I am not claiming to be the world’s foremost authority on fried rice--that honor rightfully belongs to the Sui Dynasty of China. I am going to say that I spend a lot of time eating it and thinking about it and asking my chef friends about how to make it perfectly at home. I want you to be able to whip up an easy weeknight meal for next to nothing and be thrilled with the results. So here goes, my highly editorialized recipe for damn good fried rice.
Leftover restaurant rice: Put this rice in your refrigerator and do not think about it for a week. Maybe even ten days. You want your rice to be drying out.
Aromatics and alliums: you want soft charred onion and crispy bombs of ginger and garlic. You will need to cook the onion separately from the ginger and garlic.
Spices: white pepper and flaky sea salt (note: I did not say soy sauce).
Vegetables: Use what you want (peas and carrots are standard) but undercook them.
Eggs: If you care anything for eggs, do not whisk them into your rice or you will over cook them. An overcooked egg is a kitchen travesty that should be avoided at all costs.
Wok: unless you have the BTUs do not use a wok, use a plan. Especially use a pan if you don’t know what BTUs are. You want an even surface temperature throughout and the only way to achieve this in your home kitchen is to use a pan. I actually recommend throwing out your wok.
Sauté onion in EVOO and sea salt on medium heat (set aside).
Sauté ginger and garlic in same pan until very crispy but not burned.
Return alliums to pan. Add rice (you may have to break it up and mash it around) and a splash of cold water to wet bottom of pan and cover until you can smell the alliums.
While rice is cooking, make scrambled eggs with loads of butter. Take them off the heat to rest just when they have started to form.
Add frozen peas and carrots to rice mixture. Close lid for three minutes. (If you are opting for fresh vegetables cook them with the onion in step 1).
Flip rice and you should see some char. Congratulations, this is what you would never, ever achieve with a wok. Close lid once again.
Eggs should be perfect now. Take rice off the heat and fold eggs into the rice the way you might tuck in a small child at night.
Add soy sauce and white pepper. Or, if you’re like me, capsaicin powder to taste.