The Three Pigs fried rice at Yao’s (15 Alafaya Woods Blvd. in Oviedo; 321-765-4801; yaosorl.com ), says sous chef Joseph Ulto, is greater than the sum of its parts.

“Each ingredient, on its own, is nothing remarkable. However, bringing these pieces together under intense heat creates something so dynamic to light up your taste buds, yet gently wraps around you like a hug from an old friend. Food has that ability to immediately connect with people.”

Right now, the world could use more hugs, if you ask me. But in lieu of that, a big bowl of fried rice, which celebrates its national holiday on Saturday (Sept. 20), could serve as a delicious, carb-laden stand-in.

I buy my mom Chinese takeout all the time, but she never wants the rice, which is fine by me, because it sits in my fridge,

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