#ewew cooks (my version of) Egg Fried Rice

This simple and humble dish of egg fried rice seems to be getting a lot of fame and attention on the internet lately with many putting out their own videos and recipes on their version of egg fried rice.  So, I thought I'll join in the fun too.

Well, I think most of us would have read by now the hoo-ha surrounding the egg fried rice dish showcased by one BBC food presenter, Hersha Patel, who received a lot of brickbats on how she cooked the dish (watch Uncle Roger Disgusted by this Egg Fried Rice Video).

This incident got further traction when a Malaysian stand-up comedian (Nigel Ng) based in UK, using the moniker Uncle Roger, made a hilarious video and trolled the way she made her fried rice which went viral (and garnered more than 19m views) and, along the way, turned Uncle Roger into a household name with more than 2.9m subscribers currently on his YouTube channel.  Incidentally, he only had about 9k subscribers before that video which then shot up to over 900k after the video (sometimes all one needs is a lucky break).  They have since 'made up', of course, by appearing in an interview and subsequently made another video on the subject (watch Uncle Roger Meet Egg Fried Rice Lady).

And then Uncle Roger went and disturbed one of my favourite celebrity chefs pulak, Jamie Oliver with 11m views, and roasted his way of making egg fried rice (watch Uncle Roger Hate Jamie Oliver Egg Fried Rice Video).  Haiya, you touched one of my favourite celebrity chefs lah.  Next in the firing line was Gordon Ramsay with 14m views (watch Uncle Roger Review Gordon Ramsay Fried Rice) though his was more of an Indonesian nasi goreng...and then there's also one Australian egg fried rice.  Finally, we even have our own Malaysian chef's version, Sherson Lian's egg fried rice.  Well, I'm no chef, just a noob home cook but here's how I cook my version of egg fried rice.

First and foremost, egg fried rice is supposedly a humble dish, so I'll do justice to it by keeping it simple (as it should be) with just three basic ingredients - eggs, spring onions and garlic...and rice, of course.

The most important thing to get right is the rice itself....and you start by cooking it right.  I was horrified (like many others) when I saw the BBC lady drain rice.  Who cooks rice that way?  We never ever drain rice. We, Asians, cook rice in a rice cooker using the absorption method (rice cookers were designed to do exactly that) although sometimes I do cook it over a stove top by steaming if I'm making a small portion (but still using the absorption method, no draining whatsoever).

Next question is...how much water do you use?  No, Uncle Roger, I don't use my finger as a gauge.  If I did, the water would be too much and the rice would be too wet.  How much water to use really depends on the type of rice you use.  For me, I let the water come up to about half an inch above the rice.  But I do remember my mom teaching me how to press my hand against the rice (once it's in the rice cooker) and let the water come up to a certain level of my palm...but I didn't see a need to practise that method either).  As to whether we need to wash the rice, I've seen some good quality rice that doesn't need to be rinsed (like some salad leaves we eat out of a packet).  But many Asians (and Malaysians) may buy cheaper rice, so it needs to be rinsed + it helps to get rid of starch for a better texture. >_<

Once you've got the rice cooked right, some will tell you it works best with leftover rice, preferably left overnight in the fridge to dry out (this was what Sherson Lian recommended too).  But I will tell you (from my own experience) that you don't have to use leftover rice or rice cooked from the day before.  You can cook it on the same day you want to make fried rice as long as the cooked rice is fluffed and had enough time to cool down.  For me, if I want to make fried rice for dinner, I make sure I cook the rice by lunch time.  In other words, use room temperature rice...not cold rice from the fridge.  I did that once and found the rice too dry, hard and clumpy (even after I've loosen it)...and you end up having to splash water on the rice (during the frying process) to moisten the rice.

Great fried rice starts with frying (two) eggs (beaten with a pair of chopsticks or a fork, there's no difference whatsoever...lol) in 2 - 3 tbsp of oil, scrambling it actually.  We do that by stirring the eggs around the pan to get the eggs fluffy.  Some say to add a bit of water into the eggs to get them fluffy but I've never tried or had to do that coz the key to fluffy eggs is to not overcook them...it's as simple as that.  So, don't wait for them to be fully cooked before you dish them up, it just needs to be 50% - 75% cooked since the heat of the rice will cook it fully later.

