Chicken special fried rice

[OilSheikh]

Why are you guys storing cooked rice in the fridge ?
Just cook a fresh batch when you need to ??

[Saracen]

Why are you guys storing cooked rice in the fridge ?
Just cook a fresh batch when you need to ??

See the first line of my last post ....

Because if you use hot, and still wet, rice to stir-fry it tends to go soggy.

The idea behind stir fry is to use VERY hot oil, so get a pan "screaming" hot. You chop things to be fried fairly small, and add a few bits at a time, not dumping it all in at once, because doing so drops the oil temp too much. And, just as with chips (*), the idea is to fry the outside fast to stop oil being absorbed.

For instance, you may well fry chicken first, on it's own, until it's basically cooked, then remove and set aside. Then you may add other bits, smallish amounrs at a time, starting with those that take longest to cook, along with flavourings, like oyster sause or whatever you're using, then add the cookedchicken back in, probably just for a minute or two, to make sure it's hot. Then serve.

The art of stir fry, to me at least, seems to be a very hot pan, cooking hot, in relatively small quantities, so evrrything us pan to plate to mouth pretty quickly. And for that reason, preparation is king. The cooking process is often so fast you don't have time to be chopping one bit while cooking the rest. Get everything ready first.

Right, now back to fried rice.

At it's most basic, it may just be egg, a bit of soy sauce, and rice. Then there are all sorts of additional elements you can add. So, for the additions, you're usually back to basic stir-fry principles, as above, be it chicken, veg, or whatever.

Of course, with a wok, the hot oil will be at the bottom because usually you're using small amounts of oil, a tablespoon or two, maybe less. Though, you can deep fry, but it's not common. And that, of course, means you can move cooked bits up the side of the wok, reserving the hittest bit, with the oil, for the next bit.

But sooner or later, you need to add the rice.

If you have freshly cooked, and worse, still wet, rice, it tends to go a bit soggy when you reheat. Because that final stage when you add the rice in also gives the opportunity to season, so, adding soy sauce, for instance.

When you add the egg varies, too. Some chefs fry the (beaten) egg, break it up, and add rice. Others add the rice, get it hot, then pour beaten agg over the rice, once it's hot. Either way works if you get it right, but the latter does require the egg to be spread out. Egg cooks very fast, in small quantities. Think Japanese style, with a mouthful of meay, veg, etc, dipped in raw egg and eaten. The heat in the meat or veg is enough to cook the egg that's been dipped in the time it takes to get it to your mouth. Thus, pouring beaten egg onto hot rice will cook, but you want to avoid pouring it all in one place or you end up cooking the rice too much.

So, cooking the egg and breaking it up leaves you with discrete bits of cooked egg, which is nice. Pouring the eggs over hot rice, then stirring it around for a minute or two tends to leave a general eggy taste, with less distinct lumps of egg. Almost nice if done right, though not quite as easy to do right.

Anyway, back to the point. If you try to stir-fry hot, freshly boiled rice, what you actually do is effectively overcook the rice. Ever left rice boiling in water for too long? It goes soggy, then you end up with a naff rice mush.

But, once cooked, you run it under cold water to stop it cooking. Then separate and dry. After that, when you fry it, all you're doing is, first, getting it hot, and second, adding flavour. But, not over-cooking it.



(*) Note, with chips, I'm aware techniques vary. If I have time, I par-boil chipped potatoes, then use the double-fry method. With less time, I fry for about 5 or 6 minutes fairly low (say, 160c), remove and drain, and turn the oil up, to say 200/210c. And then fry again to colour. But for a single fry, I fry chips hot, about 200c.

[peterb]

One note about storing cooked rice - it must be cooled rapidly and then stored for the minimum amount of time. Cooked rice left at room temperatures can cause a very unpleasant form of food poisoning. The toxins that cause the problem are heat resistant.

http://www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/Can-rehe...CategoryID=215

[Saracen]

One note about storing cooked rice - it must be cooled rapidly and then stored for the minimum amount of time. Cooked rice left at room temperatures can cause a very unpleasant form of food poisoning. The toxins that cause the problem are heat resistant.

http://www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/Can-rehe...CategoryID=215

Agreed. It has been mentioned, but it bears emphasaising.

I run cooked rice I'm not serving under cold water to cool it fast, mainly to stop it cooking. Then, spread on kitchen towel on an oven tray, to dry. After about an hour, it goes in the fridge, usually in an airtight container. Use next day, or ditch it.

[wackojacko99]

I always use a tiny bit of fish sauce and sesame oil with mine

Btw - don't cook with the sesame oil! It burns easily!!

[Saracen]

I always use a tiny bit of fish sauce and sesame oil with mine

Btw - don't cook with the sesame oil! It burns easily!!

Agreed. On both points.

[GoNz0]

I love rice dishes but I am terrible at storing rice, we leave it to cool until bed time then it sits for days before we reheat it sometimes.

Straight in the freezer from now on!

[OilSheikh]

See the first line of my last post ....

What I meant was , you don't need to refrigerate cooked rice, if you only cook the amount you need for your meal - so don't cook too much rice.

[Saracen]

What I meant was , you don't need to refrigerate cooked rice, if you only cook the amount you need for your meal - so don't cook too much rice.

I think you're still missing the point.

I cook too much on purpose. Day 1, something like maybe a curry, with boiled rice. Day 2, use the leftover rice to do stir-fry rice.