Hi there again foodie followers!
One of my long time besties sent me a text a few weeks ago specifically requesting I blog about my fried rice. How to make authentic Chinese fried rice. She reckons that hers always turns out gluggy and a bit bland.
I have been making fried rice for ages (taught to me by my mum obviously) but it is again one of those recipes that I add “a little bit of this and a little bit of that” (or in Malay you say “agak agak”) and the recipe is different each time I make it.
I really sat down this time to document what I actually did so hopefully you guys will like this version.
I think the really important thing to remember about AUTHENTIC Chinese fried rice is that it is actually usually eaten by Chinese families as a single dish. You don’t eat it like I see many people in Australia eating it in restaurants – in place of steamed rice. When I cook fried rice for my family (and when my mum cooked it for us) – it IS the meal. There are no extras. So it has to have enough IN it to make you full – so don’t scrimp on ingredients.
The KEY SECRET to making fried rice is to cook your rice the day before and store it in a large snap lock plastic bag in the fridge overnight. When you are ready to make your rice, you massage the bag to separate the grains. This is how you get lovely individual grains without any glugginess (did I just make up a word?).
Once you have made this a few times, it becomes so easy. You can chop up and use whatever veggies you want, or just use frozen peas and corn from the freezer if that’s all you’ve got. Having said this, if you ever asked my mum, authentic Chinese fried rice does not contain peas and corn! I like it because it adds colour, and I’m always trying to get my kids to eat more vegetables! Omit the peas and corn out of this recipe and it will be pretty authentic.
INGREDIENTS
2 cups (measured dry and uncooked) of white jasmine rice (steamed and stored in a snap lock bag overnight in the fridge. Massage bag to separate grains before using
10 rashers of bacon (streaky tastes better but is not as healthy) or about 200-300g diced
3-4 XL eggs – fried into omelettes and sliced finely
3 spring onions, finely chopped
1 red capsicum – finely chopped
1 cups of peas and/or corn (frozen and optional)
1 large brown onion, chopped finely
6 cloves of garlic chopped finely
1 cup chopped fresh coriander – stems and leaves separated
6-8 lup cheong (Chinese) sausage – cut on diagonal (you can get these at Woolies or Coles in the fridge section with the pre-packed cured meats/sometimes in the Asian food aisle (about $8/packet), or at an Asian grocer)
1 cup cooked shrimp/prawns (you can use the frozen variety, but of course fresh tastes better)
Splash of sesame oil
2 tab canola/vegetable oil
Splash of fish sauce
Splash of soy sauce
Salt and pepper (white pepper preferably); note you shouldn’t need too much salt as the bacon and lup cheong are salty, but a good dash of white pepper will be needed.
METHOD
- Brown the onion, garlic and coriander stems in oil till softened and fragrant, add bacon and lup cheong
- Add rice, splash of sesame, soy and fish sauce
- Add peas, corn and capsicum
- Toss till rice is slightly browned, add prawns
- Serve topped with coriander leaves, spring onion and shredded egg
- Season to taste with salt and pepper
The two pics in the gallery above are fried rice batches on separate occasions.
So simple, actually pretty healthy (and colourful) when you make it yourself, and so very delicious and satisfying.
I hope your family love it – don’t forget to let me know if you try it AND POST ME A PIC AND A COMMENT!
Until next time, happy cooking (and eating)!!
xx Megs