Add in another 2 - 3 tbsp of oil and stir-fry the chopped garlic (lots of it, at least 3 large garlic cloves).  You could also use a combination of garlic and shallots like Sherson did.  I watched Seonkyoung Longest cooked her version of fried rice and was greatly surprised that she didn't use any aromatics at all.  In Chinese cooking, we were taught that aromatics (such as garlic, shallots, onions, ginger, chillies or even the white parts of the spring onion) are very important, otherwise it just wouldn't taste as good.

Once the garlic is lightly golden and fragrant, you can put in the cooked rice (the portion here is about 2 rice bowls or 2 cups).  If you didn't cook the rice right and start with mushy rice, you're doomed already.  A tip would be to use a little less water than you normally would to cook the rice so that the grains stay firm.  Use your spatula to press down on the rice to get rid of any lumps.

At this point, you can season your rice with salt or light soy...but do be forewarned that the liberal use of light soy will darken your rice and we don't want that in egg fried rice, so make sure you use good quality soy (that's light-coloured)...or use a combination of salt and soy.  Of course, Uncle Roger highly recommends the use of MSG in fried rice or any dish...lol.  Sorry, Uncle Roger, I did not use MSG but I did use 1 tsp of chicken stock granules (does that count?).  You can certainly bump it up to 2 tsp (or more) if you like your fried rice saltier together with 1 tsp of light soy (just for a bit of colour).  This was lightly salty, nicely subtle for me.

If you're happy with how your rice look and taste, pour the almost cooked eggs back into the rice.  Break up the egg into smaller pieces with your spatula.  I like to keep some in big pieces for a good bite.

Once that's done, add in the chopped spring onions.  My rationale for seasoning the rice first before the eggs and spring onions go in is because once these two go in, you'll only need a minute or so to stir that into the rice to ensure the egg is not overcooked.

And yes, Uncle Roger, I used a pan to cook egg fried rice (I can hear your haiya already)...but, at least, I used a wooden spatula...hehe!  That's my new Shogun pan, by the way, after my Chefology pan lost its non-stick capability after 3 years of usage.  Let's see how long this one (which I bought during a Shopee promotion) lasts.  The gwai lo try to look authentic by using woks when they cook Asian dishes while I, an Asian, prefer to use a pan to cook (role reversal..haha!).  Anyway, I find cooking in a pan way more ideal (and easier) for 3 reasons...1) when cooking smaller portions of food for a small family, 2) it's so much easier to pour cooked food onto a plate/bowl and 3) no need to wash a big-ass wok! ;D

Hey, I've not used a wok in ages since I switched to induction cooking...yes, you heard right, Uncle Roger, I use an induction stove and we can't very well use a rounded bottom wok when we're using a flat top induction cooker, can we?  And Uncle Roger, a flat-bottom wok is not a real wok lah (at least not to me)! ;P

Wok hei can only be achieved with high heat...and flames!  So we can't expect that for our home cooking (sorry, no fire!) even if we're using a gas stove coz it's not those high heat intensity industrial cooktops like the ones used by restaurants (if you're using induction stove, lagi no hope).  Neither do we pour oil into a smoking hot wok (and pour it out) to get the wok hot like a restaurant chef (otherwise we might need to call the Bomba to come when our kitchen is filled with smoke!).  If we fry and toss our rice well enough (the key is to not fry too big a portion at one time), we should be proud if we get a slight hint of wok hei (I did get a little bit, perhaps not wok hei but pan hei).

Now, all three chefs used a chilli paste in their fried rice (Jamie called it chilli jam, Sherson called it sambal belacan and Gordon added both sambal and rendang paste...call it whatever you want, it's the same thing...it's some form of chilli paste).  It's quite common and acceptable to fry rice with a chilli paste for flavour...but not in egg fried rice, not for me.  That would be more of a Malaysian or Indonesian nasi goreng or a Thai fried rice.

Sherson also added pounded fried ikan bilis to provide that salty, fragrant, umami taste to the fried rice.  I guess, we (Malaysians) love our ikan bilis as I've seen it with Ili Sulaiman's nasi goreng kampung as well where she blended dried ikan bilis together with a chilli paste for her fried rice.

