Indo-Chinese Fried Rice

Fried rice brings me back the memories of my school day, when the roadside Fast food joints started getting popular. I have not seen anyone who wouldn’t like good fried rice.

I was in my 10^th grade and one of my best friend’s brother-in-law used to own a fast food joint. So whenever we visit his house (which was fortunately a 5 minute walk from my house) he used to make the fried rice for us. We used to help him by cutting the vegetables and also we would be cleaning up and doing the dishes after we eat. But I could still remember the big woks he used and how efficiently he used to toss the rice around instead of stirring the rice. Then we would be happily hogging the fried rice which would be accompanied by either “Gobi Manchurian” or “Gobi 65” J

After they moved away, we used to miss his fried rice that we got to eat so often. Then we tried eating them outside just to satisfy our cravings. But sometimes when you eat outside they are literally drenched in oil and I didn’t like them that much. So I tried making them at home and it came out exactly the way we like it. Those days it was hard to find “Soy” sauce and white pepper in regular grocery stores. So my mom would go to the departmental store a little far from our place and get them for me.

This dish is also a kid’s favorite. You can sneak in the vegetables and they would happily be eating it with no complaints. It is a good lunch box recipe and stays fresh until your lunch time and this is one of my son’s and husband’s favorite lunch menus.

Also when we invite guests over this would make a great “Rice” dish and can be accompanied with almost anything. I have noticed that a lot of people love just eating them with tomato ketchupJ

Recipe

Ingredients

2 cup cooked rice (white basmati Rice)

1 cup shredded/thinly sliced cabbage

½ cup julienned carrots (carrots cut into long thin strips)

½ cup finely chopped spring onions

1 tablespoon “Soy” sauce (usually the dark variety)

½ teaspoon Rice vinegar (you can substitute with white vinegar also)

2 teaspoon white pepper powder

½ teaspoon black pepper powder (optional)

1 tablespoon Sesame oil or Vegetable oil

Some people also add thinly sliced bell peppers (capsicums). But I usually don’t add them in this kind of fried rice as I want the flavor to be mild.

Wash and soak the rice for 30 minutes. Then cook the rice according to the directions or the way you usually cook (stove top or rice cooker).  For 1 cup of rice I add 1 and ½ cup of water in a pan and bring it to a boil on the stove top. When it starts boiling, I cover it with a lid and simmer it until all the water is absorbed and rice is cooked completely. Then gently fluff the rice with a fork while it is still hot to separate the grains. Make sure that you don’t break the rice in the process. Now let the rice cool completely, for better taste make the rice a day ahead and refrigerate.

Heat the oil in a big wok or a wide pan. When the oil is hot enough add the veggies and stir fry them. After the vegetables are almost cooked, add the rice, vinegar, soy sauce and the white pepper powder. Mix them all well and stir fry them for another 5 minutes, add the black pepper powder (optional) and remove from the plate. Garnish with some finely chopped spring onions and serve them.