The BEST Chinese Fried Rice (Easy 15-Minute Recipe)

This restaurant-style Chinese Fried Rice recipe is the best ever! It tastes even better than takeout and is ready to eat in just 15 minutes! Keep reading to learn how to make homemade fried rice with this easy, classic recipe.

Better-than-Takeout Fried Rice

You will want to add this easy fried rice recipe to your regular dinner rotation, because it is super flavorful and is ready to eat in mere minutes. It is a fast meal because it not only cooks quickly, but it also requires a very minimal amount of prep. You probably already have most of the ingredients on-hand in your kitchen too.

I bet you could make this dish in less time than it would take to get takeout. Plus, with such fantastic flavor and the fact that you know exactly what’s going into it, who needs takeout anyway? Now you can toss those takeout menus and make perfect fried rice in the comfort of your own kitchen.

Tips for Making Fried Rice

Here are a few important things I have learned over the years about how to make the best fried rice:

• Use cold, cooked rice: The key to making perfect Chinese fried rice is using leftover, refrigerated rice. This is because chilled (preferably day-old) rice will separate nicely and won’t clump together in the pan. A freshly-cooked batch of warm rice will not fry well when it hits the hot pan, and will result in mushy clumps.
• Use long-grain, white rice: It cooks up fluffy and not sticky, with individual grains remaining distinct and firm. I find that Jasmine or Basmati rice gives the best consistency, fragrance, and flavor.
• Use butter: Japanese steakhouses use a big pat of butter when they’re making fried rice for good reason. Using butter (rather than oil) makes the rice brown up perfectly and just makes everything taste so much better.
• Use a wok or large skillet: You want to use a pan that seems large for the amount of rice and other ingredients you are using. This allows the ingredients in the pan to heat up quickly and evenly. It also gives you plenty of room to toss everything together without anything falling out of the pan.

Chinese Fried Rice Ingredients

Okay, let’s talk ingredients. To make this homemade fried rice recipe, you will need:

• Cooked, chilled rice: Make sure your rice has been cooked in advance and thoroughly chilled in the fridge in a sealed container. As I said before, freshly-cooked rice will not work well in this recipe.
• Onions, carrots, peas, and green onions: This is the base mix of vegetables that I always use for fried rice, but feel free to substitute any other stir-fry vegetables you have on hand.
• Garlic and ginger: Always use freshly-minced/grated for the best flavor.
• Eggs: These add a good dose of protein, as well as flavor and texture. If possible, you should use organic, pasture-raised eggs for maximum health benefits.
• Tamari: This is essentially gluten-free soy sauce. I recommend always purchasing high-quality organic tamari and soy sauce. Soybeans are one of the top GMO and pesticide-laden crops, so it’s worth spending the extra money on organic.
• Sriracha: This spicy sauce adds a good amount of heat without overpowering the rest of the flavors in the dish.
• Butter: Again, butter just makes everything better. I recommend using grass-fed butter if you can.

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How to Make Homemade Fried Rice

This recipe is prepared in stages so that everything gets cooked perfectly. To make homemade fried rice recipe, simply:

1. Saute the veggies: Start by cooking the vegetables and aromatics in a bit of butter until tender.
2. Cook the eggs: Push the veggies to one side of the pan. On the cleared side, scramble up the eggs in the last bit of butter. Then, stir to combine everything together.
3. Stir-fry the rice and sauces: Next, add the rice, tamari and Sriracha. Stir-fry the mixture for a couple of minutes to pull all the flavors together.
4. Garnish and serve: Sprinkle with some sliced green onions over top the fried rice, then serve it up nice and warm.

