Recipe by Nathan Dsouza
Ingredients:
250 gms basmati rice/ noodles
2 carrots
2 bell peppers
30-40 gms mushrooms
1 large onion
1 spring onion (whites and greens separated)
6 cloves garlic (chopped)
1/2" ginger (chopped)
2-3 green chilli (chopped)
1 dry red chili (finely sliced)
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
3/4 tbsp vinegar
1/2 tbsp oyster sauce
salt to taste
1 1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp MSG
1 large egg (optional)
Steps:
Prep for Fried Rice:
1. Wash and soak the rice for at least 1 hour. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and boil the rice till 85% done, it should be slightly hard on the outside.
2. Chop the onion, ginger, garlic and green chilli into fine dice. Chop the whites of the spring onion finely and chop the greens into about 1 cm pieces.
3. Chop all the vegetables into small dices. (see note)
For Noodles:
1. Bring a pot of salted water to the boil and add your noodles, cook until 80% done, it will be slightly chewy and hard.
2. Drain the noodles and run cold water for 1-2 seconds. coat with oil to prevent sticking and set aside.
3. Slice the onions into thin slices and chop the ginger, garlic and green chilli finely. Chop the whites of the spring onion finely and the greens into about 1 inch lengths. Set aside
4. Chop the vegetables into juliennes or 1 inch pieces (see note)
Cooking:
1. Heat a wok, then add oil. Swirl the oil around to coat every surface, this seasons the wok and prevents the rice from sticking.
2. Add a little more oil and let it heat up. Keep the flame high.
3. If using egg, add it to the wok. Once its scrambled, season with a little salt and pepper and set aside. (see note)
4. To the hot oil, add your garlic, ginger, green chilli and red chilli. Saute until fragrant and lightly golden. Add your onion and whites of spring onion and saute until the onion is translucent.
5. Now add your vegetables (see note) and saute on high heat. Add a pinch of salt to help them cook faster.
6. Once they are slightly soft, add your rice/noodles along with your seasoning (except MSG, see note) and toss quickly to evenly distribute the ingredients and to prevent sticking.
7. Check for seasoning and add the MSG and spring onion greens, mix well and turn off the flame.
ENJOY!
Notes:
- You are free to add as much or as little veg as you like.
- If you can, cook the rice ahead of time and let it sit in the fridge overnight, this improves the final texture, by no means should you use warm or hot rice, always bring it to room temperature.
- For Fried Rice, cut the vegetables into small dices since the rice is small as well, it complements the shape of the rice.
Similarly for Noodles, shred the vegetables or cut into long juliennes or 1-1.5 inch lengths to complement the long shape of the noodles. - With your vegetables, stagger the addition by the time they take to cook, for example, mushrooms and carrots take longer to cook than bell peppers, add them accordingly to facilitate the cooking.
- If you do not have a wok, you can use a pot, frying pan or a kadai. I wouldn't recommend frying an egg if it isn't nonstick as it tends to stick, so if using egg, fry it separately in a nonstick pan.
- You can add more or less seasoning as per your taste. Experiment with various sauces to see what works for you!