Fried rice flop

[SweetieTodd]

Hey everyone......so I already am around on brown leaf, and the haberdashery, and the shaving, and he booze, and the nib.....seriously you guys do food too??
So I make fried rice...like Asian style friend rice. It took me forever to be able to find all the gluten free ingredients but I did. Problem is I can never get it dry enough at the end..I always have a TON of moisture and liquid left.....I want it like the restaurants do... What on earth am I doing wrong?

 

[jjking54]

How do you make it? if you post your recipe/steps maybe we can figure it out better?

Mine personally is never that dry either, and that's ok, I kind of like it the way mine ends up.

 

[SweetieTodd]

How do you make it? if you post your recipe/steps maybe we can figure it out better?

Mine personally is never that dry either, and that's ok, I kind of like it the way mine ends up.

I'm the kinda throw it in there by taste kinda chef but I'll try
first I give the pan a quick coat in olive oil the. It's all y veggies go in until tender.
i try to cook off as much moisture here as possible.
next is my meat of choice (usually hamburg and a crab of some sort) once it's done I drain the grease and keep going
then it's the dry spices:
ginger
cumin
curry
cayenne
chili
garlic
onion
salt pepper
all to taste
once that is done I put in the rice and stir it all together them it gets and even coating of:
soy sauce
teriyaki sauce
sriracha sauce
Thai sweet chili sauce
and cook until well mix and to taste...it's pretty amazing..and I've never given the recipe out as the MIC can't make it and it's his favorite dish and I swear it's why he stays with me lol

 

[jjking54]

Question ... the rice. Once it's cooked, are you cooling it off? Not that I think that's why, but clumpy rice would retain moisture. Might be a function of the type of rice being used too?

Not sure what they use in the restaurants, because I can't get it like that either.

Though I don't think they cook their meat in the rice like we do at home either. I'd guess they cook it on a flat top. When you add the meat, are you cooking it in the veggies, or is it already cooked and you're just rewarming it?

 

[Ronnie Aloha]

Cook your rice. Fluff it then throw it in the fridge overnight. That will take out a lot of the moisture. Fried rice is generally made with old rice. Also, long grain rice is drier than short grain. The long grain is used in Chinese fried rice which you're probably used to eating. Japanese fried rice uses the stickier short grain and has more moisture in the final product.

 

[SweetieTodd]

Question ... the rice. Once it's cooked, are you cooling it off? Not that I think that's why, but clumpy rice would retain moisture. Might be a function of the type of rice being used too?

Not sure what they use in the restaurants, because I can't get it like that either.

Though I don't think they cook their meat in the rice like we do at home either. I'd guess they cook it on a flat top. When you add the meat, are you cooking it in the veggies, or is it already cooked and you're just rewarming it?

Cook your rice. Fluff it then throw it in the fridge overnight. That will take out a lot of the moisture. Fried rice is generally made with old rice. Also, long grain rice is drier than short grain. The long grain is used in Chinese fried rice which you're probably used to eating. Japanese fried rice uses the stickier short grain and has more moisture in the final product.

Ahhh you've brought up a vary fair point...I usually cook the rice right before....never thought of that!!

 

[jjking54]

I've never cooked it the night before, but I do try to make it an hour or so before, lay it out on a plate or a tray and slide it into the fridge for awhile. Without doing that my rice is always very clumpy. Though, I also generally use jasmine rice rather than plain long grain.

 

[YetiDave]

I boil rice (til cooked but still firm) and rinse in cold water to stop it cooking further, then leave it to drain until dry. Then use a relatively small quantity of oil and get the wok as hot as you can, turn the rice constantly with a spatula to avoid breaking the grains

 

[SweetieTodd]

I've never cooked it the night before, but I do try to make it an hour or so before, lay it out on a plate or a tray and slide it into the fridge for awhile. Without doing that my rice is always very clumpy. Though, I also generally use jasmine rice rather than plain long grain.

What do you guys use for meats? I've never expanded outside of hamburg or like crab stick?

 

[Chef_Chris]

Cook your rice. Fluff it then throw it in the fridge overnight. That will take out a lot of the moisture. Fried rice is generally made with old rice. Also, long grain rice is drier than short grain. The long grain is used in Chinese fried rice which you're probably used to eating. Japanese fried rice uses the stickier short grain and has more moisture in the final product.

+1 Looks like I'm too late. Then your wok/pan needs to be freakin' hot. While assuming you aren't using much of each, that seems like a lot of sauces. Good luck.

 

[jjking54]

More often than not I use chicken, but have made it with shrimp as well. If I have any leftover bbq pork I cut that up and throw it in. Noms!

 

[SweetieTodd]

+1 Looks like I'm too late. Then your wok/pan needs to be freakin' hot. While assuming you aren't using much of each, that seems like a lot of sauces. Good luck.

Nah just enough for taste pretty much..land to coat the rice

 

[Chef_Chris]

Nah just enough for taste pretty much..land to coat the rice

Might still be the issue. I've made it in a Japanese and Vietnamese restaurant and at home. Both restaurants only used a small amount of soy sauce. When I tried it at home and used sauce, like you are, it stays wet. That and getting your rice dry are crucial.

 

[SweetieTodd]

Might still be the issue. I've made it in a Japanese and Vietnamese restaurant and at home. Both restaurants only used a small amount of soy sauce. When I tried it at home and used sauce, like you are, it stays wet. That and getting your rice dry are crucial.

Hmm...didn't think of that one either....have to try that

 

[redrako]

We make a lot to stir-fry recipes including fried rice. The challenge is always dealing with the moisture in the different ingredients, which can produce a warm, sticky dish that is more steamed than fried.

Asian restaurants get around this by using carbon steel woks on burners that throw much more heat than home stoves. The small bits of moisture in the ingredients cooks off immediately and the ingredients fry instead of stem.

