Crispy Shallots Fried Rice
This is a great dish for using up leftover rice, making Crispy Shallots Fried Rice is an easy way to bring an Asian flair to your meal.
Let’s see, if today is Tuesday and I’m re-publishing this post for Crispy Shallots Fried Rice; what do I call that? Somethin’ somethin’ Tuesday. Throwback Tuesday works but might be confusing to anyone used to Thursdays being #TBT but hey…at least the acronym still works! Clearly not important enough to make a big deal out of it!
Until something better comes to me (usually at 2:30am and then I forget it when I wake up!) I’ll go with my own personal version of #TBT because I have such a huge wealth of older posts that are lost back in the darker ages with recipes I simply love and I need a day of the week to occasionally highlight one of them.
Especially the ones I actually go to and make over and over again for our own meals. This Crispy Shallots Fried Rice is one of them. So easy and so good that I can sit with a bowl (OK, maybe two) and have nothing else for dinner. I wanted to make sure you could do the same.
When I first published this post a couple of years ago I mentioned that occasionally I would love to just document a dish we were crazy about but that in doing so I might not really have a story to share. That had been one of those days.
A day when I had leftover rice in the fridge, some frozen peas in the freezer and the pages of Food and Wine that magically opened to this recipe for Crispy Shallots Fried Rice. Those are magical days and often when I get creative…what do I have and how can I use it?
While I will often fiddle with recipes I spy in my food magazines, we stayed pretty true to this recipe for fried rice with the exception of a tiny bit of chili flakes to intensify the flavor just a bit. It’s a great dish when you have leftover rice and though I had shallots in my veggie bin, I would do this in a heartbeat with regular onions too.
I can’t help but think of the days WAY BACK WHEN and I would have just used a box of Rice-A-Roni. I can hear the song now too, ‘Rice-A-Roni, the San Francisco treat.’ There is your earworm for the day!
Those boxes might have been a bit easier but nothing about this dish is hard and the resulting flavor is so superior to a boxed preparation that it is worth every single minute!
I made this on a day when I was going to a barbecue put on by neighbors that are Chinese. I did not take it with me opting instead to take my favorite lemon bars from a Nordstrom’s Cafe recipe. I wanted to bring them something unique, not their norm and I KNOW they didn’t need my American Girl version of fried rice.
I assumed they would make a much more authentic fried rice than I could ever come up with and I would bring shame on my family; I should not have worried.
My biggest surprise was how adventurous they were; we had chicken legs and feet, Mexican dip, a quiche, barbecued squid and a peach cake they had covered with a favorite mocha frosting recipe of mine.
A hodge podge for sure and a delicious one at that! Next time they might have me show with this rice; it might not be authentic but it sure was delish…isn’t that really all that matters?
This is simple, pretty and tasty; sort of a perfect dish in my book!
PIN IT! Crispy Shallots Fried Rice
Crispy Shallots Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons peanut oil plus more for frying
- ¾ cup about 3 shallots, thinly sliced, divided
- ¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
- 4 ½ cups cold cooked rice I used basmati but regular should be fine too; see Notes
- Salt
- 1 cup frozen petite peas thawed
- ¼ tsp red chili flakes
- Lime wedges for serving
Instructions
- In a small skillet, heat 1/4 inch of peanut oil until shimmering. Add 1/4 cup of the sliced shallots and fry over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and crisp, about 2 minutes.
- Using a slotted spoon, transfer the fried shallots to paper towels to drain.
- In a wok or large skillet, heat the 3 tablespoons of oil until shimmering.
- Add the turmeric and the remaining 1/2 cup of shallots and stir-fry over moderately high heat until the shallots are softened, about 5 minutes.
- Add the rice and 1 teaspoon of salt and stir-fry over high heat for 1 minute.
- Add the peas and stir-fry until the rice and peas are hot, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the fried shallots and chile flakes and season with salt.
- Transfer the rice to a bowl and serve with lime wedges.
Liked this one the first time around, so I’m happy to see it reappear. 🙂
Thanks John…I was happy to see it reappear on my table too. 🙂
i’m from Malaysia and basically i love fried rice.. thanks for sharing…cant wait to try it out….
http://thestoryofayna.blogspot.com/
I love fried rice and this looks great!
