Fried Rice
Friday dinners at our house often involve a quick head count to assess how many kids have gathered. When there's extra kids to feed, fried rice is the best way to deal with the situation because you can clear out the fridge while nourishing the posse.
Serves: 4-6
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 25 minutes
INGREDIENTS
2 chicken breast fillets (about 500g), chopped into 1cm cubes
4 cups leftover cold rice (jasmine, basmati, brown … doesn't matter)
2 eggs, beaten
4cm knob ginger, grated
2 spring onions, finely chopped
2 tbsp rice bran oil
1 tbsp chicken stock powder
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp sesame oil
chilli, to serve (optional)
For the marinade
2 tsp grated ginger
1/3 cup mirin
1 tsp sugar
2 tbsp sesame oil
1 tsp sea salt
For the veggies
1 tbsp rice bran oil
1 cup grated zucchini
1 cup frozen peas
1 cup grated carrot
1/2 tsp sea salt
METHOD
Combine the marinade ingredients in a bowl. Add the chicken and turn to coat well, then leave to marinate while you get on with the other ingredients.
For the veggies, heat the oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the vegetables and salt and cook for a few minutes until softened. Tip the vegetables onto a plate and put the pan back over medium-high heat.
Add the chicken and cook for 10 minutes until golden and cooked through. Remove from the pan.
Place the rice in a bowl, pour the egg over and gently toss with a fork, breaking up any clumps so that every grain is coated.
Fry the ginger and spring onion in the rice bran oil over high heat for a few minutes until it starts to brown and smells fantastic. Add the eggy rice and stir well.
Add the stock powder and sugar and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or so until the grains begin to turn golden.
Return the vegetables and chicken to the pan and stir until warmed through. Finish with the sesame oil, and chilli if you like.
HINTS
The egg is tossed raw through the cold rice, resulting in glossy and crispy separated grains.
You can switch the chicken for prawns or pork, or even mince.
Keep some of the chopped spring onion green bits for sprinkling at the end if you like.
NUTRITION (per recipe total - serves 4-6 - guide only):
Energy: approx. 2,800 kcal (11,700 kJ)
Protein: approx. 160g
Fat: approx. 90g
Carbohydrate: approx. 290g
Sodium: approx. 4,700mg
This nutrition information is a guide only and may vary depending on brands, exact quantities, and ingredient substitutions used.