Chicken Fried Rice  - My Incredible Recipes (2024)

Learn how to make restaurant-quality chicken fried rice at home with just a few simple everyday ingredients. Tender chicken in each bite paired with fried rice, veggies, and tender eggs all seasoned perfectly.

Pair with some egg rolls or crab rangoons and ring that dinner bell and watch your family come running.

This chicken fried rice instantly became a family favorite. Even picky eaters gobble up this perfectly flavored rice. You will also love if you have leftover rice from dinner the night before, this is the perfect recipe to use up your leftovers.

Fried rice with chicken hits the spot every single time. A protein-packed dinner that is loaded with chicken and veggies. A wonderful way to get your little ones excited to eat their vegetables. The soy sauce mixture gives the vegetables such flavor.

Make sure to try out this beef fried rice and shrimp fried rice. They are equally satisfying and loaded with flavor that won’t disappoint those taste buds.

Reasons You Will Love Chicken Fried Rice

• Easy cleanup! No need to make a mess in the kitchen with pots and pans. This is a one-pot meal!
• Quick cook time. If you are short on time this is a fantastic recipe to throw together. It is quick, simple, and satisfying.
• Use up leftover rice. Don’t throw out that leftover rice from the night before. Utilize it and create a whole new meal that will taste like a brand new meal.
• Family-friendly. As a mom, I know it is important to have a meal your family will eat. My daughter loves this fried rice, and she can be a little picky at times.
• Affordable. With the cost of groceries, it is nice to create meals that won’t break the bank. Here is a recipe that is budget-friendly.

Ingredients

Oil – Vegetable oil, divided.

Chicken – Boneless chicken breast, diced.

Vegetables – Matchstick carrots, frozen peas, scallions.

Rice – Cold rice (leftover rice from the night before)

Eggs – Lightly beaten.

Soy Sauce – Dark soy sauce and classic soy sauce.

Sesame Oil – Just a small splash.

You can learn how to make egg rolls here. This is a great pairing to serve up with your fried rice.

Variations To Recipe

• Use low-sodium soy sauce if you are watching your sodium intake. Or you can swap with coconut Aminos.
• Skip the matchstick carrots and use a bag of frozen cubed carrots and peas.
• Make this into a combination of fried rice. Add in some shrimp or even diced ham at the end of cooking the chicken. This will add more flavor to the dish.
• Swap classic rice with cauliflower rice for a lower-carb dinner idea.
• Add in a splash of your favorite hot sauce. Or drizzle with Sriracha for a spicy kick if you can handle the heat.
• Add some bean sprouts for added flavor. Toss in when you add in the frozen peas.

Don’t Have Leftover Rice?

If you do not have leftover rice on hand, that is okay. Just make rice as directed on the back of the bag. Then once your rice is done you will want to place it in the fridge to allow it to cool. If you try to cook with warm rice, it will become a mushy mess.

You could make some fresh rice in the morning then by lunch or dinner time just pull the rice out and fry it up as the recipe directed.

Long-grain white rice, Jasmine rice, or even brown rice are all great options for this easy-fried rice with chicken.

Pro Tips For Success

• If your cold rice has larger clumps of ice, add a 1/2 teaspoon of rice and use your spatula to break up the clumps in the pan.
• Rice that is not fully chilled will become mushy if cooked. So make sure the rice is nice and chilled. Chilling rice soaks up more moisture, drying it out a bit. This is what allows you to create fried rice that doesn’t turn into a paste-like texture.
• Make sure once you add eggs to the pan you stir constantly. This breaks up the egg but also ensures no burning.
• Start with a hot pan before you toss ingredients in to cook. Get a nice sear.
• Add less or more soy sauce to flavor the rice to your liking.
• Aim to cut up your chicken in even pieces so you get an even cook on the meat.

A large skillet works wonderfully. But if you have a Wok consider using that instead! The biggest thing is using a pan that the rice mixture can spread out into a thinner thickness when cooking.

Storing

You can keep any of the rice and chicken you do not eat in a sealed container in the fridge. It will store for 3-4 days. Just reheat as you wish.

I do recommend when you go to reheat add a teaspoon of water to the rice to help add a little moisture back into it.

You can also freeze leftover chicken fried rice. Simply place it in a freezer container and freeze the rice for up to 5 months. Then when you are ready to eat, thaw in the fridge overnight. Or defrost and reheat as you wish.

FAQs

Can I use chicken thighs instead of chicken breasts?

Yes, you can use any cut of boneless chicken. Just remove the skin from the meat and dice the chicken into bite-size pieces. Then fry up the same as it calls for in the recipe.

How to make this a “healthier” version of fried rice?

Reach for cauliflower rice instead of white rice. Or you can opt for brown rice as well. Both will help in making this into a “healthier” version of fried rice. You can buy cauliflower rice that has peas and carrots in it already.

Is chicken fried rice gluten-free?

Overall chicken fried rice is gluten-free. But soy sauce often contains gluten, so reach for coconut aminos or a gluten-free soy sauce brand. Then this recipe will for sure be gluten-free.

Is chicken fried rice a Chinese dish?

Chicken fried rice is often referred to as an Asian or Chinese dish. Depending on the method of cooking and ingredients you will find both are correct in how it is classified.

More Recipe Ideas

• Chinese Sugar Donuts
• Kung Pao Chicken
• Wonton Soup