I scanned the kosher Chinese food menu that appeared in my inbox. Sweet and sour flavor combinations with just-cooked stir fried vegetables added to the mix were all very tempting but when I saw the listed price for Asian fried rice, I pressed delete. Chinese fried rice is the ultimate comfort food. A bowl of steaming white rice cooked to just the right consistency, filled with bits of meat and vegetables checks off all the boxes for me. But there’s no need to order out. Authentic fried rice is a paean to leftovers.
Hot Dog Fried Rice
Cold leftover rice is the key to flavorful fried rice. That’s because dried out cold rice gets much crispier in the skillet than freshly cooked rice. However, if you don’t have leftover rice, don’t skip this easy recipe inspired by Jessica Battilana of FOOD52 and tablespoon.com. So the next time you are cleaning out your fridge, hit pause before you toss out that lonely container of rice that has been sitting there for three days. Hot dog fried rice is your new best friend.
Assemble your ingredients. Here’s my go-to recipe for rice: In a 9X13″ pan combine 2 cups of long grain white rice, 4 cups of water, 1 envelope of onion soup mix and 7 or 8 mushrooms, sliced thinly. Add 1 tablespoon of oil. Cover the pan tightly and bake at 350 F. for one hour. This rice is delicious on its own. The leftovers can be used to make fried rice. You can use your own favorite recipe for plain rice.
According to food writer and cookbook author Rhonda Parkinson, “0ne of the secrets of fried rice is that the ingredients are cooked separately, helping them maintain their distinct flavors, and then combined in the final stages of cooking. There’s no question that it’s easier to do this if you remove each ingredient from the pan after cooking and then add it back at the end. But the choice is up to you. If you leave all the ingredients in the pan, make sure each is cooked before adding the next, the vegetables lightly stir-fried, the egg fully set and so on.”
Microwave the frozen vegetables for 2 minutes on high. Set the vegetables aside. Spray a large skillet with cooking spray and allow it to heat up on top of the stove over a medium flame. Whisk the eggs thoroughly and add them to the skillet. Scramble the eggs, making sure to break the eggs into small pieces. Remove the scrambled eggs from the pan and set them aside in a bowl. Wipe out the pan with a piece of paper towel or damp cloth.
Replace the skillet over medium-high heat and add a tablespoon of oil to the pan. Add the onion, ginger and garlic and cook until the onion is translucent. Be careful not to allow the garlic to burn.
Remove the onion mixture from the pan or push it to the side of the skillet. Add another tablespoon of oil to the pan and cook the diced hot dogs until they start to look a little crispy around the edges. You can use any cooked meat here including leftover diced chicken, beef, pastrami or other cold cuts. There is almost always a package of hot dogs in my freezer. That’ll remain our little secret.
Add the microwaved vegetables to the pan. Add the rice, scrambled eggs and soy sauce. Continue to sauté, stirring occasionally for another 3 minutes. Stir in the sesame oil and continue to cook for 1 more minute. Remove from the heat and serve.
Hot Dog Fried Rice
Steaming white rice cooked to just the right consistency, filled with bits of meat, fluffy golden scrambled eggs and mixed vegetables
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons oil, divided
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, microplaned or grated
- 2 cups frozen mixed vegetables
- 4 cups refrigerated cooked rice
- 3 eggs
- 3 hot dogs, diced (cooked chicken, beef or cold cuts can be substituted)
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce (or more to taste)
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
Instructions
Make the rice:
In a 9X13" pan combine 2 cups of long grain white rice, 4 cups of water, 1 envelope of onion soup mix and 7 or 8 mushrooms, sliced thinly. Add 1 tablespoon of oil. Cover the pan tightly and bake at 350 F. for one hour. This rice is delicious on its own. The leftovers can be used to make fried rice. You can also use your own favorite recipe for plain rice. You will need 4 cups of cooked rice.
Fried Rice
Microwave the frozen vegetables for 2 minutes on high. Set the vegetables aside.
While the vegetables cook, spray a large skillet with cooking spray and allow it to heat up on top of the stove over medium heat. Whisk the eggs thoroughly and add them to the skillet. Scramble the eggs, making sure to break the eggs into small pieces. Remove the scrambled eggs from the pan and set them aside in a bowl. Wipe out the pan with a piece of paper towel or damp cloth.
Replace the skillet over medium-high heat and add a tablespoon of oil to the pan. Add the onion, ginger and garlic and cook until the onion is translucent. Be careful not to allow the garlic to burn.
Remove the onion mixture from the pan or push it to the side of the skillet. Add another tablespoon of oil to the pan and cook the diced hot dogs until they start to look a little crispy around the edges. You can use any cooked meat here including leftover diced chicken, beef, pastrami or other cold cuts.
Add the microwaved vegetables to the pan. Add the rice, scrambled eggs and soy sauce. Continue to sauté, stirring occasionally for another 3 minutes. Stir in the sesame oil and continue to cook for 1 more minute. Remove from the heat and serve.
Notes
You can freeze fried rice. Just reheat the frozen rice in a frying pan or microwave with a bit of chicken broth.
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