How to Make Fried Rice

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Chinese-ish: Home cooking, not quite authentic, 100% delicious

Published 2022

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There are some key points to take note of here, bearing in mind that I am referring specifically to Chinese-style fried rice. This is something I feel quite strongly about, so forgive the rant.

ALWAYS use left-over rice that has had time to dry out in the fridge or freezer (ensuring you cool and store cooked rice properly to avoid contamination). This way, the grains will be nice and dry and will fluff up again with the heat of the wok. It’s called stir-frying, not stir-steaming. Break up any lumps of rice with a spatula or your fingers before cooking.
BE GENTLE. The next time you eat at a Chinese restaurant, take a close look at your fried rice. Are the grains intact or smashed up? Are they individually fluffed and separated? If so, that’s the sign of an excellent wok chef. If not, and your fried rice is smashed into oblivion, you’re looking at the work of an amateur.
DON’T OVERCROWD YOUR WOK OR PAN. My snarky comment about frying versus steaming applies here, too. You need sufficient space to move the rice and ingredients around, keeping the temperature high enough that the ingredients fry (not stew) and then steam in the hot pan.
CUT YOUR INGREDIENTS INTO SMALL PIECES AND PRE-COOK PROTEINS. You want the whole dish to be ready in less than 5 minutes. As a general rule of thumb, proteins should always be pre-cooked. Choose vegetables that will cook quickly in the pan – the less moisture you add to your fried rice, the tastier it will be.