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Chicken Fried Rice is an economical dinner idea! It’s versatile too – use shrimp, pork, ham, or Spam in place of the chicken! The possibilities are endless with this basic recipe. It’s a great way to re-purpose leftovers!
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This Chicken Fried Rice is one of my family’s absolute favorite recipes! Not only is it easy on the pocketbook, but it rivals the stuff you get at your favorite take-out joint! I think I like it better than takeout. Even better? I almost always have all of the ingredients on hand to make this tasty chicken fried rice.
By the way, even if you aren’t sure you have all the ingredients … use leftovers! They get a new life when you combine rice with chicken, vegetables, eggs, and a few seasonings in this quick and easy recipe. So good, y’all!!
One of the great things about this recipe is you can change up the protein, too. Substitute shrimp, pork, ham, Spam, or even go meatless! You can add whatever veggies you have on hand and if you like, add pineapple and/or ginger, as well.
I could eat this stuff every single day and never get tired of it … maybe I should try that sometime … yum. 😉
Fast! Easy! Tasty! Filling! The four best traits for any good meal, like this fried rice & chicken!
Recipes for Chicken Fried Rice: Ingredients & Substitutions
To make fried rice and chicken, you will need …
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Ingredients
- egg, water, butter – this makes the scrambled egg that serves as one of the base parts of your chicken fried rice.
- chicken – or your meat/protein of choice. Use whatever cut you like, though I prefer chicken breasts personally. Thighs also work well.
- white rice – make sure it’s cooked, but COLD! This is important for your dish.
- vegetable oil – to saute your vegetables, below. You can also use canola oil.
- onion, garlic, peas, carrots – the veggies in this tasty dish. You can leave out the peas and carrots if you’re not a fan, but the onion and garlic are crucial to the flavor!
- soy sauce, black pepper – the final part of your chicken and fried rice, added for taste.
A few tips for making Fried Rice
- Be sure to use cold-cooked rice in this recipe!
- Changes things up by switching the protein – substitute shrimp, pork, ham, Spam, or even go meatless!
- Switch up the veggies – or use pineapple tidbits!
- Leftover meat and veggies give this recipe a super quick start!
- Add ginger for that little bit of extra flavor.
- Serve this recipe with Sriracha sauce or extra soy sauce on the side!
Fried Rice and Chicken: FAQs
I like yellow or green onions in this recipe.
Yes, of course! Sesame oil is a great addition, though personally … I think this recipe is fine without it. We all have different tastes!!
I don’t see why not. It’d make a healthier dish, too! The white rice is, as always, just a preference thing.
With these recipes, I tend to go low-sodium, just so I’m not accidentally making everything too salty to eat. (Plus, it’s healthier!) If you know your soy sauces well, however, go for the regular kind!
About 6-8 servings/bowls. Probably enough for a small family to have seconds!! For a bigger family or get-together, you may need to make two batches or double the recipe.
Just a half-hour! 20 minutes of cooking and 10 minutes of prep.
Other recipes you may enjoy
Chicken Fried Rice
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Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 bag frozen peas and carrots, thawed, (optional), 12-16 oz.
- 4 cups cooked white rice, cold*** (see note)
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 cups cooked chicken meat, or meat of choice
Instructions
- In a small bowl, beat the egg with water.
- Melt butter in a large skillet or wok over medium-low heat. Add egg and scramble until cooked through. Remove from skillet to a small bowl.
- Heat oil in the same pan. Add onion, garlic, and peas and carrots. Saute until the onion is soft. Then add rice, soy sauce, black pepper, and chicken. Stir-fry together for about 3-5 minutes, until mixture is well combined. Add the eggs; stir to combine.
- Serve hot.
Notes
- It is very important to use COLD, cooked white rice for this recipe!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Originally published on April 26, 2012. Updated on June 13, 2022.
Just curious – why is the rice being cold so important?
Great question! If it is not cold, it tends to turn into mush when you use it in a fried rice recipe!
I know people dislike this word but hot rice is too moist.
Try it both ways & you will understand 🙂
If you use sesame oil instead of vegetable oil it will taste more authentic. Love it!
I'm a big fan of fried rice but the Hubs, not so much! I may just have to try this for myself at lunch one day!
Thanks for linking up to Mom's Test Meal Mondays!
We would really enjoy your Chicken Fried Rice it looks delicious! Hope you have a great week end and thank you so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday.
Come Back Soon!
Miz Helen
Thanks so much for linking up to Creative Thursday this week. This looks super yummy. I'll definitely be trying this soon.
I can't wait to see what you link up next week. Have a wonderful weekend.
Michelle