Fried Rice with Bacon and Scallions

Difficulty:
1/5

Ease of Preparation: Easy
Time of Preparation: 35 minutes, plus cooling time
Yield: 4-6 servings

A comfort food classic! What’s better than a bowl of hot, aromatic fried rice to cure what ails you? This fried rice is as at home for breakfast as at the dinner table, what with containing scrambled eggs and crispy fried bacon!


 

Ingredients:

Rice:
  • 2 cups (470 ml) long grain white rice
  • 2 ½ cups (590 ml) water
  • Salt
Fried Rice:
  • 8 ounces (227 g) bacon, cut into ½-inch (1.25 cm) pieces
  • 1 medium onion, finely diced
  • 3 large eggs (beaten)
  • Vegetable oil or bacon fat, as needed
  • Rice (about 5 cups/1.2 L, fluffed and cooled)
  • 2 teaspoons (10 ml) soy sauce
  • 2 teaspoons (10 ml) dark soy sauce
  • 2 teaspoons (10 ml) Shaoxing wine
  • Salt
  • ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) MSG
  • 4 scallions, chopped, to garnish
  • Toasted sesame-chili oil, to garnish

 


 

Method:

For the Rice:

Rinse rice well, drain, then combine with water in a saucepan set over medium high heat. Season with salt.

Bring to a gentle boil, then cover tightly, reduce heat to the lowest setting.

Steam, without disturbing, for 15 minutes.

Cut the heat. Leave covered/undisturbed for 10 more minutes.

Before using for fried rice, turn the rice out onto a flat pan and allow to cool completely. Fluff with a fork.

 

For the Fried Rice:

Heat your wok over medium heat, add the bacon and allow it to render down and become somewhat crisp.

Set up a large strainer over a heat-proof bowl, dump the contents of the wok into the bowl, allowing the fat to collect in the bowl. Return the fat to the wok and keep the strainer and bowl set up for the duration of the process.

Reheat the fat over high heat, add the diced onion. Stir-fry for 2-3 minutes, until translucent and starting to brown lightly. Remove the onion to the strainer with the bacon and repeat the process of adding the fat from the bowl back to the wok to re-heat for each successive ingredient.

When the fat is hot, stir-fry the eggs for 1 minute, chopping with a wok spatula, until soft curds form. Remove to the strainer and repeat draining and re-heating the fat. Add more oil or fat, if needed.

Add the cooked rice and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes. Use your spatula to flatten out and break up any clumps.

Pour in the light soy, dark soy, and the Shaoxing wine around the hot edges of the wok – ideally, they will sizzle and reduce slightly as they are added.

Return the contents of the strainer to the rice (bacon, onion, egg) and toss all together over the heat, stirring with the spatula.

Season with salt and MSG.

Serve hot, garnished with scallions and drizzle of toasted sesame-chili oil.