Char siu fried rice (Pork fried rice)

Name: Char siu fried rice (Pork fried rice)
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 2 tbsp oyster sauce; 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine; 1 tbsp soy sauce; 1 tsp dark soy sauce; 1 tsp sugar; 1/4 tsp coarse kosher salt; 1/8 tsp ground white pepper; 2 tbsp neutral oil; 3 egg ((beaten)); 3 tbsp neutral oil; 1 medium onion ((chopped)); 2 cups char siu (Chinese bbq pork) ((chopped into ½-inch thick pieces)); 1½ cups frozen mixed vegetables; 5 cups cooked rice; 1 tsp toasted sesame oil

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This char siu fried rice is the king of all fried rice. It's loaded with juicy pieces of Chinese BBQ pork, and it takes less than 20 minutes to make.

Check out my Sous vide Char Siu Pork recipe to learn how I make the juiciest char siu possible. Or, if you like fried rice, try my Spam Fried Rice and Chinese Shrimp Fried Rice next!

Everyone loves a quick fried rice recipe. It's easy, comforting, and the perfect way to use up leftover meats and vegetables. You can put almost anything in fried rice, but it has to be compatible with the other ingredients. Adding char siu pork turns regular fried rice into a rich and filling main course.

Aside from being super quick and easy, making fried rice is also a lot of fun! It's fast and explosive, like most wok cooking. The whole process takes about five minutes, so make sure you have all your ingredients prepped so they can slide into the wok at a moment's notice.

In this blog post, I'll show you how to make the perfect char siu fried rice - crisp, tender vegetables, juicy meat, and crisp but tender grains of rice. My mouth is watering just typing this!

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🧂 Ingredients
🔪 Instructions
💭 Top Tips
👨🏻‍🍳 Variations
🥡 Storage & Leftovers
📖 Recipe FAQs
🍽 Serving Suggestions
📋 Recipe

🧂 Ingredients

For the sauce:

Oyster sauce - has a salty and umami flavor profile. Adds a ton of depth to our sauce.
Shaoxing wine - the secret to authentic Chinese flavors. A mildly salty, amber-colored rice wine. It provides a sweet and complex flavor.
Light soy sauce - adds umami and saltiness.
Dark soy sauce - dark soy sauce is sweeter and less salty than light soy sauce. It has a slightly thicker texture and gives the fried rice a deep "red" color.
Sugar and salt - enhance all the other flavors.

For the fried rice:

Char siu pork - you can buy this from the hot food section of an Asian grocery store or make it yourself.
Scrambled eggs - can you really call it fried rice without scrambled eggs?
Frozen mixed vegetables (not pictured) - I like a vegetable mix that contains green beans, carrots, and corn. It gives the dish a nice color and crunchy texture that contrasts with the tender rice.
Cooked rice - leftover, preferably day-old, long-grain Jasmine rice. Leftover rice is drier, which makes the fried rice less mushy and soggy.
Onion (or shallot) - I love the flavor of sweated onions in fried rice, which pairs exceptionally well with Chinese BBQ pork.
Toasted sesame oil - just a little bit to give a nutty fragrance to the rice. We add it at the end of cooking to not destroy its volatile aromatics.

🔪 Instructions

Step 1. Prepare sauce

In a small bowl, combine oyster sauce, Shaoxing wine, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, salt, sugar, and white pepper. Mix and set aside.

Step 2. Fry eggs

Heat a wok over high heat until lightly smoking. Add 2 tablespoons of oil, and swirl it around the wok. Add eggs and scramble with your spatula for 1 minute or until it's medium firm. Transfer eggs to a plate and set aside.

Step 3. Fry onions

Heat the wok over high heat again, add 3 tablespoons of oil, and swirl it around the wok. Add chopped onions and stir fry for 2 minutes until soft and translucent.

Step 4. Add vegetables and char siu

Add vegetables and char siu pork and stir fry for two minutes or until warmed through.

💭 Tip
You can hover the back of your hand over the ingredients to get a sense of how hot they are. If the air around them is cold, then they need to cook longer.

Step 4. Add rice

Add cooked rice and use your spatula to break larger chunks of rice into smaller chunks. Stir fry for 6-7 minutes, continuing to break up chunks of rice as you go.

Step 5. Add sauce

Drizzle sauce over the rice and stir fry for 1 minute until the rice is evenly coated.

Step 6. Add eggs

Turn off the heat, add scrambled eggs, and drizzle with toasted sesame oil. Mix well and transfer to a serving dish. Enjoy!

Try serving char siu fried rice with my easy Yu choy recipe!

💭 Top Tips

Ensure you have all your ingredients prepped and ready to go. The best-fried rice is one that is made fast. Ideally, all ingredients should be ready in separate bowls within arm's reach of the wok.
Use leftover rice for the best texture. Freshly made rice will result in stickier and mushier fried rice. If you don't have old rice, you can make fresh rice and spread it on a baking sheet to air dry for one hour.
Use a fish spatula for stir-frying the rice. The sharp edge of the spatula makes it super easy to scoop up rice that sticks to the wok.

👨🏻‍🍳 Variations

Seasonings - The proportions in my recipe are what I like most, but everyone's taste buds are different! I encourage you to experiment to get the flavors you want. You can start by adding flavors that complement the BBQ pork. For example, Try adding a spoonful of ketchup to the rice. A BBQ pork, omurice fusion!
Water chestnuts - I love adding water chestnuts to stir-fries. They add a delicate crunchy texture. You can add ¼ cup of sliced water chestnuts along with the frozen vegetables.
Bacon - Don't have Chinese BBQ pork? No problem. You can make bacon fried rice instead. After step 2 (frying the eggs), saute 250g of chopped bacon for 3-4 minutes until golden brown. Proceed to step 3 but omit the oil - the leftover bacon grease in the wok will be enough.

🥡 Storage & Leftovers

Storing: Store char siu fried rice in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Reheating: To reheat, heat ½ tablespoon of oil in a wok over high heat. When it's lightly smoking, add leftover rice and stir fry for 2 minutes. Next, add 2 tablespoons of water and stir fry for another 1 minute until heated through.

📖 Recipe FAQs

Can I use fresh rice for fried rice?

You can, but the texture won't be the same. If you're short on time, you can use fresh rice, but the final texture will be stickier and mushier. Fresh rice also tends to stick to the wok because it's higher in moisture. To dry out fresh rice, spread it on a large baking sheet and let it air dry for one hour. This short amount of time can make a huge difference.

What type of rice is best for making fried rice?

Long-grain rice Jasmine rice is best for making fried rice. It has less starch than short-grain rice, so the rice becomes fluffier and less sticky, with each grain coated in the delicious sauce.

How do I prevent my fried rice from sticking to the pan?

Ensure your wok is hot enough and you use enough oil. Also, fresh rice is more likely to stick than day-old rice because of its higher moisture content. To work around sticking, you can use a fish spatula which helps scrape up stuck-on bits.

🍽 Serving Suggestions

Did you enjoy this recipe? Please leave a 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 rating in the recipe card below and consider leaving a comment. I'd love to hear your feedback!

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