Bacon and Chicken Fried Rice
Oh, baby, I’m dancing the ‘amazing dinner’ jig in my kitchen. The prospect of this fried rice for dinner got me through the work day.
Fried rice is a pretty basic recipe, but there are a few detailed steps that can make all the difference for really good fried rice. I start this recipe with a base of smokey bacon which plays a crucial role to the entire dish. You’ll use the crispy bacon, but you also use the bacon fat to add depth as you cook the rest of the ingredients. Another important step is using the same skillet throughout the entire recipe. By doing this, all of the flavors infuse together. Make sure you prep all your ingredients before you start cooking because the actual cooking time goes fast. Take your prep work as far as the day before and make your rice in advance. Using day old rice means it will have less moisture and won’t be mushy.
In each bite you get the salty, crunchy bacon with pungent ginger and garlic and a subtle taste of the sesame oil. Oh, man, it’s so good!
I normally eat a lot of vegetarian food so when I do cook with meat I prefer to buy quality cuts. I recommend you take your buns to the meat counter at the grocery store to pick up some thick cut smoked bacon instead of the pre-packaged stuff. It’s meatier and has more flavor. And good luck trying to keep your hands off the cooked bacon while you finish making the rest of the dish.
Bacon and Chicken Fried Rice Recipe
Makes 4 servings.
Ingredients
- 1 cup of brown rice (Jasmine rice tastes great in fried rice, but I went the healthier route with brown rice.)
- 2-3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 Tbsp ginger, minced
- 1/2 cup scallion, both green and white parts, chopped (about 6-7 sprigs)
- 1/2 cup shredded carrots
- 1 chicken breast, cut into very small pieces
- 4 thick slices of smoked bacon
- 3 eggs, beaten
- Kosher salt
- 1/8 tsp red chili flakes
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 Tbsp white vinegar
- 1 tsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp fish sauce
- 1 tsp sesame oil (This adds great flavor, but can be skipped if you don’t have it.)
- 1 Tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped (for garnish)
Directions
Prepare the Ingredients
- In a small or medium size sauce pan, add 1 cup of brown rice and 2 cups of water. Bring the liquid to a boil, and then reduce it to a simmer. Cook the rice covered until all of the water has absorbed, about 45 minutes. (I find day old rice works best for fried rice so you’ll want to make the rice the night before and store it in the refrigerator. If you didn’t do that, don’t worry, just make the rice now.)
- Peel and mince 2-3 garlic cloves and a 1/2 Tbsp of fresh ginger.
- Dice the white and green parts of the scallions into about 1/2 cup. Set aside some of the green part to use as a garnish later.
- Chop the chicken into very small, bite-size pieces. (You want the pieces small so they cook quickly.)
- Chop the bacon into 1-inch pieces. (You want to cut large enough pieces that when the fat renders you still have a bite-size piece of bacon.)
- Peel and finely chop the carrots, or use pre-shredded, into about 1/2 cup.
- Crack three eggs into a small bowl and whisk.
- Remove the cilantro leaves from the stems and roughly chop them into about 1 Tbsp. Set aside to use as a garnish.
Start Cooking
- Heat a stainless steel skillet or wok over medium to high heat. When the pan is hot, add the chopped bacon and stir continuously until the fat starts to render (otherwise it will stick to the pan).
- Cook the bacon for about 5 minutes until crispy.
- Remove the bacon from the skillet leaving behind as much of the bacon grease as possible. It helps to use a slotted spoon to scoop up the bacon and let the excess fat drip back into the pan. Place the bacon on a paper towel to absorb excess grease. Pour the excess grease from the skillet into a small bowl.
- Keep the skillet on medium-high heat and add a 1 Tbsp of the bacon fat back to the skillet. Add the following ingredients in 1 minute increments.
- Add the ginger, garlic and 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes and stir. Cook for 1 minute.
- Add the scallions (both green and white parts), 1/4 tsp black pepper and a pinch of kosher salt. Cook for 1 minute.
- Add the chicken and another 1/2 Tbsp of the bacon fat. Continue to stir to prevent the chicken from sticking to the pan. Cook for 1 minute.
- Add the carrots, 1 Tbsp vinegar, 1 tsp soy sauce and 1 tsp fish sauce. Cook for 1 minute.
- Add the rice. Cook for 1 minute.
- Push the rice to one side and add the eggs on the opposite side of the skillet. Use a spatula to stir the eggs as they scramble. (It’s okay if some of the rice falls into the eggs, but don’t mix the eggs into the rest of the rice until they’ve had a chance to cook.)
- Drizzle 1 tsp of sesame oil over the rice and stir everything together.
- Top the rice with extra scallion and cilantro.
If the ingredients are sticking to the skillet, use a little extra bacon grease or canola oil. Make sure you keep the skillet hot so the ingredients cook quickly, and don’t just steam in the pan.
You can cook the eggs separately and stir them into the rice at the same time as the bacon. The plus side is the egg will be in larger pieces. The down side is as the eggs cook they won’t absorb the flavors from the skillet (and you dirty another pan). Try it both ways to see which way you like it.
I’m a big veggie eater so my staple is vegetable fried rice loaded with more veggies than rice, but this time around it’s all about the depth of flavors that are absorbed into the rice and the smokey, rich flavor from the bacon.
Use the Extra Ingredients
If you don’t use fresh ginger often, store it in the freezer in a ziplock bag to keep it fresh.
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