Yangzhou Fried Rice

[John Rosevear]

I could try a pinch of MSG, though that seems like cheating.

I thought that MSG was a no no for gluten intolerant folks.

No, it's fine (well, as fine as it is for anyone). "Glutamate" isn't wheat gluten.

[John Rosevear]

Shrimp, diced char siu (BBQ pork), eggs, green onions, a pinch of MSG

Fluffy, not soggy. Bouncy. Rice slightly yellow. Not dark brown. No garlic. No vegetable except maybe green peas or small diced up carrots.

And that's exactly what I made tonight, with the homemade char siu. Peanut oil, no soy sauce. The flavor of the char siu in the oil was the key I'd been missing. It was excellent (and yes, gluten-free, though that's probably another thread). Thanks to all.

[abooja]

I thought that MSG was a no no for gluten intolerant folks.

No, it's fine (well, as fine as it is for anyone). "Glutamate" isn't wheat gluten.

Just one last comment on this subject...

While I realize that glutamate isn't the same thing as gluten, I was under the impression that it was sometimes derived from wheat gluten. Apparently, this is no longer the case. My apologies for the distraction.

Oh, and thanks for starting this discussion. hzrt8w's description of YangZhou fried rice sounds like precisely the type I enjoy the most. I'm going to have to give it another shot.

[CFT]

Just for kicks I looked up Eileen Yin Fei Lo's receipe for YZ Fried Rice in her book, "The Chinese Kitchen." Here's what she puts in her "authentic" YZ Fried Rice:

shrimp

eggs

char siu

soy sauce

rice wine

salt

sugar

oyster sauce

sesame oil

white pepper

ginger

garlic

scallions

She's thrown everything bar the kitchen sink at it! Half the seasoning ingredients are not required IMO.

[Karri]

What I saw this old, old, old, old taiwanese lady do was she fried everything else together, and once the fried rice was done she moved all the rice to the sides of the wok so that the middle was exposed, she poured in a little oil and added a beaten egg mixture, she flashfried it for about 20 seconds and then she mixed it all up again. Best fried rice of my life. The egg was not coating the rice, but it was incorporated in the fried rice.

[jo-mel]

I'm one that doesn't want any color from soy or oyster sauces, either. To get that salt kick, I make some strong chicken bouillon and add a bit at the end of the cooking.

Is it the simple purity of the dish that makes it such a favorite on banquet menus?

[dmreed]

I have always used cooked cold rice for fried rice because it breaks up into individual grains. I was initially surprised when the Iron Chefs used freshly steamed rice for fried rice. Does anyone else here use cold cooked rice?

[John Rosevear]

I have always used cooked cold rice for fried rice because it breaks up into individual grains. I was initially surprised when the Iron Chefs used freshly steamed rice for fried rice. Does anyone else here use cold cooked rice?

Yes. Not just cold, but (assuming I've been sufficiently organized to plan ahead) a day or two old. I use regular American long-grain, wash in several changes of water, cook in a rice cooker (using a bit less water than the cooker's instructions recommend, no salt or oil), spread it out on a half-sheet pan to dissipate the steam and let it cool, then scoop it into a covered container and refrigerate. This gives the best texture of any method I've tried.

[prasantrin]

Assuming you mean the Japanese Iron Chefs, there was discussion on the Japan board about making fried rice using short-grain rice. With sgr, hot rice is preferable. Long grain rice should be cold.

[dmreed]

yes, the Japanese Iron Chefs.

any idea why short grained rice should be used warm?

[nakji]

I use warm sg rice all the time to fry rice, simply because it's more convenient for me to do it that way. I had no idea it was preferable.

I could guess because it's harder to break up chunks of cold sg rice due to starch, but there's no doubt other reasons.

[prasantrin]

Can't remember, but if you search for the tread, I'm sure Hiroyuki explained it.

[v. gautam]

Many types of short grain rices appear to contain higher proportions of branched starches, amylopectins, to straighter-chained starches, amylose; long grains have the opposite. I believe that cooked rice undergoes a process known as the retrogradation of the hydrated starch [see:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retrogradation_%28starch%29]. The Japanese SG rices do not benefit as much by Retrogradation, a process that re-establishes the crystalline structures of LG that gets mushed out by cooking in water and gelling.

If you cook in oil at higher temperatures, then introduce water, long grain rices undergo gelatinization in ways that preserve the crystal structure better,as we all have noticed in pilafs.