But before I start...since when did Korea become so hood...I've been listening to Charice and 2NE1 while cooking...they are catchy with some swag! Who knew.........that is all....now....rice.
Fried rice is a simple dish that can be made many ways, but since it's basically all I did at Choo Choo Korean Japanese fast-food restaurant, I have a few tricks that I like to do to make it über good!
First thing you need know though is that fried rice can be made like pizza...there's the standard cheese and pepperoni pizza (pea, carrot, and egg for fried rice), but you can mix it up and make a crazy one like....idk....anchovy, tofu, olive and whatever pizza (DO NOT RECOMMEND THAT FOR PIZZA OR FRIED RICE!).
Common things put into fried rice are:
egg
peas
carrots
garlic
char siu pork cubes
Also:
Ground beef
Ground pork
tofu
shrimp
peppers
onion
mushrooms
radish
and other crap....idk...cabbage and zucchini maybe...
I tend to go for a bunch of stuff when I make just rice to help balance out the nutrition somewhat...or at least I like to think that.
Most important thing about fried rice is that you must have rice that is NOT glutinous after being cooked (i.e. not all sticky and bloated looking rice that is falling apart!)! The best way to ensure that your rice sticks together and is single perfect grains is to both wash it before cooking and use some short-grain and some long-grain rice (But you can use one or the other if you'd like).
Fried Rice
1 cup short-grain rice
1 cup long-grain rice
3 cups water
water for washing
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp rice vinegar
First before you can make fried rice you have to prep your rice and let it rest so it doesn't mash when you fry it. I usually use a non-stick rice-cooker when I cook rice because it cooks it really well and has practically no cleanup.
But before you cook the rice, you have to wash it and drain it. I've found that just swirling it a bit, draining it...then simply pouring water and draining off all the cloudy stuff for the rest of the times until the water runs clear.
Now that the water is clean and ready to cook you can add in the rest of the water (3 cups per 2 cups mixed white rice).
Put it into the rice cooker and let it cook on the white rice setting or whatever. I usually let it cook until it has JUST absorbed all the water and then take it off so it doesn't burn/brown on the bottom or sides. Once it's cook I take it out and set a plate to cover it until it cooks and rests to perfection!
If you do the rice on the stove make sure you use a heavy pot that conducts heat well (at least 1/4 inch or more on the bottom). Wash the rice and add the water. Heat it up on med until almost all the water is absorbed. Take the pot off the heat and let it rest covered with the lid on for about 30 minutes.
Once the rice has cooked, leave the lid on so the rice doesn't dry out. Only uncover it when you're ready to use it.
Okay...now you have to prep all the stuff to put into the fried rice. You'll definitely need soy sauce and oil out for the stir-fry. I crushed a clove of garlic and chopped up some ham, tofu, onion, green pepper, portobello mushroom, carrot, and green onion.
I then fried the tofu in oil until it was just the right texture and crispness. I then took it out and added in the garlic with a bit of oil and let it brown a little. Then I added in the rest of the other ingredients that I had chopped. After they had sauteed a bit, I moved them to a bowl for later.
FINALLY! Time to fry the rice. What you want to do is put your non-stick wok down and set that sucker to full-blast with some oil in there (regular or sesame....I used both toasted sesame and regular canola oil). You want the rice to sizzle like a finger someone licks and goes "Ssssssss" on their but with....I apologize for that...that was awful. You also want to coat the rice with the hot oil now.
Then you add in your soy sauce (shoyu) and mix it well so that it covers all the rice. I tend to add it in little by little and taste the rice until it's what I want.
After it's mixed in I like to make a flat circle out of the rice and let it lightly toast on one side, flip it over, then let it toast on the other side. I found (from working at choo choo) that doing this enhances the toasted rice flavor that makes fried rice so good without burning it.
After it's toasted make a hole in the middle for beaten egg to bee cooked in. Pour it in.
Cook the egg and scrap off the bottom of the pan to scramble the egg (BUT MAKE SURE NOT TO LET IT BROWN OR BURN! Eggs do not have a good flavor when browned).
After the eggs have been cooked enough mix it into the rice gently and then add in the rest of the ingredients that had been prepped. Mix in gently.
Make sure it's piping hot and then plate it in a large bowl or other dish.
Just for other tips about cooking fried rice, like many Chinese foods it must be cooked on a high flame or high heat, so it should be done quickly and already prepped.
And now I'm done with another blog post...and I have to study for spanish... ¬_¬;
Bye bye! and good luck!
Camp as a Row of Mauve Tents
Made this last night for dinner--so gooood! And really easy too! I added a bit of onion powder and cumin for a bit more ka-pow! It was lovely. Thanks, Kyle! :)
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