That classic pizza combination but made into fried rice instead. Personally, I think pineapple works far better in fried rice anyway!
Ready in 30 minutes!
Nicky’s Notes
I LOVE how easy this dinner is to throw together. It’s the perfect way to use up leftover cooked ham or gammon in a meal that the kids and adults love.
Quick tip: You do need to have cooked some rice in advance for this, as the rice needs to be cooked and cooled.
I always cook extra rice, so I have rice in the freezer that I can thaw and use. But you can cook the rice the same day you make it. Just spread it out on a tray once it’s cooked to cool it quickly, then cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
I like to drizzle over a little sriracha on this. It also goes perfectly with some sweet chilli sauce, or some easy sweet and sour sauce (check out the notes section of the recipe card for a 5-minute sweet and sour sauce, using the leftover juice from the tinned pineapple).
📋 Ingredients for Ham Fried Rice
***Full recipe with detailed quantities in the recipe card below***
- Use cooked and cooled long grain white rice.
- Be sure to use pineapple in juice (not syrup) – you can also replace with chunks or fresh pineapple if preferred.
- You can use leftover ham or gammon cut into chunky pieces. You can also buy chunks of ham in the supermarket, or you could use shredded ham hock if you like.
Abbreviated Recipe
***Full recipe with detailed steps in the recipe card below***
Fry up the vegetables, ham and pineapple in the 2 oils. Add cooked rice, soy sauce and garlic powder/granules and stir fry until hot. Move the rice over in the pan and scramble 2 eggs in the space, then toss everything together with a little lemon juice. Serve topped with spring onions (scallions) and a drizzle of hot sauce.
Recipe Tips
- Make sure the boiled rice is cooled before using. This will help stop it sticking together and will ensure it absorbs more flavour. You can use ready-cooked rice if you’re short on time.
- If you want to make a quick sweet and sour sauce to drizzle over the top, you can also use up the pineapple juice from the can. Simply mix the pineapple juice (around 120ml or 1/2 cup) with 1 tbsp malt vinegar, 4 tbsp dark brown sugar and 90ml (1/3 cup) tomato ketchup. Stir and heat in a pan for a couple of minutes until bubbling.
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🍽️ What to serve it with
This is a complete dish, but if you wanted to add sides, how about:
Make ahead and Leftovers Guide
Make Ahead
Cook the rice, then spread it out in a large dish (so it will cool quickly) cover and refrigerate for up to a day. Don’t leave cooked rice out at room temperature. Bacteria can grow on cooked rice very quickly, so it’s important to:
- Refrigerate it as quickly as possible
- Don’t store for more than 24 hours in the fridge, and
- Thoroughly reheat it.
Reheat in a wok, over a medium-high heat, moving it around the pan with a spatula, until piping hot throughout. You may need to add an extra splash of oil, as the rice will have absorbed the oil whilst in the fridge.
I would also add an extra squeeze of lemon juice and some fresh chopped spring onions (scallions) on top before serving.
Freezing
Cook the rice, then spread it out in a large dish (so it will cool quickly) cover and freeze.
As per the instructions above – Don’t leave cooked rice out at room temperature. Bacteria can grow on cooked rice very quickly, so it’s important to:
- Freeze it as quickly as possible
- Defrost in the refrigerator overnight (and don’t store for more than 24 hours)
- Thoroughly reheat it.
Reheat as per the make-ahead instructions above.
📺 Watch how to make it
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Add the neutral oil and and the sesame oil to a wok over a medium–high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring regularly, for 5 minutes until the onion softens.
1 tablespoon neutral oil, 1 tablespoon sesame oil, 1 onion
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Add the red pepper, mushrooms, peas, ham, pineapple, salt and pepper. Cook for a further 3 minutes, stirring regularly.
1 red, 10 button mushrooms, 115 g (2/3 cup) frozen peas, 150 g (1 cup) cooked ham chunks (or shredded ham), 400 g (14oz) can pineapple chunks in juice, drained, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
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Add the cooked rice and increase the heat to high. Toss everything together using a spatula.
600 g (4 cups) cooked white long-grain rice, cooled
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Add the soy sauce and garlic graniles and continue to cook, moving everything around the pan regularly so it doesn’t stick, until the rice is hot (this should take 5–6 minutes).
2 tablespoons dark soy sauce, ½ teaspoon garlic powder
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Once the rice is hot, push the rice over to the side of the pan and crack the eggs into the space. Move the pan so that the eggs are right over the heat. Move the eggs round slowly until they start to scramble. As they scramble, mix the eggs into the rice.
2 eggs
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Add the lemon juice, stir and taste. Add more soy sauce or lemon juice if needed.
juice of ½ lemon
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Divide between bowls and top with chopped spring onions, a drizzle of sriracha and some lemon wedges.
2 spring onions, sriracha or sweet chilli sauce, lemon wedges
Cooled rice is key!
Make sure the boiled rice is cooled before using. This will help stop it sticking together and will ensure it absorbs more flavour. You can use ready-cooked rice if you’re short on time.
Use the pineapple juice for a quick sweet and sour sauce!
If you want to make a quick sweet and sour sauce to drizzle over the top, you can also use up the pineapple juice from the can. Simply mix the pineapple juice (around 120ml or 1/2 cup) with 1 tbsp malt vinegar, 4 tbsp dark brown sugar and 90ml (1/3 cup) tomato ketchup. Stir and heat in a pan for a couple of minutes until bubbling.
Make it vegetarian
Swap out the ham for a vegetarian alternative, such as seitan.
Nutritional information is approximate, per serving. This recipes serves 4.
Calories: 431kcal | Carbohydrates: 65g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 102mg | Sodium: 1178mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 16g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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