Fried Rice

[HowardLi]

I heat a large, non-stick skillet over high heat. No oil, no butter no fat, just a dry, non-stick skillet. Then in goes the rice for a blast of dry heat.

This is dangerous.

[Nayan Gowda]

I heat a large, non-stick skillet over high heat. No oil, no butter no fat, just a dry, non-stick skillet. Then in goes the rice for a blast of dry heat.

This is dangerous.

Why?

[PopsicleToze]

Teflon pans are recommended for low or medium heat. Overheating pans release toxic gases. I'm guessing that when you said you added the rice for a blast of dry heat, the person thought you had heated the pan to a very high heat. If they're extremely overheated the toxic fumes can kill birds and cause flu-like symptoms in some people.

Rhonda

[Toliver]

I was getting frustrated in recent years when I cooked fried rice because it continually came out "soggy" and just didn't have the same texture as fried rice from a restaurant. (Obviously I didn't realize that it was probably due to the fact that I don't have a high-output flame heating the wok on my home stove).

It may not be your heat source that's the problem. If it comes out too soggy it could be due to the rice retaining too much moisture. Have you tried skipping a day and make the fried rice on day 3? Refrigerating the rice an extra day may remove more moisture from the rice. Freezing would zap moisture, too.

[melonpan]

I don’t think I’ve ever fried rice without egg, in other words I’ve always made egg-fried rice. I like to keep mine pretty pure in a Cantonese sense, just a little garlic/scallion/ginger/soy and finished with peas. If I’m lucky there may be some bits of Char-siu too. But there is one thing I do that is unconventional and that I’ve never seen anyone else do. I mix the egg with the cooked rice first, really beat it in with a pair of chopsticks so all the grains are covered and the mixture is really airy. Does anyone else do this? I really like the way it turns out, each grain is separate and there are no lumps of egg anywhere.

yes! i learned to do this from egullet. hiroyuki talked about this here: http://bit.ly/44Tq0N

i took some pictures a few years ago. below are a reposting of the photos which no longer seem to appear on that thread.

i microwaved cold rice. added four beaten raw eggs to the microwaved rice. added it to a hot, oiled skillet. then added scallions and spam.

[melonpan]

i make fried rice my old way (rice is not microwaved, eggs scrambled separately). but i also often make it hiroyuki style too. id say about half half.

[Hiroyuki]

i make fried rice my old way (rice is not microwaved, eggs scrambled separately). but i also often make it hiroyuki style too. id say about half half.

I just had to respond to this post of yours! Did I say it was my style??

I like that style, too, and I like that name, ougon chahan (golden fried rice), too.

Just like you, I'd say about half half, but I always microwave the rice beforehand. Japanese short-grain rice needs to be reheated before frying.

I usually make fried rice for lunch to use up leftover cooked rice.

[helenjp]

Have to agree - maybe it's only true of short-grain rice, but that zap in the microwave makes a big difference.

I make eggfried rice a lot, natto fried rice from time to time, and occasionally with tiny dried whitebait.

[kayb]

Best fried rice I ever made was from Mark Bittman's recipe in How To Cook Everything: Saute onions, garlic and minced ginger, remove; saute carrots, remove; saute peas, remove, saute meat, remove. Add rice, toss to coat with oil, make a clear spot, scramble in eggs, add some mirin, some soy sauce, some sesame oil, fold in veggies and meat. I use whatever's on hand; have used leftover yellow squash and zucchini,leftover cooked chicken or pork. That recipe alone is worth the price of the book, which remains my all-time favorite cookbook.

Edited November 1, 2009 by kayb (log)