How to Make Easy Fried Rice Recipe from Leftovers
Let’s put those leftovers to use
Leftover makeover: easy fried rice recipe and tips for making the best fried rice! It’s super easy and thrives on leftovers! I usually make this after the holidays so I don’t end up eating the same thing everyday for week and it’s also a great clean fridge clean-out meal!
Leftover Makeover
Fried rice has honestly saved me from wasting so much. Anytime I have an excessive amount of leftovers like after Thanksgiving, Christmas, or any big holiday, I make fried rice. It is really hard to mess up.
Just chop up ingredients into bite-sized pieces and toss them all together. Some combos I love with holiday leftovers are turkey and green bean fried rice, ham and pineapple fried rice, and rotisserie chicken and mixed veggie fried rice.
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Tips for Making the Best Fried Rice
- Use cold leftover rice. This is probably the most important tip. Leftover cold rice that may be a little dry is the best thing to use for fried rice since you are essentially cooking it again and covering it in sauces, butter, and oil. Using warm or fresh rice will result in a mushy texture.
- Fry with butter. Is it a surprise that butter makes everything better? It’s what they use at hibachi restaurants and I think it just makes a simple fried rice taste luxurious and rich. Once you’ve had fried rice with butter, nothing else compares!
- Add oyster sauce. Everyone knows that soy sauce is a must in fried rice but don’t sleep on oyster sauce! It adds so much flavor but all in one sauce – sweet, soy, salty, umami. Don’t worry, it does not taste like straight up oysters or super fishy.
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Fried Rice Cooking Tips
Make a hole in the center to cook the eggs. Instead of using a separate bowl to whisk the eggs and cooking the eggs separately, I like to make a hole in the center of the pan after the fried rice is all mixed together. I then add the eggs directly into the hole and scramble in the pan. Let it sit for a minute and flip over to cook evenly. Once cooked through, I roughly chop it up with the cooking utensil into smaller pieces, and mix it into the fried rice. It’s not perfect, but saves time and saves me from having to do more dishes! Also do this at the end so the eggs don’t overcook or get over mixed.
Did you make this recipe? I would love to see! Tag me on Instagram @feedmi_
Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 1 chicken breast (or leftover turkey, rotisserie chicken, etc.)
- 3 tbs butter
- ⅓ yellow onion, chopped
- 8 cloves garlic, minced
- 4 cups cold, leftover rice
- 2 tbs soy sauce
- 1 tbs oyster sauce
- 1 cup frozen or leftover veggies (peas, carrots, corn, green beans, etc.)
- 4 eggs
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 4 stalks green onion
Instructions
- Shred or chop chicken into bite sized pieces.
- Melt butter in a large pan on medium heat.
- Add yellow onion and garlic. Cook until soft.
- Add rice, soy sauce, and oyster sauce. Mix all together.
- Taste test and adjust to your preference.
- Add in chicken and veggies. Mix all together.
- Push rice to the sides and make a hole in the middle of the pan. Crack eggs and scramble in the middle of the pan. Flip eggs to cook both sides and chop into bite sized pieces with cooking utensil. Mix all together.
- Add sesame oil and green onions. Mix all together and serve.
