Tips for cooking Chinese style fried rice
I was reading a health blog a few days ago that warned people against Chinese-style fried rice. The writer asserts that there is nothing healthy about it because it is a lot of carbs loaded with grease. In the following paragraph, however, she highly recommends stir fried dishes. I had to read the blog entry twice because the writer was contradicting herself and was not even aware of it. Chinese-style fried rice is a stir-fried dish. And because it often contains a little meat and a variety of vegetables, depending on the proportion of ingredients, it can be a complete meal by itself.
One of the challenges that faced me in the past was how to widen my choice of vegetables for fried rice. I used to think that leafy vegetables are a no-no because with the amount of stirring and tossing, and the time required to heat the cold rice through, they would get soggy before the cooking is done. Another challenge was how to substitute seafood for the usual pork but that was something I was able to solve early on — cook the seafood separately and add them to the wok during the last minute of cooking. That way, the small pieces of seafood (fish, primarily) need not be subjected to too much handling. It was the technique I used in one of the earliest entries posted in this blog — fish fillet fried rice which was published in April 19, 2003. Recently, I have been using a similar technique so that I could include strips of leafy vegetables in my fried rice.
But let’s go back to the seafood angle first. The technique is to fry the fish separately, right? Okay. There are other seafood, however, that cannot be subjected to the same treatment. Shrimps, for instance, or mussel meat. They will shrink terribly before they fry to a crisp. Worse, they will lose their flavor. How should they be handled then? Toss them in a little flour then drop them in very, VERY hot oil. The flour creates a crisp crust without overcooking the seafood. Color retention is better too.
Now, the vegetables. The usual procedure in cooking fried rice is to cook the meat first, followed by the vegetables, and finally, the rice is added. This is the simplest and the best procedure when you’re cooking a small amount of fried rice, say, for two to three people. See, the amount of rice is such that it will only take a very short while to heat through.
But when you’re cooking for six to eight people, the amount of time it takes to heat the rice multiplies. More rice, more time needed to get it hot. If you have shrimp and vegetables at the bottom of the wok, imagine how soggy they will get by the time the rice is heated through. The water in the rice and the slow build-up of steam will ruin them.
The solution? Cook the vegetables separately. Look at the photo. I dredged the shrimps in a little flour then stir fried them in very, very hot oil. I removed them with a slotted spoon and placed them on a plate. Then, I cooked the vegetables — the ones that cooked longest went in first and the pechay baguio strips went in last. Then, I removed them with a slotted spoon and placed them on a plate too.
Next, the rice went into the wok. I seasoned the rice, taking care not to over season it because the shrimps and vegetables had been seasoned too. When the rice was heated through, I returned the shrimps and vegetables to the wok. A few seconds of stirring and tossing and my fried rice was done without ruining the shrimps and vegetables.
If you want to add eggs, cook them separately too. Add the beaten eggs to the hot oil, cook just until set but with the top still soft, transfer to a chopping board and cut. Add them to the fried rice during the last 15 seconds or so of cooking.
And, to minimize the amount of oil, use only enough oil at every stage. Use two to three tablespoonfuls to start with. As you finish with each ingredient, add more oil only if it is necessary. And add only enough to ensure even cooking. You don’t need a cup of oil for every cooking stage.
And that is how to cook fried rice, the smart way. 
Want some fried rice recipes? Okay, here are a few from the archive. Just remember that older techniques may have been used to cook them. Just refer back to this entry for a smarter way of cooking fried rice.
- Chicken and asparagus fried rice
- Pork teriyaki fried rice
- Tinapang bangus (smoked milkfish) fried rice
- Baby prawns and broccoli fried rice with oyster sauce
- Nasi Goreng
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I usually use cabbage strips which I add when the rice is already hot. Haven’t tried yet using a dash of kecap manis for fried rice?
Yes, I have.