Sounds like pure comfort to me! Perfect accompaniment to so many meals!
I should be sick of it by now Liz I’ve made it so much in the last couple of weeks but…not yet!
Absolutely love the use of turmeric here. The Indian in me in very Happy!! 😀
It would be nothing without it! Not only for taste but it gives it such a pretty color. GO Turmeric! 🙂
I really have to remember simple is usually better…. I tend to put SO much stuff into fried rice (mainly because it ends up being a main course for my stepson so it kind of *has* to be a little more bulked up…).. This looks so yummy…. I’m regretting not having left over rice right now!
You made me chuckle…I certainly know a few bloggers that could remember that ‘less is more’ – I’ve seen some doozies lately when it seems necessary to include every trend but the kitchen sink into one dish! I’ve mentioned in another comment that we enjoy just a simple fried egg on top; that adds some protein and tastes amazing!
Barbara, this looks so yummy, that I am now craving some… thanks for sharing a great recipe! Beautiful photos too xox
Thanks Lizzie and especially thanks for the sweet comment on the photos. I am so stuck with my current situation; small space, few props, either too much or too little light…but I loved these photos too and I don’t feel that way often!
Terrific meal for me. I love crispy shallots and always have a jar in the pantry. John would look for the meat but perfect for me!
Sounds like you have foodie neighbors. Which is wonderful. Last night I had to endure watching a neighbor use a fork to pick apart my roasted pumpkin and asparagus lasagna while exclaiming out loud “don’t mind me I’m just looking for the lasagna”. I think he was joking, but I wasn’t laughing. My point being is if someone serves you chicken feet, you politely give them a taste and leave the editorializing for private. Thanks for giving me a chance to get that off my chest. GREG
I agree Greg…graciousness is a two way street not limited to the host. I’ve been in the shoes you were in and those folks never got asked back! What did my guests pick apart? A zucchini and cream cheese timbale…how innocuous can you get? 🙂
This looks like great rice. I love having leftover cold rice just so I can make fried rice. I really need to make more when I cook it, so that I can make great dishes like this. Yes, it’s called planning ahead… Happy Halloween, Barb!
There is just something about this dish that makes me want it right now. It is simple but just the best combo of rice, peas and crispy shallots (I love fried shallots). I just love this for lunch. Thanks for reminding us that things don’t have to be crazy, over the top to be wonderful and good.
I like that fried rice can be a side dish or a main meal unto itself. your version looks just right. And, yes, now I have that song in my head for the day!
Thanks for that earworm! 😉 I had totally forgotten that jingle. And hope to again. 😉 Lovely fried rice. I’m not sure if you can ever go wrong with ingredient selection with this just, just as long as it tastes good. Pretty too – great idea including the turmeric. Thanks for this.
You are so welcome! I could eat this stuff every day and I say that after eating it every day for the past 5. 🙂
This rice looks amazing!! Now I just need to decide what to make with it for dinner.
I served it with some pork chops with a bourbon and mushroom sauce (coming next Monday) but I would do simple grilled chicken or fish in a heartbeat. Or have it all by itself with a fried egg on top…that’s yummy too.
Yum. Yum. Yum. It’s only 8:30 here and I’m still nursing a cup of coffee and an English muffin, but I’m *craving* this fried rice. Dinner time can’t come fast enough 😉
Funny but the last of it is going and I’m craving it again too. I had it with a fried egg on top for dinner the other day; that would be great for breakfast, lunch or dinner!
This rice looks incredible.. My husband loves fried rice, so I know he would just love this.
Then it’s a done deal right? So very easy to make; that’s one thing I love about it.
Barbara, this was the first post I received after subscribing to your blog and it couldn’t have come at a more apt time. The leftover rice in my fridge was clamoring for a makeover… thank you!
Hi Kim…let’s pretend I did this just for you then!
Yep, I’m pretty much loving this simple rice! Love the turmeric you added to it!
The turmeric added a nice flavor certainly but the color was the thing I loved the most; made all the difference in presentation.