By “Nick”
It’s the perfect hangover meal, broke student meal, desperation meal.
Everyone knows fried rice.
It’s the quintessential, ubiquitous, iconic Chinese rice dish that’s a staple at food courts and fine dining restaurants alike.
There are versions in Japan (chahan), South Korea (bokkeumbap), and even Ecuador (chaulafan), not to mention chef-y takes by Danny Bowien and Jean-Georges, who’ve made their names off of it.
The dish itself has been around in China for over 1400 years and has hundreds of regional variations from the classic Yangzhou (or Yung Chow) Rice with char siu pork and shrimps, to the high banquet “瑤 柱 蛋 白 炒 飯”, an extremely technical, tough-to-master version with fried egg whites, dried scallops and crisp gai lan.
But, as every Chinese kid knows, the best fried rice is the one you make at home.
Chinese families almost never order it at restaurants.
We know it as a quick and easy meal that turns cold rice, leftover veggies and a bit of meat into a tasty, guaranteed crowd-pleaser.
It’s the perfect hangover meal, broke student meal, desperation meal.
Because sometimes a dead simple fried rice with sliced hot dogs, egg and a handful of scallions is the best thing ever when you’re in need of a bit of comfort — especially during these crazy and uncertain times.
Equipment
- Dutch oven or
- Heavy walled pot like arondeau or
- Saute-pan or
- Skillet
Ingredients
- Day old rice
- Proteins
- Vegetable
- Seasoning
- Acid
Fried rice is more a theoretical dish than it is a recipe that gets measured, executed and then replicated.
Of course there are plenty of fried rice recipes out there and I do urge you to try them. But at the core, fried rice is a dish that is meant to utilize whatever is leftover in your fridge and pantry.
Therein lies a set of base principles for fried rice where if followed, pretty much any ingredient can work. This dish is able to flex in ways most can’t, which makes it perfect for a time of quarantine.
You don’t need to hump it to five different Asian grocery stores to find the right abalone sauce to make this dish right. Whatever you have on hand will do.
The same applies for equipment. If you have a wok, chances are you don’t need instructions on cooking fried rice. For those without a wok, any medium depth vessel like a dutch oven or a rondeau will work. Avoid deep pots as it will be hard to stir.
Which brings me to my last point: heat. I like cooking this dish hot. The hotter the vessel, the less likely things will stick. While our home cooked versions will lack the “wok char” of the restaurants, high heat will allow things to caramelize which adds a nice dimension. However the hotter you run, the quicker you need to work.
Step 1 – Egg
The first rule of fried rice is that it must contain egg, in some shape or form.
You can use egg whites or more commonly, scrambled egg.
Hard boiled, soft-boiled or poached eggs don’t count, although one could make the argument that an egg sunny side up does.
This however should be your first step in the cook.
As a rule of thumb, keep your egg to rice ratio at about 1:3.
Directions
In your pot, add a little bit of oil.
At high heat, add your scrambled egg.
Stir the egg to form big chunks.
You don’t want a runny scramble so don’t worry about “overcooking” it.
Once cooked, get your rice ready.
Step 2 – Rice
The only hard fast rule of fried rice is that you HAVE to use day old rice.
You cannot use fresh rice. It will not work. Aside from it being almost entirely in-effective, you will be the subject of ridicule.
Do you really want to be ridiculed? Quarantine is emotionally taxing enough.
The other thing to consider is the “rice to other-ingredient” ratio. Rice should be approximately 60% of the dish.
Directions
Remove your rice from the fridge and ensure that it is loose. Break up any big clumps. Set aside.
Heat up your pot with some oil. Get it ripping hot.
Once it’s screaming, add your rice. It will start to snap, crackle, pop (please don’t sue me). This is good. Constantly stir. We have to move quick. Like 20 – 30 seconds quick.
In this photo I added my meat as well. That’s because I got impatient. Which is fine. This dish is for impatient people.
Step 3 – Protein
What’s so beautiful about fried rice is that almost any protein will work. Shellfish, chinese sausage, leftover roasted chicken, smoked beef brisket, mortadella, gauncialle, pancetta, kofta, ground lamb, even hot dogs will work.
I’ve yet to find a protein that doesn’t work in fried rice.
As a kid, I used to make fried rice with Vienna sausages. That’s right. Sausages from a fucking can. It works.
Cut whatever protein you have in bite size chunks. Protein should be roughly 30-40% of the dish.
At this point, you’re not really cooking the meat insomuch as you are reheating it. You just want it to dance in your vessel to take the chill off.
Directions
Now that your pot is cooking the rice, add your proteins along with the egg you put aside.
Keep stirring.
For delicate proteins such as fish or seafood, you will need to decide if you want to add them in now or later depending on the rest of your ingredients. The last thing you want to do is overcook the fish or seafood.
Still Step 3 – Vegetables
You don’t have to add veggies to your fried rice. It’s optional. But that would make you somewhat of a troglodyte.
Plus, all that produce you panic bought at the grocery store and now is on the brink of rotting in your fridge, makes a perfect partner for your proteins.
MOST veggies work. I tend to gravitate towards leafy greens (kale, gai lan, bok choy, spinach, collards) and some root vegetables like carrots or parsnips. Other veggies like broccoli, green beans, green peas, brussel sprouts, etc, work well too.
Remember, cut everything bite size and prepare (blanche) it in advance.
Directions
Now your pot should have rice, egg and proteins intermingling. Add your veg. Keep stirring.
If you’ve noticed, we haven’t turned down the heat. We don’t want to.
This is why you have to keep stirring and keep moving fast.
Step 4 – Seasoning
How you season your rice is entirely up to you. The variations are endless. It would be an exercise in wasted energy to list off the varieties of seasoning.
Think of seasoning as your wardrobe: what you put in there probably is going to be influenced by what ingredients you have but also what mood you are in.
I’ve put everything from soy sauce, abalone sauce, fish sauce, Maggi, ball park mustard, kimchi, ketchup, sriracha, curry powder, to straight up black pepper in my fried rice and they all felt holistically acceptable.
As a rule of thumb, season to your liking but know that the more sauces you add, the wetter your rice will be.
Directions
NOTE: Embrace the MSG. Don’t be scared of it. MSG is going to take your dish from a 10 to an 11, 100% of the time.
Your vessel should have rice, egg, protein and veg congregating actively like a bunch of virus-denying-gun-toting libertarians. You’re ingredients should not be social distancing.
Add all your seasoning and keep stirring to ensure everything is well coated. Stir with vigour and rhythm but more importantly try not to stir in a way that will break the eggs.
Step5 – Acid plus Garnish
How you season your rice is entirely up to you. The variations are endless. It would be an exercise in wasted energy to list off the varieties of seasoning.
Think of seasoning as your wardrobe: what you put in there probably is going to be influenced by what ingredients you have but also what mood you are in.
I’ve put everything from soy sauce, abalone sauce, fish sauce, Maggi, ball park mustard, kimchi, ketchup, sriracha, curry powder, to straight up black pepper in my fried rice and they all felt holistically acceptable.
As a rule of thumb, season to your liking but know that the more sauces you add, the wetter your rice will be.
Directions
Turn the heat off and if using an electric stove, place vessel on a cold burner.
Let the rice sit in the vessel. The residual heat will crisp some of the edges of the rice which I like. Total personal preference.
Plate rice in a pasta or soup bowl. Don’t put it on a plate. I mean you can, but my inner-Asian cries at that idea.
Garnish with topping of your choice
