Dinner
Fried Rice with Frozen Vegetables
Fried rice needs cold, dry, day-old rice. Fresh hot rice turns to mush the second it hits the pan, and no amount of technique fixes it. If you did not plan ahead, spread fresh rice on a plate and stick it in the freezer for 20 minutes. That works.
Cost a serving$1.25
Time15 minutes
Serves4
Protein9g
Combination fried rice costs about $13. This costs $1.25 a serving.
You save about $11.75 every time you make it instead.
What you need
Large skillet, the bigger the better, Spatula
No special tools
No Wok?A wok is genuinely better and genuinely does not fit in a small kitchen. Use your largest skillet and cook in two batches instead of crowding one. Crowded rice steams instead of frying.
No Rice cooker?Buy microwave rice pouches when you are short on time. Two pouches equal about 3 cups cooked. They are already dry enough to fry, which is a real advantage.
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
- 2 eggs, beaten, optional
- 1 1/2 cups frozen mixed vegetables (peas and carrots, or a stir fry blend)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 cups cold cooked rice, broken up with your hands
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 1/2 teaspoon white or black pepper
- 3 green onions, sliced
- Chili crisp, for serving
How to make it
- Break up the cold rice with your fingers before you start. Clumps do not separate in the pan.
- Heat 1 tablespoon oil in your largest skillet over medium-high. If using eggs, pour them in, let them set for 20 seconds, then scramble quickly and slide them onto a plate.
- Add another tablespoon of oil and the frozen vegetables straight from the bag. Cook 3 minutes, stirring, until the water has cooked off and they start to sizzle rather than steam. Wet vegetables will ruin the rice, so wait for the sizzle.
- Push the vegetables to one side, add the last tablespoon of oil and the garlic to the empty space, and stir for 20 seconds.
- Add all the rice. Spread it in a flat layer and leave it alone for 60 seconds. Let it get a little crust. Then stir and flatten again. Repeat twice more.
- Pour the soy sauce around the edge of the pan, not on top of the rice. It hits the hot metal and caramelizes on the way in, which is where the takeout flavor comes from.
- Add the sesame oil, pepper, the eggs if using, and the green onions. Toss and take it off the heat. Sesame oil goes bitter if you cook it, so it always goes in last.
Protein
About 9 grams per serving without additions, which is low. This one needs help. A cup of frozen edamame or two eggs takes it to 18 grams and costs almost nothing.
Ways to add more
- 1 cup frozen shelled edamame with the vegetables
- 8 oz firm tofu, pressed and cubed, seared first and added back at the end
- 1 cup plant-based ground, browned first
Keeping it
Four days. Reheat in a skillet with a teaspoon of oil, not the microwave, or it goes gummy.
Change it up
- Kimchi fried rice: add 1 cup chopped kimchi with the garlic and cut the soy sauce to 2 tablespoons
- Pineapple fried rice: add 1 cup drained canned pineapple chunks and a teaspoon of curry powder
- Use cold cooked quinoa or barley instead of rice. Works better than it sounds.