Of course, fried rice is a very versatile dish so it's up to the chef's interpretation of how he wants to cook it, so you see chefs adding all sorts of things like meat (pork, chicken or beef, bacon, even sausages, lap cheong, char siew or luncheon meat) and vegetables (carrots, bell peppers, peas, onions, long beans) into it...and they call it egg fried rice as long as egg is one of the ingredients.  I prefer to call that fried rice.  For me, egg fried rice should stay to its truest form...with egg as the only star ingredient.

I think Jamie's fried rice is ok except I won't put all the spring onions into the oil to sizzle in the beginning (maybe just the white part as that's considered an aromatic in Chinese cooking).  I also would skip putting tofu as that would give the rice a wet consistency since silken tofu is 90% water anyway (+ I've never seen tofu in fried rice before).  I can understand why Jamie added water to his rice coz he used chilled rice (from the fridge) and (from my own experience) the rice grains will be dry.  I can also relate to Jamie putting in chilli jam which is like bottled chilli sauce to us (I do that sometimes with my spicy fried rice too when I don't have a fresh chilli paste on hand).  

This egg fried rice dish is one that many Chinese households have cooked at one time or another.  Eggs, garlic and rice are staples in any Chinese pantry and this simple fried rice is something that can be whipped up at a moment's notice when we have nothing to cook or don't have time to cook something elaborate.

Although I've not cooked (and eaten) this egg fried rice for a long time, I've cooked it quite often since the egg fried rice video went viral.  Believe it or not, this humble egg fried rice is now my favourite form of fried rice...overtaking luncheon meat fried rice, shrimp fried rice....even bacon fried rice! :P  What can I say....it's the simplicity of it that I like and you'll be surprised at just how good it is.  Fuiyoh, my simple version was rather delicious (if I have to say so myself)....and best presented too in my new green design, yellow-rimmed plate to match the dish! ^o^

It's even better if you happen to have some crispy, fried shallots around that can be used as a topping for your fried rice.  And if you happen to have fried shallots, that means you'll also happen to have shallot oil, so use that to fry your rice and it'll be even tastier.

In the end, I guess there's no right or wrong way of cooking egg fried rice as it's opened to many interpretations.  Since fried rice is a pretty versatile dish, we usually cook it with whatever we can find in our pantry or fridge.  As long as it's a delicious outcome that you and your family enjoy, you can cook it in any way you like.  So, how would you cook your version of egg fried rice? ^_~

I'm proud that a fellow Malaysian has found success...and wish him even greater success in the future (and make more videos, I'll be waiting to watch).  Hmmm, I wonder if Uncle Roger would approve my (his humble niece from Malaysia) version of egg fried rice.  I can already think of three things he will call me out on...1) not using a wok to fry rice (haiya, where's your wok, where's the wok hei?), 2) using induction cooktop (haiya, no fire?) and 3) not using MSG (haiya, must put MSG, the king of flavour, on everything)...lol!  Thanks, Uncle Roger, for your viral (and funny) videos on egg fried rice...and making me want to cook egg fried rice.  P/S: Happy watching (the videos if you've not seen them yet) over the long weekend/festive holiday! ^_~

Serves 1 (if all you're having is fried rice) or 2 (with other side dishes)

#ewew cooks Claypot Chicken Rice (Minus the Claypot)

I've always enjoyed eating Claypot Chicken Rice (my husband loves it) though I've also been weary of rumours (unfounded or not) that eating directly from a claypot cooked over charcoal flame or a gas burner isn't all that good for us.

But, alas, if there's a bigger turn off for me (when it comes to claypot chicken rice) is the smell of the claypot infusing into the rice that I get from some stalls (have you experienced that before or is my sense of smell and taste just too sensitive?).  It could either be due to the fact that the claypots aren't replaced promptly enough or not thoroughly cleaned to have that lingering smell.  Some of claypots have been so overused to the point that the hawkers use wires to bind over the cracks just to extend their usable life.  Mind you, I have eliminated claypot chicken rice stalls based on this reason alone...haha! :D

So, if I want to eat a healthier version, I guess I'll have to make it myself.  It seems simple enough since just three ingredients (besides rice) are needed.  Of course I knew I had to give up that crusty rice (at the bottom of the claypot) as you just can't achieve that with a rice cooker.  So, here's my home version of Claypot Chicken Rice (minus the claypot)...and minus the crusty bottom! ;)

You start by marinating about 450g of chicken pieces (I used choi yin kai or village chicken, skin removed) with thick dark soy (1 tsp), sweet soy (1 tsp), light soy (2 tbsp) and a dash of sesame oil.  If the marinade looks too dark, don't worry, it won't be later coz you'll be mixing that in with quite a lot of rice.  I normally marinate the chicken in the morning (and leave it in the fridge) if I intend to cook it for lunch.