In a recipe that will come out in the TasteBook.
kasarap naman ng fried rice mo.
pag ako nag fried rice, minsan dinadamihan ko na laman para andun na talaga lahat.
may hipon, chinese bbq pork(pag wala, bacon na lang), eggs, mixed veggies(carrots, green beans, corn), spring onions. at least subo na lang ng subo!
Joey, ganyan din ang reasoning ng bunso ko — subo na lang nang subo!
wow.. that looks really good! =) i bet it tastes even better! by the way, i’ve been a long time reader of your blogs.. (i think i’ve read every post! hehe.. though this is the first time for me to post a comment) i’m living in the US and reading your posts make me feel a little bit closer to home.. thanks so much for doing what you do.. your recipes have been such a great help =) God bless to you and your family =)
Wow! Doing fried rice the smart way and the healthy way is by far the best way, I suppose,
especially during these hard times. At home I also do this kind of fried rice— medyo matrabaho pero it’s all worth it. Thanks again, Ms. Connie!
Hi Bluestars, hope to read more of your feedbacks especially after trying the recipes.
Crisma, and the combination of “sahog” is just endless. I think I can cook a different fried rice for every day of the year.
Yes, Ma’am!!! And as I remember one old cartoon character say— “think of the possibilities!” I can also imagine that your household (and ours, too!) can look forward to more fried rice surprises.
In our house the egg is mixed raw in the rice when the rice has been mushed in the pan a bit. The egg is mixed in quickly, to get the yellow color all over the rice and to give the rice an all-over yummy-ness. We’ve also mixed cauliflower and broccoli in the fried rice.
These are seriously useful tips on Chinese-style fried rice!
We’d like to feature them on Chef’s Tip. The best part is you don’t even need to register or sign up. Please email me at chefstip(at)gmail(dot)com if interested. Thank you
Crisma, considering how much my kids love fried rice, I can promise you lots more are on the way.
Jenny, I’ve tried that technique but the fried rice spoils faster.
No thanks, Amy.
ganito din ako gumawa ng fried rice….. para subo na lang ng subo…
sabi nga ng husband ko, mas masarap pa fried rice ko kesa chowfan ng chowking.
Yummy. Hindi na nga kailangan pa ng ulam. It’s a complete meal!
Thanks for this recipe, Connie. Will try it when the kids are home for the ‘undas.’
“Kecap manis” is sweet light soy sauce?
FOr me , fried rice will fail if”
- it is not a one day old cooked rice,
- they we’re not properly mashed prior to cooking, and
- lots of cooking oil.
connie,do you have any idea as to what chinese chefs add to their yang chow/fried rice to give it its parang smoky flavor?/yung parang lasa at amoy barbecue??
is it some kind of powdered or liquid seasoning that they add to it??
actually,it’s not just their fried rice that smells that way but almost all their viands!!
saraaaap ng amooooy!!!!!kakagutom!!!! LOLZ
YOU’RE RIGHT…FRIED RICE IS A COMPLETE MEAL NA.MAS MARAMING RECADOS,MAS MASARAAAAPPPP!!!!!
Beth, the pork they use in yang chow is char shui pork — roasted pork marinated in char shui (Chinese barbecue) sauce.
thanks,connie.will try to find at landmark itong char shui sauce.i think lee kum kee has this sauce variant,right?
grabe,masaya na ako,connie!!! LOL
thanks a million uli,connie V.!!!!!!!!!!
Yes, Lee Kum Kee has it.
hello again,connie!!!! went to landmark trinoma yesterday to buy d lee kum kee char shui sauce.you know what, aside from using it for d fried rice,i used d char shui to marinate a couple of chicken breasts and grilled it for dinner.
wow,d chicken turned out really savory and moist with d char shui sauce,sarap talaga.my eldest daughter is’nt fond of pork kaya masaya siya last night kasi chicken galore kami kagabi!!!! LOL
thanks for introducing me to d wonderful world of CHAR SHUI!!!!hmmmmnn….i think i’ll try it naman with prawns n squid….kakagutom…
again,thanks and a TRILLION thanks na,connie!!!!!