Khao Op Saparot — Pineapple Fried Rice / ข้าวอบสับปะรด

Ingredients

• 1 large ripe pineapple, halved lengthways, flesh scooped and torn into irregular pieces, shell dried inside with a cloth
• 300 g day-old jasmine rice, chilled, grains separated by hand
• 150 g raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 60 g cashews, whole, unsalted
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 tsp light soy sauce
• Optional finish
• 60 ml fresh pineapple juice, reduced by half off heat
• 2 tbsp neutral oil, high smoke-point

Method

1. 1
   Halve the pineapple lengthways through the crown and scoop the flesh, tearing it into irregular pieces rather than cutting; set aside. Dry the interior of each shell thoroughly with a cloth, so that residual moisture cannot condense against the hot rice and soften its crust. The shell is ready when it feels completely dry to the touch.
2. 2
   Set a wok over the highest available heat until smoking, then add the oil and the curry powder immediately. Stir the powder into the fat for several seconds until fragrant, so the spices open up and colour the oil before any other ingredient enters. You will smell the shift from raw to toasted — that is your cue to move on.
3. 3
   Add the shrimp and toss in the spiced oil until the exterior turns pink and opaque, but pull back before they cook through, so they finish gently in the residual heat of the rice rather than toughening in the wok. Push them to the wok's edge.
4. 4
   Pour the beaten eggs into the centre of the wok and scramble loosely, folding before they are fully set so they remain soft and yielding once broken through the shrimp. Break them into large curds and let them mingle with the shrimp at the edge.
5. 5
   Add the chilled rice, pressing it flat against the wok surface and tossing and pressing repeatedly, so each grain touches the hot metal and separates rather than steaming in a clump. Season with the fish sauce and light soy sauce, add the cashews, and continue tossing until every grain is distinct and carries colour from the curry-spiced oil — no clumps, no steam rising from the mass. This is where the dish lives or dies: a steaming, clumped mass at this point cannot be rescued by anything that follows.
6. 6
   In the final 30 seconds, add the torn pineapple pieces and toss only enough to distribute them, so the fruit warms through without breaking down — extended heat will draw out the juice, turning the rice gummy and leaving the shrimp soft in the wrong way. Thirty seconds is your limit; pull the wok from the heat the moment everything is combined.
7. 7
   Off the heat, add the fresh pineapple juice and fold through once so it coats each grain without further cooking. Spoon the rice into the dried pineapple shells — a warm, continuous tropical aroma rising from the shells within moments confirms the dish is ready to serve.