Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Works For Me Wednesday: Phony Phried Rice



It's Works For Me Wednesday at We Are That Family;  be sure to swing by and check out all the great tips!

I love the flavor of fried rice, but haven't ever achieved comparable taste and texture to that of a Chinese restaurant.  As a young mom, however, it occurred to me that trying beef broth in cooking my rice might provide something reasonably close.  By substituting a can of beef broth for part of the liquid, I achieved a brown color, and a great flavor.  As I experimented over the years, I found that a dash, or two, of soy sauce also complemented the flavor.  Further, frying up small diced pieces of my meat of choice (pork, chicken, whatever was on hand) and cooking a small bag of mixed veggies, then adding to the finished rice, makes a nice side, or in a pinch, main dish.

Broth in the rice makes for great flavor, which works for me!

3 comments:

Bitterroot Mama said...

Good idea! I'm always watching the chefs at Benihana's to see how they make fried rice. For authenticity, I also try to add sesame seeds and some garlic butter to the dish. Great idea with the beef broth though.

Kim said...

For true fried rice, your cooked rice should be about a day old - it will be dryish. Then you add oil to a fry pan, add rice, green onions etc...and soy sauce - as the rice reheats, it will absorb the soy and give you that flavor you are looking for.

Mom2fur said...

I love homemade fried rice! My trick is to scramble up an egg first--in sesame oil if I have it on hand. (Sesame oil is pricey, but you only use a dash so a bottle will last a loooong time.) You can even use butter, which will give your rice a rich flavor. I remove the egg, then I cook everything else. I add the egg back in at the end. This way it does not overcook.
My all-time favorite stir-fried vegetable is broccoli!

 
V