Cantonese chicken, egg and pea fried rice

Name: Cantonese chicken, egg and pea fried rice
Prep time: 30 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 2 servings
Cuisine: Chinese
Ingredients: 220 g Jasmine rice (fragrant Thai rice), uncooked (dry weight, cooked the day before to give about 550 g cold rice); 300 g Boneless skinless chicken thighs (pargiyot) (3 boneless chicken thighs, pargiyot, cut into 1.5 cm dice); 110 g Eggs (2 shelled eggs); 140 g Frozen peas (frozen; add straight to the wok); 100 g Carrots (1 small carrot, cut into 4 mm dice); 45 g Spring onions (3 spring onions, white and green parts separated); 8 g Garlic (1–2 cloves, chopped); 10 g Fresh ginger (peeled and chopped); 30 g Soya sauce (2 tbsp: 5 g for the marinade, 25 g for the rice, split into 12 g and 13 g); 10 g Kosher dry white wine (2 tsp kosher wine for the marinade, in place of Chinese cooking wine); 6 g Cornflour (2 level tsp for the marinade); 3 g White sugar (½ tsp, dissolved in the soya sauce for the rice); 3 g Fine salt (½ tsp: 1 g in the eggs and 1 g per batch of rice); 1 g Ground white pepper (2 generous pinches; use ground black pepper if unavailable); 40 g Sunflower oil, for frying or as a neutral oil (5 g for the marinade, 10 g for the eggs, 5 g for the chicken, 5 g for the vegetables, 15 g for the rice, 7.5 g per batch); 5 g Toasted sesame oil (1 tsp, to finish); 330 g Water (for cooking the rice the day before)

meat main dish · Chinese · 3/5 · medium · 70 min, including 35 hands-on

Well-seasoned fried rice with separate grains, tender golden chicken, soft eggs and peas. Cook the rice the day before, or an hour ahead using the alternative method; finish dinner in the wok in two batches.

easy version

Ingredients for two

220 g	Jasmine rice (fragrant Thai rice), uncooked dry weight, cooked the day before to give about 550 g cold rice
300 g	Boneless skinless chicken thighs (pargiyot) 3 boneless chicken thighs, pargiyot, cut into 1.5 cm dice
110 g	Eggs 2 shelled eggs
140 g	Frozen peas frozen; add straight to the wok
100 g	Carrots 1 small carrot, cut into 4 mm dice
45 g	Spring onions 3 spring onions, white and green parts separated
8 g	Garlic 1–2 cloves, chopped
10 g	Fresh ginger peeled and chopped
30 g	Soya sauce 2 tbsp: 5 g for the marinade, 25 g for the rice, split into 12 g and 13 g
10 g	Kosher dry white wine 2 tsp kosher wine for the marinade, in place of Chinese cooking wine
6 g	Cornflour 2 level tsp for the marinade
3 g	White sugar ½ tsp, dissolved in the soya sauce for the rice
3 g	Fine salt ½ tsp: 1 g in the eggs and 1 g per batch of rice
1 g	Ground white pepper 2 generous pinches; use ground black pepper if unavailable
40 g	Sunflower oil, for frying or as a neutral oil 5 g for the marinade, 10 g for the eggs, 5 g for the chicken, 5 g for the vegetables, 15 g for the rice, 7.5 g per batch
5 g	Toasted sesame oil 1 tsp, to finish
290 g	Water a little less water than for the overnight method, giving firmer grains that dry quickly

