Fried rice is the perfect side dish for any Asian style meal you decide to make. Every recipe and variant of this dish is so versatile that you can pretty much add anything to it and it will still taste great.
You can decide what type of protein you want to throw in there such as beef, chicken or even prawns!
Additionally vegetarians can also adjust the dish to suit them and any other dietary requirements. So without a further ado let us share with you our perfect fried rice recipe.
Perfect fried rice recipe
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons of oil
- 2 minced garlic cloves
- 1/2 finely chopped brown onion
- 120g chopped bacon
- 1 cup of frozen vegetables (peas, carrots and corn are the go to)
- 2 cups of white rice
- 3 whisked eggs
- 3/4 cup of spring onions
Sauce ingredients
- 1 tablespoon of Chinese cooking wine
- 1 tablespoon of soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil
- 1/4 teaspoon of white pepper
Instructions
- Heat the majority of your oil in a wok on high heat until it starts to smoke.
- Add in your brown onion, bacon and garlic.
- Cook for about 2 minutes or until the bacon is a light golden colour.
- Add in your vegetables and cook for 2 minutes so that the water evaporates.
- Add in your rice and sauce ingredients and cook for 2 minutes.
- Move your rice to the side of your wok and add in the remaining oil directly onto the wok (you should create a space free from all ingredients).
- Pour your egg mixture in and scramble it (you want to make sure that it is hard scrambled).
- Add in your spring onion and stir your egg throughout the dish.
- Take the wok off the heat and serve it immediately.
Video
Notes
History of fried rice
The ancient origins of fried rice remain a mystery to us we can estimate that it was most likely invented during the Sui Dynasty which was around 589 to 618 AD. Even more specifically in the city of Yangzhou which is in the eastern province of Jiangsu. While this dish was created over 1000 years ago it is still a very staple dish in China. In the traditional variant you will find a lot or prawns, roast pork, peas and spring onion. To the western world this is what we call special fried rice in Chinese restaurants.
Since rice is still a very staple grain in China you will find that it is still very common especially in the southern parts of the country. It is still a very popular dish as it was originally developed as a way to use leftover rice. Since rice is still the main component of the Chinese diet there is always rice left over. From such it is common for a lot of households to create this dish with their leftovers.
The famous grain
To make a true fried rice dish you should be using rice that has already been cooked. When rice gets older it dries out which in turn reduces your chances of creating a dish that is wet and sloppy. Rice that is two to three days old is extra dry and allows it to soak up the flavours of the dish when you are giving new life to it. A quick and handy tip to make sure your rice is good to cook with again is to rub it between your fingers so that it isn’t clumpy.
The best grain to use is a long grain variant as it will come out less sticky and fluffier than most other grains. Instead of plain rice you can also use scented rice. If you have an abundance of different leftovers waiting to be used, it is recommended that you use basmati over jasmine grains. But in saying so you can use whatever you have lying around and it will still turn out great.
What to do if you haven’t cooked rice in advance
After reading through this delicious recipe it can be very heart breaking to hear that the best dishes are made with two to three day old rice. If you haven’t cooked any in advance there are some little tricks to help get you the best dish still. A handy tip is to start your cooking early and make a batch of rice and freeze it for 25 to 30 minutes. You should be laying it out of a sheet of baking paper to make sure that you don’t end up with huge clumps.
While the texture won’t be the exact same as day old batches, it mimics the dry tendencies and is a good substitute.