The recipe below is just a reference of how my dad always made fried rice at home. There are so many ways to be creative with this dish. You can change up the proportion of meat/veggie/egg/rice. You can also make any unlimited number of substitutions, such as omitting the shrimps or replacing bbq pork with ham. (I’ve also made kimchi and pork belly fried rice which is actually quite different – new recipe to come!)

Fried rice should be dry but not crispy or burnt, and it’s a delicate balance of stirring the rice actively and cooking it at the right heat setting. Too low of heat you’ll steam the rice, too high of heat you’ll burn the rice. Only practice will make perfect!

Fried Rice

Ingredients:

Chinese BBQ Pork – 1/2 pound (ask for pieces without too much fat; keep the sauce that comes with it)
Shrimps – about 8 (I use shrimps with heads on to add more flavor)
Chives – 1 bunch
Eggs – 4 to 5
Scallion – 3
Rice – 1 to 2 cups
Soy Sauce
Sesame Oil
White Pepper
Fish Sauce
Garlic – sliced or minced
Oil – the more traditional way is to use Canola Oil, but you can use Olive Oil to be healthier
Optional: Maggi seasoning, chilli hot sauce

Direction:

1. Cook rice in rice cooker and let sit. It’s actually best to use stale rice because the texture is drier.
2. Cut all ingredients into small pieces. Peel shrimps, cut, and marinate in salt and white pepper. If you like to keep the shrimp heads which adds deep flavor, trim the sharp edges with scissors.
3. Beat eggs with a little bit of salt, white pepper and water (which makes eggs fluffier). Beat vigorously and set aside.
4. Sautee each ingredient (bbq pork, shrimp, chives) with oil separately and set aside. Add a pinch of salt to the chives when cooking.
5. Clean the pan thoroughly. Coat pan generously with oil, add scallion and garlic, then stir in rice. Lower heat to medium and continously stir the rice to make sure it’s not burnt. Break apart clumps of rice into separate grains with your spatula.
6. While the rice is cooking, coat a small pan with oil and cook eggs halfway. Make sure it’s still a bit runny (see picture below).
7. Add everything (bbq pork, shrimp, chives, eggs) to the rice and mix. When the eggs are cooked entirely, taste as you season with fish sauce and soy sauce. I also add the little soy sauce that comes with the bbq pork at this step. Note that soy sauce will cause the rice to burn so make sure you are stirring the mixture actively. Also, make sure the heat is not too low or else the rice will be steaming.
8. When the flavor is right, you’re done! I also like to top it off with a few drops of Maggi seasoning and my favorite Taiwanese chilli hot sauce.