Crispy Crunchy Fried Rice

May 17, 2022

This fried rice takes some patience, but the reward is great. Half of the rice is toasted until golden and crunchy, mixing with the stir-fried rice to create a wonderful texture. Garlic chips stud the dish and add another layer of crispy goodness. While we’ve kept the vegetables classic and used carrots and peas, feel free to add your favorite vegetables! (Just be mindful of how much water the vegetable releases — mushrooms may need to be cooked separately, then added, for example). This is not your mom’s fried rice, but wow is it good.

 

Serves 2-3

 

Ingredients

1 cup short grain white rice

6 cloves garlic

2 stalks green onion

2 Local Roots eggs

2 tsps. sesame oil

1 tsp. + ½ Tbsp. neutral oil

4-5 medium Local Roots carrots

¾ cup green peas, frozen or fresh

1 ½ tsp. salt

1 ½ Tbsp. Local Roots soy sauce

½ tsp. white pepper

 

Directions

1. Cook the rice according to package instructions. Refrigerate the rice for at least one hour while you prepare the other ingredients, preferably overnight.

TIP: Cold rice is best for fried rice because it helps the grains stay separated. Using fresh rice will often result in a mushy, softer fried rice.

2. Slice the garlic into thin chips. Shred the carrots and set aside. Remove the root from the green onion and slice thinly.

3. On low heat, fry the garlic chips in 1 tsp. of oil until golden brown and crispy, flipping once. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and set aside.

TIP: If you’d like, you can fry the garlic chips in a larger amount of oil, drain the oil into a clean container, then set the garlic chips aside. This will leave you with a garlic oil that is delicious for drizzling on pizza, toast, greens, etc.

4. Beat the eggs until homogenous and season with ¼ tsp. salt. In the same pan you made the garlic chips in, add 2 tsps. of sesame oil and half of the chopped green onion. Sauté on medium-low for one minute, then add in the beaten egg and scramble. Set aside.

5. Halve the chilled rice. Heat the pan to high and add ½ Tbsp. of oil. Fry the rice until crisp and toasted brown. Season with a pinch of salt. Set aside.

TIP: Once the rice becomes individual, toasted grains, keep it moving for even browning and to prevent burning. You’re looking for a golden rice krispie texture.

6. Add the remaining cold rice to the pan and toss on high heat until the rice breaks up into individual grains. Drizzle over 1 ½ Tbsp. soy sauce, 1 ½ tsp. salt, and ½ tsp. white pepper, and remaining green onions. Keep it moving until each grain takes on the color of the soy sauce.

7. At this point, add in the shredded carrots and frozen peas. Keeping the heat on high, keep the rice and vegetables moving until the carrots and peas have released their water and the mixture is separated and not clumped. Taste for seasoning and add more salt/soy sauce/white pepper to taste.

8. Reserve ¼ of the toasted rice for garnish, and add the remaining toasted rice and the scrambled eggs to the pan. Toss together until everything is mixed evenly, then serve.

9. Sprinkle each dish with toasted rice and the garlic chips. Enjoy!

 

This recipe was created by Local Roots contributor Irena Huang / @irena__huang

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