Easy Fried Rice Recipe like the Chinese Dish you’d order from takeout! Leftover rice is pan-fried in a wok with peas, onions, eggs, soy sauce, and sugar! Stir in Chicken or Shrimp to transfer a side dish to a 5-star meal! 

Fried Rice Recipe made in a Wok

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Fried Rice is best made with cold, leftover rice which is why we love to double our Perfect Stovetop Rice Recipe when making tacos for a weeknight dinner. Love Chinese Takeout Food? Try our Vegetable Lo Mein or General Tso’s Chicken Recipe for a Chinese treat at home!

Fried Rice Recipe

Chinese fried rice is the rice dish your likely to get as a side when ordering Sesame or General Tso’s Chicken from a local Chinese Restaurant. Its brown hue comes from the soy sauce, which is the only sauce needed to make fried rice at home! So, no fancy Asian condiments like oyster sauce or hoisin sauce!

Further on, Chinese Restaurants won’t be drowning the rice with vegetables and eggs. More veggies or protein aren’t cost-efficient which is a big no-no for Chinese Restaurant owners. Little goes a long way so a handful of veggies is plenty for a Wok of fried rice. Besides you just want the crunch from the onions and garnish from the snow peas. That’s all you really need! Sure you mix in carrots, meat, or seafood but it’s sufficient with just peas and onions.

This fried rice recipe has been adopted from Jet Tila’s Youtube video on How To Make Orange Chicken where he included a quick tutorial on fried rice. It was a very easy recipe for Fried Rice and who can say it better than a Food Network Star! I highly recommend this recipe as it’s easy enough for my 10-year-old to make for Dinner nights. Serve it as a side or main dish and please do yourself a favor and try this recipe! It’s become a family favorite rice dish!

easy fried rice recipe like Chinese takeout

How To Make Fried Rice:

Q&A

What is Fried Rice?

Fried Rice is a Chinese rice dish commonly served as a side with takeout. It’s best prepared with leftovers like cooked rice and veggies. Traditionally fried rice is stir-fried in a large wok although a cast-iron skillet or saute pan is ideal. The main ingredients are cooked rice and eggs, however, mixed vegetables like peas, scallions, or even meat and seafood are commonly seen in fried rice recipes.

ingredients for fried rice recipe

   Ingredients for Fried Rice:

  • Cooked rice- day-old, dried rice hanging out in the fridge is the best for fried rice! To use fresh rice just make sure it’s cooled and dried before going into the pan.
  •  eggs- fresh eggs make fluffy fried rice. Jet Tila recommends you start with oil and eggs first then add the rice. While eggs are still wet pour your rice into the eggs then coat your rice. This creates a non-stick surface due to the protein in the eggs, you’re using that fat versus additional fat from the oil.
  • Onion- add cubed or diced onions first or after the coated rice with eggs.
  • Sugar- balances out the saltiness from the soy sauce.
  • Soy Sauce- is like the chicken bullion powder and seasoning in one. Soy Sauce is full of salty flavor so there is no need for chicken bullion powder.
  • Peas- 1/3 cup of frozen peas (optional.) Can add scallions instead towards the end.
  • White Pepper- if desired.

Serve as a side dish to General Tso’s Chicken or Orange Chicken.

How To Make Homemade Fried Rice?

Chinese fried rice recipe like takeout

To make this Homemade Fried Rice Recipe:

  1. Heat your pan or Wok with oil first. You want to distribute the heat well into your cooking pan since the process goes quickly.
  2. Pour broken up eggs into the pan then dump the rice over your wet eggs. Coat the rice quickly into the eggs to create fluffy fried rice. I like to add the rice first then eggs but either way will work.
  3. Add your onion and peas or vegetables that you will be using next.
  4. Pour in the soy sauce and add the sugar.
  5. Caramelize and stir-fry the rice until deep brown (4-5 minutes.)
  6. Remove pan from heat.
  7. Garnish with scallions or green onions.
  8. Taste and season fried rice if needed. If too salty add more sugar. If too sweet add more soy sauce.
  9. Serve as a side dish or main dish.

What Rice is Best for Fried Rice?

Jasmine or Basmati rice are good picks when it comes to making the perfect fried rice. You want a medium or long-grain white rice. Cook your favorite white rice then cool or let it hang it in the fridge intentionally before making homemade fried rice.

Easy Fried Rice Variations?

Saute your favorite cut of meat before making fried rice (like pork, beef, or chicken.) Add your favorite veggies, fruit (pineapple), or seafood to make the fried rice recipe perfect for you!

  • Chicken Fried Rice
  • Pork Fried rice
  • Beef Fried Rice
  • Shrimp Fried Rice
  • Vegetable Fried Rice
  • Kimchi Fried Rice
  • Pineapple Fried Rice

Want a healthy fried rice recipe? Use Quinoa, cauliflower rice, or brown rice for the white rice!

Can I Use A Saute Pan?

Traditionally a Wok is used in most Chinese restaurants, however, a deep skillet will work too.

What Veggies Are Best?

The most common veggies seen in a fried rice recipe are;

  • carrots
  • peas
  • scallions
  • snow peas

Stir-ins like shrimp and meat are also commonly seen.

Tips for The Best Fried Rice:

  1. Make my Perfect Stovetop Rice Recipe!
  2. Use day-old rice.
  3. Prepare fried rice in a large Wok or deep non-stick skillet.
  4. Use a generous amount of oil for the rice not to stick.

Here is a heavy Duty Cast-Iron Wok with handles, similar to what I used.

Fried Rice Recipe

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Author: Alyona Demyanchuk
Easy Fried Rice Recipe like the Chinese Dish you'd order from takeout! Leftover rice is pan-fried in a wok with peas, onions, eggs, soy sauce, and sugar! Stir in Chicken or Shrimp to transfer a side dish to a 5-star meal! 

Equipment

  • large Wok (or non-stick skillet)

Ingredients

Fried Rice:

  • 4 cups Cooked Jasmine Rice  (day-old or chilled)
  • 1/2 onion (diced)
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tbsp sugar
  • 3 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup soybean oil (for frying)
  • 1/3 cup frozen peas (optional)

Instructions

How To Make Fried Rice:

  • Chinese fried rice recipe like takeout
    Heat oil in a large Wok or skillet over high heat. Fry the onion for 1 minute. Add the rice and eggs then stir together.
  • easy fried rice recipe like Chinese takeout
    Pour in the soy sauce and sprinkle with sugar. Continue to stir-fry until caramelized (4-5 minutes.) Serve as a side or main dish.

Notes

  • Rice: I prepare my perfect stovetop rice recipe for fried rice. The secret to a good fried rice recipe is using leftover rice (preferably a day old.) 
  • Chefs Secret: use a generous amount of oil when stir-frying rice in the wok. 
  • Mix-in: carrots, meat, seafood, scallions, garlic, butter, or snow peas.
 

Nutrition per serving

Serving: 1servingCalories: 578kcalCarbohydrates: 104gProtein: 12gFat: 12gSaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 55mgSodium: 530mgPotassium: 195mgFiber: 2gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 79IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 47mgIron: 1mg

 

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5 from 2 votes

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5 comments

    • Lena

    I used olive oil instead because that’s what I have, and added peas and carrots. It turned out to be very good. Thank you so much for sharing!!

      • Alyona Demyanchuk

      You’re welcome, Lena! You should try our Shrimp fried rice (we love it too!)

    • Rose Hutchinson

    Made this exactly as directed but threw the rest of the bean sprouts in. So good!

    • Tetyana

    So good!!!

      • Alyona Demyanchuk

      Thank you Tanya:)

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