Here’s the problem with fried rice — it (usually) requires having leftover rice. And unless you’re one of those people who manages to plan meals out in advance, and remembers to cook extra rice at some point before you’re craving the dish, well, you’re often out of luck. Freshly cooked rice just never really crisps up the way day-old rice does. (There’s scientific reasoning behind this fact, but that’s too much to go into here.)
Short of thinking ahead, your only other option used to be stockpiling restaurant leftovers, which isn’t necessarily reliable. However, the advent of high-quality pre-cooked rice has changed things. Yes, this is an ingredient I’ve used frequently in this column — but I’ve used it for a reason. This newish rice is far more flavorful and better-textured than older Uncle Ben’s, and it comes in a staggering number of varieties.
Even better — it’s perfect for fried rice. From its ever-so-slightly dried-out texture to its already-oil-coated exterior, this grain is exactly what you want to fry.
And one of the quickest ways to flavorful fried rice is to make it with kimchi. This spicy, fermented Korean cabbage is becoming more widely available (even at Kroger — check the organic refrigerated section), and its combination of flavorful cabbage and piquant brine means that you can get both vegetables and sauce out of it. Simply add a bit of soy sauce for umami, crisp the kimchi and the rice in toasted sesame oil, and you’re almost to dinner.
All the dish needs is protein, which I like to bring in using sunny-side-up eggs, fried separately and then transferred on top of the rice, so that the entire dish can be served straight out of the skillet. Add more hot sauce, in the form of Sriracha or gochujang, or even Tabasco, if you’re craving a bit more heat. And even if you’re not, you can revel in the fact that this fried rice took absolutely no planning.
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