Egg fried rice

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Egg fried rice is almost a stereotype of the Chinese takeaway. Home made fried rice is surprisingly quick and easy to make, and can be a lot fresher and lighter than the resturant alternative.

I usually use Basmati rice, as it is fragrant and flavorsome, but any long grained rice can be used. The rice should ideally be cooked a few hours in advance, so that it is cold when you start to fry it. Warm rice has a lot of excess moisture, which stops it frying properly. Keep the cooked rice refridgerated until it is needed.

Alway remember that cooked rice needs to be treated with the same care as cooked meat. Never leave it sitting around at room temperature, and when reheating always make sure it is heated thoroughly.

Ingredients

200g long grain rice
25ml groundnut oil
2 eggs, beaten
Soya sauce to taste
Sesame oil to taste

Method

  1. Rinse the rice throughly, then cook in plenty of boiling water. Cook until tender, but avoid overcooking, because the rice is going to be reheated.

  2. Sieve the cooked rice, and rinse with boiling water. Place in a dish to cool, then refridgerate.

  3. When you are ready to fry the rice, heat a wok for a couple of minutes. Add the groundnut oil (or any other flavourless oil such as sunflower oil), and spread it around the wok. Add the rice and stir fry for a few minutes until it is heated through.

  4. Push the rice to one side of the wok, leaving some of the wok base clear. Pour half the beaten egg onto the wok, and gently scramble it. When it is cooked, mix with the rice. Repeat with the other half of th egg. The rice should have small chunks of the cooked egg mixed in with it.

  5. Turn off the heat. Add a splash of soya sauce, and a drizzle of sesame oil, to season. Stir and adjust seasoning to taste.

Once cooked, fried rice will keep quite happily in a pre-heated bowl in a low oven (about 100C). Cover it to stop it drying out, it will be fine for 20 minutes or so. This is useful if you are cooking several dishes for a Chinese meal, when not everything can be ready at the same time.

You can add vegetables, such as spring onions, peas, diced peppers. Also cooked meat, such as chicken, or prawns. These can be added in almost any combination. Stir fry the extra ingredients for a couple of minutes immediately before adding the rice to the wok.

This recipe is for 4 servings.