Late-night dinners were a usual event growing up in Tokyo. The energy in the city was like no other—similar to New York, it was 24/7. I remember the sweet and savory scents of okonomiyaki and oden perfuming the streets, and the laughter and chatter buzzing from the izakayas. But my favorite of course was going to the local ramen shop. My mother and I would share the miso ramen, gyoza, and fried rice—always served piping hot. The meal comforted me like a warm blanket.
Now in my 30s, I look back on those evenings with such nostalgia that when I’m feeling homesick or the growing pains of adulthood, I make this fried rice. The properties of chahan, aka yakimeshi, are similar to most fried rice recipes—use whatever vegetable and protein on hand. In Japan, the ramen restaurants usually served theirs with peas, corn, and chashu (pork belly) trimmings; the trimmings from the perfectly cut disks they served in their ramen. Each grain is covered in oil and aromatic soy sauce, the vegetables perfectly cooked with bite, you can serve this as a main or a side dish with soup or simple salad.
The most important thing about making fried rice is the preparation of the rice. It should be cold and mostly dried out of its sticky moisture. This ensures the grains crumble and not stick to the pan when cooking, and that the grains soak up the sesame oil and soy sauce flavoring.
General Tips
- Make sure rice is cold and cooked at a minimum 2 days prior to frying.
- Cut the proteins and carrots into similar sizes to the corn and peas. This will ensure similar cooking times, but aesthetically, the elements in the fried rice should always look uniform.
- This comes together very fast, and you should be consistently mixing and stirring. Ensure all components are already cut and measured prior to cooking.
- This is a classic fridge clean-out recipe, so use whatever protein you like!
- Cook the fried rice over medium-high to high heat. This will ensure rice doesn't stick.
- Use Japanese short-grain rice, not sushi rice. Or plain white rice, but just not long grain. —Sahara Bohoskey
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