Method

As soon as you get home, rinse the rice under cold water until it runs almost clear, then drain. Cook with the 290 g water: bring to the boil, cover and cook over a very low heat for 12 minutes, then leave to rest for 10 minutes without lifting the lid.
Immediately spread the rice on a cold tray in a 1 cm layer and put in the freezer for 15–20 minutes, or in the refrigerator uncovered for 40 minutes. The grains should be cold and dry to the touch. While the rice cooks and cools, complete all the preparation from step 2 of the main recipe: marinated chicken, chopped vegetables, beaten salted eggs and sweetened soya sauce.
Separate the cold grains by hand, then cook the eggs and chicken as in step 3: stir the eggs for 45 seconds in 10 g oil; sear the chicken untouched for 2 minutes, then stir-fry for 1–2 minutes, until golden with no pink at the centre.
Stir-fry the vegetables as in step 4, using the peas straight from frozen, then mix the chicken, vegetables and eggs broken into pieces, and divide this mixture in half.
Fry the rice in two complete batches as in step 5: leave untouched for 1 minute, stir-fry for 2 minutes, add salt and sweetened soya sauce, then half the chicken, egg and vegetable mixture and cook for 1 minute over the highest heat. Keep the first batch in a covered mixing bowl.
Finish as in step 6: with the heat off, return the first batch to the wok with the spring onion greens and white pepper, adjust the salt, add the sesame oil and serve immediately.

Variants and their steps remain below the recipe.

Rice cooked the same day must be thoroughly chilled and dry before going into the wok, otherwise it will stick.

Lighter version

Jasmine rice (fragrant Thai rice), uncooked : 160 g
Water : 240 g
Sunflower oil, for frying or as a neutral oil : 30 g
Frozen peas : 200 g
Carrots : 150 g
Boneless skinless chicken thighs (pargiyot) : removed
add Skinless chicken breast escalopes (150 g each) 300 g (2 chicken breasts, cut into 1.5 cm dice, in place of the thighs)

Step 1: cook 160 g rice with 240 g water.

Step 3: use the same marinade and cooking method for the diced chicken breast, but remove as soon as opaque at the centre, after 2 minutes untouched and 1 minute stirring. It finishes cooking with the rice.

Step 2: omit the oil from the marinade, using only soya sauce, wine and cornflour.

Step 4: allow 1 extra minute for the larger quantity of carrot.

Step 5: use 5 g oil per batch of rice instead of 7.5 g.

Less rice and oil, more vegetables, and chicken breast instead of thighs, using the same wok method and seasoning.

On your plate

Recipe

945 kcal · protein 51 g · carbs 102 g · fat 36 g

Quantities per person

110 g Jasmine rice (fragrant Thai rice), uncooked
150 g Boneless skinless chicken thighs (pargiyot)
55 g Eggs
70 g Frozen peas
50 g Carrots
22.5 g Spring onions
4 g Garlic
5 g Fresh ginger
15 g Soya sauce
5 g Kosher dry white wine
3 g Cornflour
1.5 g White sugar
1.5 g Fine salt
0.5 g Ground white pepper
20 g Sunflower oil, for frying or as a neutral oil
2.5 g Toasted sesame oil
165 g Water

Cooking tips

Rice cooked the day before, cooled quickly and refrigerated should be eaten within 24 hours and reheated only once. The 35 minutes covers the evening cooking only, with the rice already cooked. If you have no day-old rice, the alternative method starts cooking it as soon as you get home and chills it in the freezer, taking 1 hour 10 minutes in total. The chicken and vegetables can be cut the day before, alongside the rice, and kept in containers in the refrigerator; this cuts the evening cooking to 25 minutes. If using 2 chicken breasts, 300 g, use the same marinade but remove from the wok as soon as they are opaque at the centre. For a variation, add 100 g sliced mushrooms or Chinese cabbage with the carrot. Basmati rice also works. Reheat leftovers in the wok over a high heat for 3 minutes. Use unsweetened kosher pareve soya sauce.

Equipment : flat-bottomed wok or large 28–30 cm frying pan, saucepan with a lid, tray or wide dish for spreading out the rice, chopping board, bowls for the prepared ingredients, mixing bowl with a lid or plate to cover, spatula

Family-style Cantonese fried rice, adapted with chicken and eggs; rice quantities are given as dry weight.

Cantonese chicken, egg and pea fried rice

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On your plate

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