Chicken Fried Rice Recipe

This super easy-to-make chicken fried rice recipe is loaded with vegetables, chicken, eggs, and rice tossed in a delicious sauce. If you’re looking for a quick and tasty weeknight meal, this is the recipe for you and your family.

I love Chinese food and eat it almost once a week.  Whether it’s a beef stir-fry or General Tso’s chicken, I’m obsessed with and love the techniques you use to make everything.

Chicken Fried Rice

Chicken fried rice is a tasty Asian meal consisting of cooked rice stir-fried with veggies and eggs and tossed in a simple sauce. It is one of the easiest and fastest-to-make recipes out there. It’s most traditional to use day-old rice, but even if you do not have that, recently cooked rice works just as well. You can also swap the rice for noodles in my stir-fry noodles recipe.

In less than 30 minutes, you can have delicious fried rice packed with vegetables, protein, and, most importantly, flavor. One of the beautiful attributes of this recipe is that it can be tailored to your liking. I commonly make this with whatever leftover vegetables I have, and you should, too.

History of Fried Rice

Fried rice was created during the last 6^th and early 7^th centuries during the Sui Dynasty and featured most of the same ingredients we use now. Depending on where you are located, chicken fried rice can have variations of flavors and ingredients. The main similarity is the short cooking method used to make it. Whether it’s steamed fish or kung pao chicken, Chinese food features some of the oldest cooking techniques on the planet.

Ingredients and Substitutions

• Rice – The most common rice to use is Jasmine. However, any long or medium-grain rice will work.
• Onions – White, yellow, red, or sweet onions may be used. Whole garlic cloves are also used.
• Carrots – While fresh carrots are preferred, frozen or canned will also work.
• Celery – A few celery ribs will add great flavor and texture to the rice.
• Peas – These can be fresh, frozen, or canned.
• Cooking Oil—Any neutral-flavored oil, like avocado, will work. For more Asian flavors, use sesame seed oil. Lard or clarified butter will also work.
• Eggs – Large eggs that are chilled or at room temperature are OK.
• Oyster Sauce – is the main ingredient in flavoring the rice. Vegan options are also available, usually at local grocery stores.
• Soy Sauce — Any good shoyu works for this. You can also use a low-sodium soy.
• Honey – This will add just enough sweetness to balance out the sauce. You can substitute it with regular or brown sugar.
• Wine – Sherry wine is used, but Shaoxing or dry vermouth will work as a substitute.
• Mushrooms — All mushrooms, such as cremini, button, shiitake, oyster, and maitake, are good to use.
• Green Onions – These are added to the rice and served as a garnish.
• Others – Some other good ingredients are corn, tomatoes, sprouts, baby corn, or edamame.

How to Make Chicken Fried Rice

Cook the rice ahead of time, fluff it with a fork, and set aside. It’s even better if you have chilled leftover day-old rice.

Add three tablespoons of oil to a large wok, turn the heat to high, and wait until it smokes lightly. Add the thinly sliced boneless skinless chicken breasts and stir-fry until cooked throughout.

Once the chicken is cooked, deglaze with the sherry, soy, and honey in the pan and stir-fry for 1 minute before setting the chicken aside.

Place the wok back on the burner over high heat, pour in the remaining oil, and cook the vegetables while stir-frying for 2-3 minutes, or just until tender.

Add the whisked eggs to the vegetables in the wok and stir-fry until the eggs are cooked through and resemble scrambled eggs.

Add the cooked chicken and rice back in and stir for 2-3 minutes, breaking up any chunks of rice.

Pour in the oyster sauce, soy sauce, peas, sliced green onions, salt, and pepper, and mix until thoroughly combined until the rice is brown. Serve it with additional sliced green onions.

Make-Ahead and Storage

Make-Ahead: You can make this recipe up to 1 hour ahead. Keep warm in the wok, covered over low heat before serving.

How to Store: Place covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.  You can also freeze covered for up to 3 months. Thaw for one day in the fridge before reheating.

