Egg fried rice is one of the quickest dinner options ever. If you have cooked rice handy, it takes 5 minutes to make. And it tastes amazing just with a side of sambal/chilli oil. It also tastes yum with any Chinese dishes, both vegetarian or non-vegetarian.
The egg fried rice has very few ingredients in addition to the cooked rice. I usually only add eggs, soy sauce and salt. You can turn up the heat by adding chili sauce or sriracha or just black pepper to the rice. It is a very versatile dish. You can also add cut vegetables or other protein like chicken to the rice.
The simple egg fried rice gets its flavor from roasting the rice on high heat. A wok is the preferred utensil but any large skillet will do. And it tastes even better once it has rested for a while which means leftovers are tastier.
As for the rice, I use many kinds of rice to make this fried rice including raw rice, Basmati rice etc though the ideal rice variety for this Chinese dish is Jasmine rice. Just make sure that the rice is cooked and cooled well before putting into the hot wok. You can also use up the left over rice from your Chinese take out.
Egg Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 4 cups Cooked rice
- 2-4 Eggs, (you can increase or decrease according to your preference)
- 3 tbsp Soy sauce
- Salt to taste
- 3 Spring onion, chopped fine
- Optional ingredients: Chili sauce, cut vegetables, other protein like chicken, tofu etc (See Notes)
Instructions
Rice Prep
- Use cooked and cooled rice. If using uncooked rice, cook it and cool it ahead of time. Ideally you should do it hours ahead of time, so that rice cools down well. If you don't have that much time, cook and then spread it around with a fork on a plate or a baking sheet to cool it down quickly.
- Crack open the eggs into a bowl, add a little salt and beat them well using a fork. Keep aside.
- Slice the green onion into small pieces and separate them into green and white sections.
Fried rice prep 1
- Heat a large wok or a skillet.
- Add a tablespoon of oil and swirl it around the wok.
- Pour the egg into the wok and mix it around using a spatula till it is mostly cooked. Don't let the eggs change color.
- Add a little more oil to the wok and make sure the wok is on high heat.
- Add the rice and start mixing it with eggs using a spatula.
- Sprinkle a little salt and the white part of the green onions. (Soy sauce also will add some salt if it is not low-sodium soy sauce.)
- Keep on stirring the rice mixture in the high heat for 3-4 minutes.
- Add the soy sauce to the rice and continue stirring for another minute or two.
- Switch off and garnish with the green of the spring onion.
- Cover and keep aside. Serve after 10-15 minutes.
Fried rice prep 2
- Mix the cooled rice with the soy sauce and keep aside.
- Heat a large wok or a skillet.
- Add a tablespoon of oil and swirl it around the wok.
- Pour the egg into the wok and mix it around using a spatula till it is mostly cooked. Don't let the eggs change color.
- Add the rice+soy sauce and start mixing it with eggs using a spatula.
- Sprinkle salt and the white part of the green onions. (Soy sauce also has will add some salt if it is not low-sodium soy sauce.)
- Keep on stirring the rice mixture in the high heat for 3-4 minutes. The rice starts clumping up a little.
- Switch off and garnish with the green of the spring onion.
- Cover and keep aside. Serve after 10-15 minutes.
Notes
- 1-2 teaspoons of chili sauce can be added along with salt to the rice. Mix well into the rice.
- If you are using vegetables or chicken, add it to the wok after cooking the eggs. Remove the eggs and cook the vegetables/chicken on high heat. Add the egg back along with rice and cook on high heat.