For my home cooked version, I like to add a few slices of ginger and long stems of spring onions (which you can fish out later) for a bit more aromatics.  Sometimes I'd even add fried garlic or shallots if I have them.

Wash and cook 1 1/2 cups of rice and put it into the rice cooker to cook with just a tad less water than usual (as they'll be some liquid from the chicken and marinade).  I put in the marinated chicken pieces once I see the water almost fully absorbed by the rice grains.  If you missed that 'window of opportunity' and the rice has finished cooking, you can still put in the chicken at that point, not a problem.

Give it a really good stir to make sure your rice is well incorporated with the dark sauce from the chicken. This is also the window where you can tweak with a bit more thick dark soy if you find the rice needs a darker colour (mine needed another 1/2 tsp).   If the rice has finished cooking, press the cooker on again for a second time to ensure the chicken cooks properly (as we wouldn't want under-cooked chicken now, would we?).  

The key to a good claypot chicken rice is to complement the flavours with a piece of good quality salted fish (like mui heong) that's fragrant besides being just salty.  Most of the salted fish used by claypot chicken rice stalls are usually of a low quality and doesn't have that requisite fragrance.  I'm not sure how good a quality this piece of salted fish was but it cost me RM8 for this slice (and I used half of it though it could certainly do with the entire piece).

If you're using a fairly thick piece of salted fish (like the one here), put in on a sauce plate and add it to the rice cooker to steam when the chicken goes in as it'll need time to fully cook.  But if you're using just small bits of salted fish (like the miserable bits the stalls give), then you can put it in at the last minute (as they cook in no time).

When the chicken pieces are almost done (that's when the rice cooker finishes cooking for the second time which is about 10 minutes later in the case of my rice cooker), add (generous) slices of lap cheong (from 1 1/2 strips of Chinese dried sausage) and press the rice cooker on again (for the third time).  This is the other key to a good claypot chicken rice...lap cheong.  There was a time when I tapau-ed this but, to my horror when I opened it at home, I got someone's else order instead without lap cheong and it just wasn't the same.  I know of some people who dislike Chinese waxed sausages but I feel it's really needed to bring out that bit of fragrance and oil to the claypot chicken rice.  I suppose you could add some other waxed meat or liver sausages if you really wanted to.

Once the rice cooker finishes cooking for the third time, remove the spring onion stalks (and ginger slices if you can find them) as well as the salted fish.  Give it a final taste test and adjust the seasoning, if needed. Add more light soy if you find the rice not salty enough (it probably could do with another tablespoon, perhaps even two, but I refrained as I try to eat less salty food at home when I can).  Plus you also have to take into account the mashed salted fish that will be going into the rice later.

Finally, sprinkle in the chopped spring onions at the very last minute, finish with a dash of Chinese rice wine (optional but that's what I saw some hawkers did), give it a good stir and you're ready to serve.

Here's my home-cooked version of Claypot Chicken Rice (minus the claypot)...and minus the offensive claypot smell (that only I can detect?)....haha! ^_^

The best thing about a home-cooked version is that it's definitely no where near as oily as the ones we order outside.  That could be due to the less fatty nature of choy yin kai and because I removed the skin or perhaps the hawkers added oil in the marination of the chicken.

My bone of contention with ordered claypot chicken rice from hawkers has always been that it doesn't contain enough lap cheong to give the rice the fragrance it needs.  It's so coz good quality Chinese waxed sausages are expensive...and that's why they allow you to add more at a price (and my spouse will always want more).

