Growing up in an Asian household, I was trained to respect food especially rice. I can still remember the countless occasions my grandmother would tell me stories about the life cycle of rice. Whenever I refuse to finish the last morsel on my plate, she will make sure I will understand how much time, hard work, prayer, sacrifice and even tears shed for a cup of rice.
You know what? Her efforts paid off, big time. I rarely throw away rice. What can I say? It just hurts my feelings! So, what then do I do with all the leftovers? Fried Rice!
Okay, I’m getting the secret out of the box now. Since I get a lot of questions from my friends about their fried rice being too mushy and even sticky, I have to share with you what I learned from my grandma. The best way to get that familiar texture of fried rice from Asian restaurants and even take-outs is to use day or even days old cold steamed rice.
By now, you must have seen that my family eats steamed rice everyday. If there is a cup or more left, I put it in an airtight container and store it in the freezer until I have enough to serve six persons. In my experience, it can be frozen for a good month or two.
When it is time to make some fried rice, I just defrost the rice in the refrigerator overnight or in the microwave. Then using your hands, mash the rice to remove the lumps. Don’t remove the water. Now you have prepared the perfect type of rice to make some fried rice.
Below is the recipe for a basic Garlic Fried Rice. You can add whatever cooked vegetables or meat on hand to kick it up a notch. Possibilities are endless so be creative.
Have a great week Frugalista Moms!
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