At home many fry pans can cool 50 degrees or more with the addition of cold ingredients and become too cold to keep the oil hot enough to fry. This is why most home recipes discuss cooking the ingredients in small batches, usually first the meat (we use diced pork loin or shrimp), then a diced onion, then vegetables.

What we've arrived at is to use raw (unenameled) cast iron pans, get them blazing hot and use peanut oil which has a higher smoking point than olive oil. The density of the cast iron pans holds heat like no one's business, so the addition of the food, doesn't cool the pan nearly as much. We still cook the ingredients in batches, only bringing them together at the last few minutes.

A few years ago, my wife bought me a 14" Lodge skillet that is a massive repository of heat. Hope this helps.

 

[Mick]

WOW... Fried rice was one of my staples when I was in college. Make a ton of it and reheat it all week long.

I do it like I would a normal stir fry

Cook the veg ingredients first starting with the ones that take the longest to cook (carrots, broccoli, etc) then ending with those that need the least cooking (snow peas, bean sprouts, etc)

Remove the cooked veggies to a platter

Reheat wok,add more oil and fry meat. For me anything is good but at least pork, chicken, and shrimp for a good fried rice.

I add the sauce to the meat in the wok. For fried rice I only use soy and oyster sauce and not much of it.

Return the veggies into the wok and get them warm.

Add the rice which should be cooled and at room temp. Using just cooked rice will make it gummy. Left over rice works the best but if you need to cook the rice that day, do it a few hours before you do your fried rice and let it cool

Scrape a hole in the middle of the pan and drop in the beaten eggs and cook until they start to firm on the bottom, then mix in with the veggies and meat to coat everything with the egg.

Not much to making fried rice but it sounds like you are making the typical "american" mistake with oriental cooking by wanting to add TOO MUCH to your dish. Simpler is usually better with oriental food.


Another variation on fried rice which I really like is lo-mien (oriental spaghetti). Same cooking method except there is no egg added at the end.

 

[SweetieTodd]

We make a lot to stir-fry recipes including fried rice. The challenge is always dealing with the moisture in the different ingredients, which can produce a warm, sticky dish that is more steamed than fried.

Asian restaurants get around this by using carbon steel woks on burners that throw much more heat than home stoves. The small bits of moisture in the ingredients cooks off immediately and the ingredients fry instead of stem.

At home many fry pans can cool 50 degrees or more with the addition of cold ingredients and become too cold to keep the oil hot enough to fry. This is why most home recipes discuss cooking the ingredients in small batches, usually first the meat (we use diced pork loin or shrimp), then a diced onion, then vegetables.

What we've arrived at is to use raw (unenameled) cast iron pans, get them blazing hot and use peanut oil which has a higher smoking point than olive oil. The density of the cast iron pans holds heat like no one's business, so the addition of the food, doesn't cool the pan nearly as much. We still cook the ingredients in batches, only bringing them together at the last few minutes.

A few years ago, my wife bought me a 14" Lodge skillet that is a massive repository of heat. Hope this helps.

WOW... Fried rice was one of my staples when I was in college. Make a ton of it and reheat it all week long.

I do it like I would a normal stir fry

Cook the veg ingredients first starting with the ones that take the longest to cook (carrots, broccoli, etc) then ending with those that need the least cooking (snow peas, bean sprouts, etc)

Remove the cooked veggies to a platter

Reheat wok,add more oil and fry meat. For me anything is good but at least pork, chicken, and shrimp for a good fried rice.

I add the sauce to the meat in the wok. For fried rice I only use soy and oyster sauce and not much of it.

Return the veggies into the wok and get them warm.

Add the rice which should be cooled and at room temp. Using just cooked rice will make it gummy. Left over rice works the best but if you need to cook the rice that day, do it a few hours before you do your fried rice and let it cool

Scrape a hole in the middle of the pan and drop in the beaten eggs and cook until they start to firm on the bottom, then mix in with the veggies and meat to coat everything with the egg.

Not much to making fried rice but it sounds like you are making the typical "american" mistake with oriental cooking by wanting to add TOO MUCH to your dish. Simpler is usually better with oriental food.


Another variation on fried rice which I really like is lo-mien (oriental spaghetti). Same cooking method except there is no egg added at the end.

Wow thank you so much guys I'll have to try this. Like I said the MIC loooooooves my fried rice

 

[john parker]

I am with Turtle's version above. For rice, I use Hinode CalRose medium grain, cooked ahead of time and refrigerated at least over night. Sauce gets put on by the diner after the dish is brought to the table. Just be aware that the majority of take-out "fried rice" is nothing more than steamed rice with soy sauce put on it - not anything like "real" fried rice. Turtle's advice to do the various ingredients separately is excellent; the only way to do it and have it turn out. And with the wok, as hot as you can get it.

 

[Edcculus]

I do the same as turtle. If I'm doing stir fry, I'll make the fried rice separately.

Simple fried rice-
Put some peanut oil in the wok, the. Crack an egg in and whisk it up. Let the egg cook into a kind of patty/omelette. Pull it out and chop It up.
Use day old cooked rice (long grain, not arborio or Japanese)
Peanut oil and a touch of sesame oil. Get it blazing hot in the wok. Then throw in the rice. Let it cook while moving it around with a wok paddle. Add a touch of soy sauce. I like a bit of rice wine vinegar as well. Just a bit. Add back in the egg and maybe some frozen peas if you are inclined.

Keep all of those sauces and stir fry ingredients away from the fried rice.

Also, if you don't have a good seasoned cast iron or carbon steel wok, you are going to end up with a sticky mess all over your pan.

 

[Chadao]

Do your cooking up on the side of the wok, not in the bottom.