How to Reheat: Place your desired amount of fried rice in a hot wok over high heat with a small amount of oil until smoking, and stir-fry the fried rice for 2 to 3 minutes or until hot. 

chef notes + tips

• Your oil must be smoking first in your wok before cooking.
• Once the oil begins to smoke, add it to your food, or else it can catch fire.
• Feel free to use a large non-stick or carbon steel skillet for this.
• Everything cooks exceptionally quickly, including the chicken.
• When the vegetables are done cooking, they should be al-dente, slightly crunchy.
• You can use canola, peanut, sunflower, or sesame oil for this recipe.
• There are quite a few ways to spice up this recipe with a little heat. Serve it with sriracha sauce. Add some sambal (chili garlic sauce) to the top. Cook in some spicy peppers with the vegetables. Finish with pepper flakes.
• If food sticks to your work, my cast iron restoration tutorial will teach you how to season it properly.

More Quick Weeknight Meals

• Loco Moco
• Chicken Fricassee
• Sloppy Joe
• Broiled Salmon
• Beef Stroganoff

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Chicken Fried Rice Recipe

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5 from 24 votes

This super easy-to-make chicken fried rice recipe is loaded with vegetables, chicken, eggs, and rice tossed in a delicious sauce.

Servings: 8

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes

Ingredients 

US CustomaryMetric

• 5 tablespoons cooking oil
• 2 7-9 ounce thinly sliced boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 2 tablespoons sherry
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 6 tablespoons soy sauce
• 4 peeled medium diced carrots
• 3 medium diced celery stalks
• 1 peeled medium diced yellow onion
• 6 medium diced cremini mushrooms
• 3 finely minced garlic cloves
• 5 whisked large eggs
• 4 cups cooked Jasmine rice
• 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 1 cup peas
• ¼ cup sliced green onions
• sea salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

• In a large wok over high heat add 3 tablespoons of cooking oil. Once it begins to smoke, add in the sliced chicken and immediately spread it out to cover as much surface area as possible to brown.
• Cook, the chicken for 3-4 minutes or until cooked throughout.
• Add in the sherry, honey, and 2 tablespoons of soy sauce and stir fry for 1 to 2 minutes. Set the chicken aside on a plate.
• Place the wok back on the burner on high heat and add the remaining 2 tablespoons of cooking oil. Once it smokes. add in the carrots, celery, onions, mushrooms, and garlic and stir-fry for 2 to 3 minutes.
• Pour in the eggs and tilt the wok to spread the whisked eggs around and cook like you would when making an omelette or scrambled eggs by moving them around with a spoon or spatula.
• Add the chicken and rice back into the wok and break up any large chunks of rice, and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes.
• Pour in the oyster sauce, remaining 4 tablespoons of soy sauce, peas, green onions, and salt and pepper and mix until combined. The rice should be brown.
• Serve.

Notes

Make-Ahead: You can make this recipe up to 1 hour ahead. Keep warm in the wok, covered over low heat before serving.

How to Store: Place covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.  You can also freeze covered for up to 3 months. Thaw for one day in the fridge before reheating.

How to Reheat: Place your desired amount of fried rice in a hot wok over high heat with a small amount of oil until smoking, and stir-fry the fried rice for 2 to 3 minutes or until hot.

Your oil must be smoking first in your wok before cooking.

Once the oil begins to smoke, add it to your food, or else it can catch fire.

Feel free to use a large non-stick or carbon steel skillet for this.

Everything cooks exceptionally quickly, including the chicken.

When the vegetables are done cooking, they should be al-dente, slightly crunchy.

There are many ways to spice up this recipe with a little heat. Serve it with sriracha sauce. Add some sambal (chili garlic sauce) to the top. Cook in some spicy peppers with the vegetables. Finish with pepper flakes.

If food sticks to your work, my cast iron restoration tutorial will teach you how to season it properly.

Nutrition

Calories: 324kcalCarbohydrates: 36gProtein: 16gFat: 13gSaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 123mgSodium: 980mgPotassium: 454mgFiber: 3gSugar: 8gVitamin A: 5430IUVitamin C: 11mgCalcium: 54mgIron: 2mg

Course: Main

Cuisine: Chinese

Author: Chef Billy Parisi