Chinese Fried Rice Variations

There are so different ways to make fried rice, so I encourage you to experiment with other ingredients you have on hand. Here are some ideas:

• Tofu Fried Rice: Drain a package of firm tofu and dice into cubes. Pan-fry and then mix it into your rice.
• Pineapple Fried Rice: Canned or fresh pineapple can be traditional in Chinese or Thai fried rice. Just dice and stir it in to combine.
• Kimchi Fried Rice: Kimchi adds an incredible flavor boost to fried rice. Just chop and mix it in your fried rice.
• Chicken Fried Rice: Cook a couple of chicken breasts in a pan. Then shred or dice and add it to your fried rice. For a shortcut, use leftover or rotisserie chicken.
• Shrimp Fried Rice: Pan-fry a pound of peeled, raw shrimp and then stir it into your fried rice.
• Pork Fried Rice: Cook a boneless pork chop in a pan, then dice and add to your rice.
• Beef Fried Rice: Sauté steak or brown ground beef in a pan, then crumble or dice and add to your fried rice.

More Takeout-Style Recipes to Try

Here are a few of my favorite takeout-inspired recipes on the blog:

• Chinese Chicken Fried Rice
• Korean Ground Beef Bulgogi
• Pineapple Coconut Rice
• Healthy Teriyaki Chicken
• Easy Sesame Noodles

For this Chinese Fried Rice Recipe, I recommend:

Finally, here are some tools that will make prepping the ingredients in this recipe an absolute breeze:

• Ultra Chef Express Food Chopper – This is one of my most-used kitchen tools. I use mine all the time to quickly chop up vegetables. I especially love using it to dice onions, because it saves me from all the tears!
• OXO Stainless Steel Scraper – I purchased a bench scraper after seeing them being used on my favorite cooking shows. It is SUCH a handy tool for scraping up and transferring chopped food from the cutting board into the pan.

If you make this easy Chinese Fried Rice recipe, let me know! Leave a comment with a star rating ★ below, because I love hearing from you! ♡

The BEST Chinese Fried Rice (Easy 15-Minute Recipe)

Alia | Everyday Easy Eats

This restaurant-style Chinese Fried Rice recipe is the best ever! It tastes even better than takeout and is ready to eat in just 15 minutes!

4.5 from 22 votes

Print Recipe

Prep Time 5 mins

Cook Time 10 mins

Total Time 15 mins

Course Main, Side

Cuisine Chinese

Servings 4 servings

Calories 284 calories

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

• 2 tablespoons butter, divided
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 2 medium carrots, diced
• 1/2 cup frozen peas
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon minced ginger
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 3 cups cold cooked rice
• 2 tablespoons tamari (gluten-free soy sauce)
• 2 teaspoons Sriracha
• 2 green onions, thinly sliced

Instructions

 

• Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a wok or large skillet set over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, and peas. Cook for 4 minutes, until the onions and carrots are softened.
• Add the garlic and ginger. Cook for 1 minute further until fragrant.
• Push the vegetables to one side of the pan. Melt the remaining tablespoon of butter on the other side, then add the eggs and scramble until cooked through. Stir to combine with the vegetables.
• Add the cooked rice, tamari, and Sriracha and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Sprinkle with green onions and serve.

Notes

Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to five days or in the freezer for up to three months.

Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

The BEST Chinese Fried Rice (Easy 15-Minute Recipe)

Amount per Serving

Calories

284

% Daily Value*

Fat

 

8

g

12

%

Saturated Fat

 

4

g

25

%

Trans Fat

 

1

g

Polyunsaturated Fat

 

1

g

Monounsaturated Fat

 

2

g

Cholesterol

 

97

mg

32

%

Sodium

 

662

mg

29

%

Potassium

 

302

mg

9

%

Carbohydrates

 

43

g

14

%

Fiber

 

3

g

13

%

Sugar

 

4

g

4

%

Protein

 

9

g

18

%

Vitamin A

 

5591

IU

112

%

Vitamin C

 

14

mg

17

%

Calcium

 

56

mg

6

%

Iron

 

1

mg

6

%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Keyword Best Fried Rice, Chinese Fried Rice, Fried Rice

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