Fried Rice Club

I never met a fried rice I didn't like. While there are some I definitely like more than others, it is one of those foods I love to eat, especially on a lazy Saturday afternoon.

Fried rice originated as a way to use up leftovers. A simple and frugal idea: toss last night's rice with small bits of vegetable and meat, throw in a couple of lashings of salty umami-laden soy sauce and lunch is served.

Who would have guessed something so simple and humble could have turned out so horribly wrong. I like to think of myself who has some skill in the kitchen but the first time I made fried rice it was an utter disaster. Instead of the comforting, glorious fried rice dotted with bits of egg, peas and onions I had envisioned, the reality was something else altogether. My fried rice was a heap of steaming, gluey rice. Not even a distant cousin of the real thing, it was a science experiment gone terribly wrong.

Since then, I have learned there are rules to Fried Rice Club. If you follow the rules, you too, can have moist, fluffy, flavourful fried rice.

1. You must use cold rice.
2. You must use cold rice.
3. When your wok is hot and the oil is shimmering, and only when your wok (or fry pan) is hot, do you add rice.
4. Leftover ingredients are a must.
5. Meat and vegetables should be bite-sized pieces.
6. Most ingredients must be cooked before adding them to rice.
7. Keep everything moving.
8. If this is your first time at Fried Rice Club, you must use cold rice.

As I have mentioned many times before, my kitchen goddess, Kylie Kwong, often makes use of malt vinegar in mnay of her recipes, including her fried rice. (I have a cookbook of hers that devotes practically an entire chaper to fried rice!) While I am not sure if this is an authentic flavour, I use it quite abit in my fried rices and stir frys. Malt vinegar imparts a great deal of rich flavour and colour( like soy sauce) without the sodium and doesn't have a sharp acidic vinegary taste.

If you don't like bacon (what?), you can substitute other types of meats such as thinly sliced chicken, pork, beef. Flash fry them first before adding them in. (Or you could use cubed pieces of Chinese sausage, kolbasa, etc. Still need to fry them before adding to the rice to render some of the fat & to crisp up the meat.)

Bacon Fried Rice

4 strips extra thick bacon
2 tbsp + 2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 eggs
4 c cold white rice
2 tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce
1 tbsp malt vinegar
1/4 tsp chili flakes
1 c pineapple tidbits, drained well

salt & pepper to taste
3 green onions, thinly sliced or a small bunch of chives, snipped into 1 inch pieces
optional: 1 tsp toasted sesame oil


1. Slice bacon into small strips and fry until crisp. Drain on paper towels and set aside.
2. Heat a large fry pan or wok. Add vegetable oil and swirl oil around until it shimmers. Crack the eggs over the oil and stir quickly. Breaking up the egg with a wooden spoon or spatula. Remove from pan when soft curds form and set aside.
2. Add vegetable oil and heat again until the oil is hot and shimmers. Add cold rice, breaking up pieces with a wooden spoon or wok spatula (if you have one). Cook for at least 2 minutes, moving the rice around the pan.
3. Add soy sauce, malt vinegar & chili flakes. Stir to coat rice.
4. Add in the drained pineapple and stir well to incorporate.
5. Return bacon and egg to rice mixture and stir again.
6. Taste for seasoning. Add salt, pepper and green onions and sesame oil, if using. If you like your fried rice a bit darker, experiment with a touch more soy sauce or malt vinegar. (Start with small increments such as a teaspoon and taste before adding again.)
7. Serve immediately.

If you are adding adding vegetables or uncooked meat, you will need to cook them slightly first. You can cook them in your fry pan first and set them aside until ready to use.
...Read more

Stir Fry Beef with Coconut Rice

When you feel under the weather, comfort foods soothe the belly and the soul. I have had a cold now for four weeks (!). Due to allergies, I can't take any medication so I have to wait it out. So I took a couple of days off work, watched Season 2 of Bones and tried to get some rest.

When I don't feel great, I reach for the foods I grew up eating: those comforting meals my mother made that made me feel better when I was feverish, tired & curled up in bed. (It's amazing no matter how old you get, you are always your mother's child.)

One of the foods I long for when I am under the weather is the soul-satisfying stir fry beef. A venerated a Chinese restaurant staple, this dish is so simple & deliciously easy to make it at home. It's very flavourful, so comforting and quick, you'll be diving into a steaming bowl within minutes.

This is not exactly my mother's recipe as the marinade for the beef is enhanced by a touch of malt vinegar. This addition came from one of my favourite cookbooks, Simple Chinese Food, by Kylie Kwong. Her cooking is simple, accessible and wildly delicious. In her fabulous cookbook, she has a recipe for stir-fried beef where she adds a dash of malt vinegar. When I tried adding malt vinegar to my regular stir fry beef, I knew I could never go without it again. The malt vinegar adds a zippy, perky flavour that enhances the umami of this dish.

Coconut rice isn't exactly something I grew up with, but for some reason, I had a craving for it. The rice has is lightly fragranced with a faint hint of coconut flavour. It is a nice match for the stir fry.


Stir Fry Beef with Coconut Rice

1lb beef - sliced thinly (sirloin or flank work well)
1/4c + 1 tbsp light soy sauce, separated
2 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp malt vinegar
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 tbsp vegetable oil
2-3 tbsp water
3 green onions - sliced thinly
1 thumb-sized piece of ginger, peeled & finely sliced into matchsticks*
1 large red pepper, cut into bite sized pieces

Coconut Rice
2 c white rice
1 c coconut milk
1 c water
1 tsp salt

optional: 1 tsp sesame seed

1. Marinate beef with soy sauce, sesame oil and cornstarch. Set aside (in your refrigerator) for at least 30 minutes, but ideally 2 hours. Overnight is fine as well.
2. Meanwhile prepare rice by rinsing rice until water is clear. Put rice, coconut milk, water & salt into a rice cooker. Set on. (If you don't have a rice cooker, use a medium sized sauce pan with a well fitted lid. Bring ingredients to a boil without lid on, then cover & reduce to medium-low and simmer for at least 5 minutes. Reduce to low and cook until all the liquid is absorbed about another 5 minutes.)
3. Drain meat from marinade. Reserve marinade liquid.
4. Heat a wok or a large fry pan, add vegetable oil and watch for vegetable oil to shimmer but not smoking. Carefully add meat in batches and allow meat to sizzle and brown - about a minute or two. (Depending on the thickness of your beef.) When you have cooked all of the meat, remove and set aside. Turn down heat to medium-low and add ginger and red pepper to the pan (add a tsp more vegetable oil if the pan is dry.) Stir after about a minute. Toss in green onions. Return the beef to the pan alongside any liquid that may have accumulated. With reserved marinade, add 3 tbsp water, 1 tbsp soy sauce & stir re-incorporate the marinade and add to pan. Turn up the heat slightly.
5. Remove from wok/fry pan when the liquid transforms into a clinging sauce. Serve over coconut rice. Add sesame seeds if using.

*if you find ginger too spicy - try using half of the amount or try ginger powder which is far less "warm"
...Read more