Fried Rice – A Beautiful Mess

This fried rice recipe is one of the very best clean-out-the-refrigerator meals as you can customize it SO many ways. The basics of fried rice are cooked rice that gets pan fried in a large skillet or wok with other ingredients like vegetables, egg and a savory sauce. It’s easy and a meal everyone should know how to make!

I am keeping the sauce for this fried rice super simple (still good!) but if you want to up your game try our stir fry sauce with this technique.

Related: Next up try my pineapple fried rice recipe for another quick and easy meal.

Ingredients

• Rice – I like Jasmine but any medium to long grain white or brown rice works
• Onion – yellow, white or red
• Garlic
• Oil – any cooking oil such as canola, peanut or olive
• Frozen peas and carrots
• Eggs
• Light soy sauce
• Dark soy sauce
• Sesame oil
• Green onions – also called scallions

How to make Fried Rice

Cook the rice a day or two before. You can also use leftover rice from other meals or even take out.

Finely chop the onion and mince the garlic.

In a large skillet, or wok, heat the oil over medium/high heat. Stir fry the onion for 1-2 minutes until softened. Then add the garlic and cook another minute. Then toss in the (frozen) peas and carrots. Cook for another 2 minutes.

Push the vegetables to the side and add the sesame oil to the empty part of the pan. Add the cooked rice and let that pan fry for 30-45 seconds. Then stir around with the vegetables, continuing to cook for a couple minutes.

Crack the eggs into a separate, small bowl. I do this so I can remove any shell pieces that might get in, as opposed to cracking the eggs directly into the pan. Now push the rice mixture to one side of the pan and in the empty area add the eggs. Let them scramble for 10-15 seconds, and then stir them in with the rice mixture.

Now pour on the sauces and continue to stir fry until everything is well coated and hot. Add the chopped green onions and serve warm.

Tips and Substitutions

• Other frozen vegetables or vegetable mixes can work well here, like simply all peas or a pea, carrot and corn mix.
• You can add more (fresh) vegetables to this like broccoli, cabbage or carrots.
• If you can’t find dark soy sauce you can substitute oyster sauce in this recipe.
• You really do want day old, already cooked rice for this. I even leave the rice out on a plate, to dry out a little more, the afternoon before I make this (for dinner). Think of it like french toast, you want dry bread rather than fresh, soft bread because it can get too soggy otherwise.
• This fried rice is vegetarian friendly while still having some protein from the eggs and peas (a high protein vegetable). But if you’d like to add another protein some cooked shrimp or chicken works great here. I will sometimes throw in shredded rotisserie chicken for a super easy protein.

More Chinese and Asian Fusion Recipes

P.S. If you love Chinese and Asian-fusion recipes one cookbook I love is 168 Better Than Takeout Chinese Recipes by Mandy Fu.