Name: Pineapple Fried Rice
Ingredients: 1 large fresh pineapple, trimmed and diced; 2 cups cooked long-grain white rice; 1 oz Chinese dried mushrooms; 1 small onion, finely chopped; 2 tbsp oil, preferably peanut; ¼ lb Chinese long beans - (or green beans),; 2 eggs; 2 tbsp dark soy sauce; 1 tbsp fish sauce (optional)

Why it works: Rice and beans match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,017 recipes. Both carry trans-2-nonenal, which smells cardboard, fatty. The science ↓

Pineapple Fried Rice

Time20 minutes

Ingredients

1 large fresh pineapple, trimmed and diced
2 cups cooked long-grain white rice
1 oz Chinese dried mushrooms
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 tbsp oil, preferably peanut
¼ lb Chinese long beans - (or green beans),
2 eggs
2 tbsp dark soy sauce
1 tbsp fish sauce (optional)

Directions

Prepare

Carefully cut off and save the pineapple top, leaving about 1-inch of the pineapple under the leaves.
Scoop out the inside fruit leaving the skin of the pineapple whole to use as a bowl for the fried rice.
Coarsely chop the pineapple meat.
Soak the dried mushrooms in warm water for 20 minutes until they are soft.
Squeeze the excess liquid from the mushrooms and remove and discard their stems.
Cut the caps into small dice.

Stir-fry

Heat a wok or large frying pan until it is hot, then add the oil and wait until it is almost smoking.
Add the mushrooms, onions and beans and stir-fry for one minute.
Mix in the cooked rice and stir-fry it for one minute.
Add the eggs, soy sauce and fish sauce and continue to stir-fry for five minutes over high heat.
Add the chopped pineapple and continue to stir-fry for about two minutes.

Serve

Scoop the mixture into the hollowed-out pineapple shell, replace the top and serve the remaining rice on a platter.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

745Calories

24 gProtein

34 gFat

91 gCarbs

Counts 9 of 10 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 9 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Rice	1 cup cooked (158g) white	206
Peanut	1 oz (28g)	161
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Pineapple	1 cup chunks (165g)	82
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Bell Pepper	1 medium (119g)	31
Mushrooms	1/2 cup sliced (35g)	15
Soy Sauce	1 tbsp (15ml)	9
Bean	not in our table	0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

Rice + beanstop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together1,017 recipes

Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
Peanut + beanstop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together190 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine (green bell pepper, earthy).
Rice + peanuttop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together670 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (popcorn, roasted).
Onion + beanstop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together5,242 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Rice + mushroomtop 9% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together1,515 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Eggs: Set as they cook, binding the rice and adding richness to the fried rice.
Cooked long-grain white rice: Forms the base of the dish; cooked rice that has dried out fries into separate grains.
Fresh pineapple: Adds sweetness and juiciness that contrasts with the savory soy and fish sauces.
Dark soy sauce: Adds savory flavor and a deep color to the rice as it fries.
Dried mushrooms: Contribute a meaty, earthy flavor and chewy texture.

The step that matters

Heat the oil until almost smoking before adding ingredients. A very hot pan sears ingredients quickly, giving browning and wok aroma instead of steaming them in oil that is not hot enough.

Swap the pineapple

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (rice, mushroom, onion, peanut, beans, egg, sauce):

Avocadofits better
Coconutfits better
Limefits better
Pineapplethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against rice, mushroom, onion, peanut, beans, egg, sauce. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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Pineapple Fried Rice