there are a couple of tricks to ultimate fried rice:
1 - use leftover cooked rice rather than freshly cooked rice and store it uncovered in the fridge — the more it dries out, the better the fried rice will be!
2 - use the hottest setting on your stovetop at home
3 - when in doubt, add oil (加油!)
with those tips, you’ll be getting charred, crispy, chewy fried rice in no time!
Serves 2
Ingredients
neutral oil - canola, rice bran or avocado
1/2 pack (4 oz/~115g) cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 cups jasmine or short-grain white rice, preferably cold and dry from the fridge
1 small onion, small diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1-inch ginger, minced or grated
1/2 bell pepper, small diced
1/2 cup frozen corn or peas
1/4 cup kimchi (check the label to make sure it is gf, some contain wheat flour), roughly chopped
leftover meat, cut up in pieces (optional)
1/2 tbsp. sesame oil
1/2 tbsp. fish sauce or gf tamari (if vegan)
salt + pepper to taste
cilantro or green onions, chopped
sesame seeds, to garnish
sriracha or sambal oelek (optional)
Instructions
This all happens very quickly so make sure that you have all your ‘mise en place’ ready to go!
In a wok, heat enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan on high until thin and shimmering.
Toss cremini mushrooms vigorously until charred and flavourful, about 3-5 minutes. If they are looking dry, add a bit more oil. Cooking them on high may not seem intuitive, but mushrooms release quite a bit of water so they’ll do just fine. Just keep them moving and they won’t burn.
If wok is looking dry, add a bit more oil. Keep your heat on high. Add 1/2 of the cooked rice and break up any clumps with a spatula. Continue tossing constantly until rice is slightly coloured and charred, about 3 minutes. Transfer cooked rice into a bowl and repeat with remaining rice, another 3 minutes.
Toss all rice back into the wok and add in onion, garlic and ginger. Sauté for a couple minutes, until aromatic and add bell pepper and frozen corn or peas. Continue tossing for another few minutes. Throw in kimchi and leftover meat. Toss until heated, and finish with sesame oil, fish sauce or gf tamari, S + P, herbs and sesame seeds. Toss a couple more times until well-combined.
Plate and consume immediately!