Chinese Fried Rice Recipe

By Author: Jamie Hanson
Total Articles: 3534
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I love my mum's cooking and always look forward to meal time; to my delight, yesterday's lunch was Chinese fried rice. Thanks to her children's picky tastebuds, my mum has mastered the art of cooking the most delicious fried rice in the world. I'm writing this article now to share with you her techniques and secrets in making an absolutely scrumptious plate of fried rice.
Chinese fried rice or "chow fun" is a simple and yet awesome one-dish meal that you can make for your family using leftover bits in your refrigerator, much like the Western version of casserole. You may use all kinds of ingredients for your fried rice recipe, namely beef, pork, chicken, scallops, broccoli, squid, broccoli, bok choy, red bell pepper, frozen peas, frozen carrots, long beans, cabbage, red onion, eggs, baby corn, and the list goes on and on. However, the three most indispensable ingredients you must have in order to prepare a good plate of fried rice are rice of course, Chinese sausage and fish sauce.
The Rice
A day old rice is more best to use because the moisture is very low therefore is much easier to stir in the wok and ...
... will produce flaky and light fried rice with each individual grain covered with flavor. Freshly steamed rice is not advisable for the use of this purpose simply because the moisture is still there and will yield the fried rice sticky, soggy and clumpy, which are all negative traits of a well cooked fried rice. Whenever you can, use higher quality rice such as Jasmine rice for best result. When there's no left over rice, you can reproduce your less moistened rice simply by using less water than you usually would to cook the rice. After the rice is done, spread it on a baking sheet to let cool and to enable the moisture-carrying steam to evaporate so that the rice dries faster. If you are short of time, put it in the fridge or near open window to speed up the cooling cum drying rate.
The Fish Sauce
Fish sauce must be used on top of to other seasoning. I know that it's unorthodox however in Southeast Asia, fish sauce is ubiquitous in their daily cooking. Roughly half a teaspoon of this sauce along with your usual seasonings (salt, sugar, pepper, soy sauce etc) will work miracle to your fried rice that no other combination of seasonings can replicate. The best part is you won't be able to detect the fishy smell of it at all in your dish. Try to buy the higher quality fish sauce, one that has light tea color instead of the darker soy sauce like color.
Chinese Sausage
Chinese sausage is a preserved sausage made of pork or chicken with bits of fats in it and can last for quite some time if kept well. Always store some in your pantry as it is versatile and can be used in many Chinese recipes. To use in a Chinese fried rice recipe, cut it diagonally into thin slices and cook it on low fire for a few minutes in a sauté pan. You want the rich fat in it to melt and ooze out, giving you that extra oomph when added (both the sausage and melted fat) to fry your rice. Just by writing this makes my mouth waters.
Additional Aspects to Take Notice Of
Heat
Very strong fire is imperative for frying rice Chinese style. The frying pan must be so hot that the heat penetrates every grain of the rice to its core. This helps combines the flavor and the rice together and further help in the process of evaporation of any extra wetness from the sauces and rice. Your fried rice is done when the rice are practically jumping in the wok. Using high-pressure fire in restaurants, this can be achieved in just 15 seconds!
Storage and Re-heating
Place leftover fried rice in a tight container and keep it in the fridge. You can use this simple method to easily re-heat your fried rice. Dampen the fried rice by wetting your hand and flicking your fingers on it. Make sure you don't use too much water. Then heat it in the microwave set on high heat. In the microwave oven, the excess water evaporates and the steam will re-cook the rice.

Do you enjoy cooking Chinese food? For a large selection of Chinese rice recipes and Chinese fried rice recipes, visit ChineseFood-Recipes.com.