The rice looks absolutely delicious. I can taste it as I am typing this!!!

    Reply

  17. Saee Koranne-Khandekar says

    June 26, 2009 at 10:06 am

    Hey! I made my version of fried rice for lunch today and am reading your lovely recipe as I eat it. I wouldn't have thought pineapple and prawns would go well together, but this definitely looks try-worthy. 🙂

    Reply

  22. Sherry says

    June 26, 2009 at 12:12 pm

    i'd love to see a list of your "regular rotation" ~ everything is so amazing looking that i'm curious which ones make it to the top for you..

    great site!

    Reply

  28. pixen says

    June 26, 2009 at 2:41 pm

    Kevin… that's one of the closest & authentic Khao Pad Sapparod! For me without that 'curry powder' it's not authentic 😛 I don't know which type of curry powder you use… in my family we use Waltrose's Madras Curry Powder or any brand of your choice if you want to hit the note.

    The curry powder brings out the dull color or else plain looking pineapple fried rice and added that special fragrance to the dish!

    I don't know why most Thai recipe books didn't mentioned and Thai Restaurants added this 'special powder' 😛 In my maternal Thai family, we added that 'curry powder' as long as we remember.

    Reply

  39. Treehouse Chef says

    June 26, 2009 at 10:15 pm

    The photo looks good enough to eat right off the web page. I love all of the ingredients you have added in here minus the shrimp. I am just not a seafood person, but I bet this recipe taste delicious with chicken too. I am going to try it. Thanks so much for sharing!!!

    Reply

  40. Marta says

    June 26, 2009 at 10:57 pm

    Pineapples ARE sweet and juicy these days! I just got 3 for $7 at the Superstore!! Yahoo!! Maybe i'll be making this colourful rice of yours, looks delicious!

    Reply

  45. kimberly says

    June 28, 2009 at 3:00 am

    Made this today… added some freshly grated ginger, and it was fabulous. The bonus is now I leftover shrimp and pineapple for grilled kebabs tomorrow! Thanks for all of your recipes.

    Reply

  52. Jaime says

    July 5, 2009 at 12:42 am

    oooh I love Thai pineapple fried rice, it is one of my favorite kinds of fried rice!! I am definitely make this!! (you have too many good recipes, I don't have time to make them all!)

    Reply

  53. Tina says

    July 8, 2009 at 5:46 am

    I made this tonight for my dad's birthday and my family LOVED it. Every part of it was delicious. The roasted cashews, pineapple, peas, and everything were awesome. Thank you so much for this recipe!

    Reply

  55. Sachi's Kitchen says

    July 28, 2009 at 4:54 pm

    I was searching for a pineapple fried rice recipe, and came across your blog. This looks delicious — I will have to try it soon and post on my blog. Hope it turns out as beautifully as yours! 🙂

    Reply

  57. Anonymous says

    August 24, 2009 at 12:16 am

    This recipe looked so good that I ordered pineapple fried rice at my local Thai restaurant. I was terribly disappointed, which motivated me to try this recipe. It looked just like the picture and tasted awesome! Thank you Kevin!

    Reply

  59. Shahnaz says

    October 1, 2009 at 7:20 pm

    It's getting out of control how much I like this recipe. I am going to make it again tonight! Thank you so much for posting these marvelous recipes.

    Reply

  61. SugarCooking says

    February 14, 2010 at 2:42 am

    I stumbled across this recipe this morning and decided to make it for dinner. I subbed tofu for shrimp and omitted the red chile (because I was scared of it). It came out great! Thanks for sharing!

    Reply

  63. Anonymous says

    May 1, 2010 at 1:29 pm

    Just made this meal last night and it was FANTASTIC!! We accidently forgot the garlic (oops!) and didn't care for the cilantro. We couldn't find a red chili so we used one green serrano…which provided plenty of heat! Everything else we kept the same. Thanks for such a wonderful recipe. I like the idea of serving this in a hollowed out half-pineapple. I also think you could leave out the shrimp and double the recipe and serve it as a side or take it to a potluck. And for those calorie-counters out there, there are about 440 calories per serving.

    Reply

  64. Ig. says

    June 8, 2010 at 11:22 pm

    Gostei muito do seu blog
    Sou do Brasil, São Paulo SP
    Meu blog de culinária é
    Htp://dona-sinha.blogspot.com
    Se você se interessar por culinária brasileira é um prato cheio.

    Reply

  65. Anonymous says

    July 6, 2010 at 3:43 am

    wow! i wanna marry you. lol! seriously that looks fantastic and since i can't have you as a husband who cooks for me, i am going out to buy the ingredients and cook it myself. i LOVE pineapple fried rice. at my favorite restaurant, they serve it with lightly floured deep fried shrimps. yumm. and sprinkled chicken floss.

    Reply

  67. Anonymous says

    April 20, 2011 at 6:57 am

    it made my throat super itchy! Then I looked it up online but there are different reasons why it is itchy *frowny face*.

    Reply

  69. Sarah says

    August 19, 2011 at 7:45 pm

    This looks so delicious and so you inspired me to cook this dish as well, thank you for this. I just love the combination of savoury food with a sweet and spice taste.

    Reply

  70. Rocky Land says

    February 28, 2012 at 4:01 pm

    I was amazed by all the fabulous recipes that you have on your blog. I will definitely be watching out for more to come. I will be trying this amazing rice dish tonight, but I do warn you, I never follow a recipe to the exact; I always add my own tweaks and changes. I love cooking, and seeing all these wonderful recipes and vibrant colors is making me love it even more! I do have my own website as well, http://www.chantalsrecipes.com/ check it out!

    Reply

  72. Maria M Triana says

    October 11, 2012 at 4:26 pm

    Hi Kevin, my name is Maria. I reproduce your recipe on my blog giving the link to here. Let me know if it is fine or not. I always use my name and always give the link to where is the original. Thank you very much for your time and kind consideration.

    Reply

  74. Jamain Naidoo says

    January 21, 2013 at 2:42 am

    made this tonight. I omitted peas, cashews, raisans (not a fans), and added fresh ginger. It was nothing short of AMAZING!!! I did add a bit of salt. My husband squeezed fresh lemon onto his and it was really good. I prefer it as is! Just a few suggestions…enjoy!!

    Reply

  75. Anonymous says

    January 26, 2013 at 5:50 pm

    I made this recipe exactly as written last night. It turned out very very good. I love that there was so much going on in the dish. The sweetness of the pineapple, with the crunch of the cashews and the freshness of the cilantro made this very tasty. I love heat, so I added some Sriracha hot sauce to my dish which took it to a whole new level. Mmmmm. This recipe is in my cook book and will be made again soon.

    Reply

  76. Anonymous says

    January 31, 2013 at 2:25 am

    I love this recipe and have made it several times. We don't eat shrimp so I use chicken and put in whatever veggies sound good or that I have on hand. It is soooo yummy!!!! When we adopted our daughter from China last summer I got this in a resturant there and searched for a recipe like it when I got home-this is the best version I have found. Thank you so much for sharing this great recipe!

    Reply

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