Then the other thing my spouse would complain of not having enough is salted fish (sometimes you can't even see it if they've already been mixed in together with the rice).  That's why he'll always request to add extras and then not even getting good quality ones.  You can choose to serve your salted fish whole (in a piece that you can see!) or smashed and mixed into the rice.

Great eaten with some sliced red chillies or fiery cili api....or, better still, like how I would eat it at claypot chicken rice stalls, with a plate of oyster sauce sang choy (lettuce) and a bowl of double-boiled soup :)

If you can freeze rice, you can certainly freeze claypot chicken rice!  So, if there are extra servings or leftovers, freeze them to be eaten on another day.  When scooping up the leftovers, I found a bit of crusty rice at the bottom...yes, that can happen if you're not using a non-stick but a stainless steel inner pot (like mine).

In the end, I won't claim that this home-cooked claypot chicken rice is as good as the ones I eat at claypot chicken rice specialists but a version that you can easily make at home as it's one of those fast to cook, good to eat, one pot wonders! ^.^  And if you're not a fussy pot about the overall flavour, you can certainly take it literally and make it a one pot wonder by chucking everything in at one go into your rice cooker.

Good for 3 - 4 servings (as a one-dish meal)

#ewew cooks Eggy Rice

One Pot Wonders are a blessing when it comes to whipping up something fast and easy for the dinner table. It can be cooked in a jiffy and involves the littlest of work in terms of prepping and washing.

After all, you just need to put everything inside a pot (in this case, your rice cooker) and wait for it to finish cooking.  And one such dish is this Eggy Rice, among the simplest of all one pot wonders, which I fall back on often when I've no time I'm too lazy to prepare a proper dinner.

You start by putting 1 cup of washed, uncooked rice to boil.  You'll need to reduce the amount of water you normally would use for the rice to cook but you'll still need a fair amount of it, otherwise the rice will not cook all the way through.

The reason for reducing the amount of water is obviously because of the extra liquid content the two beaten eggs will provide to the rice.  Add the eggs (that have been well seasoned with salt, white pepper and a little soy) as soon as you see the water has almost been absorbed fully by the rice.

Give it a good stir and let it cook a bit longer (at least a further 10 minutes) under 'keep warm' function until the egg is cooked.  If you like your rice slightly drier, keep it in the rice cooker for even longer.

Once cooked, they can be eaten just like that.  But you can bring it up a notch by adding pork lard crisps. But, let's be honest, most of us won't have crispy chee yau char at our disposal or be willing to make it at home.  So, fried shallots and shallot oil (or fried garlic and garlic oil) will have to do.

I always have fried shallots on hand as it's something I can't do without in my kitchen (that and fried garlic).  I use them to cook dishes or as toppings for the dishes I cooked. ^_~

Adding the fried shallots together with a few drizzles of shallot oil will amp up the flavours of the Eggy Rice even more.  Sprinkle in some chopped spring onions for a splash of colour and freshness right at the end.

Stir that through and it's ready to be served :)

Sprinkle a bit more fried shallots (it wouldn't hurt) and chopped spring onions over the top for presentation.

Note that the Eggy Rice will be a tad softer than the norm (but not too mushy or wet) because of the extra liquid provided by the eggs.  It can't be helped as you can't reduce the water content too much when boiling the rice, otherwise the rice grains won't be cooked fully.

The benefit of cooking this Eggy Rice is that all you'll need to cook is one additional dish (instead of the usual three) to eat with your rice.

I like to pair it with a simple fried fish, in this case a white pomfret topped with crispy garlic bits in a light soy and garlic oil sauce.....

.....or a simple stir-fry of fresh, firm-to-the-bite prawns with crunchy-to-the-bite green beans.

Or how about some soy braised egg and tofu?  Ok, ok, I didn't cook this one...it was bought earlier in the day (kekeke!) but it does go great with the Eggy Rice.

If you don't mind softer textured rice, then this Eggy Rice is perfect for a spur of the moment cooking that'll be a shoo-in for a quick and simple dinner...and well-received by the young ones especially when it's topped with a few slices of fried luncheon meat! ^o^

Rice, eggs, shallots (or garlic) and a can of luncheon meat are staples you'll find in most kitchens...something you can turn to on a rainy day when you can't go out for dinner or have nothing to cook.

Serves 2 (as a light dinner)