Easy Kimchi Fried Rice
Well, I'm clearly deep into my kimchi-loving phase because I'm craving pieces of that sour and spicy cabbage almost everyday. I guess it also doesn't help that over the weekend, I went and bought an 8 pound tub of the fermented cabbage at my local Korean supermarket. So I guess what I'm trying to say is that you guys might be seeing a lot more recipes with kimchi in it...at least for the next couple of weeks.
So why kimchi fried rice? Well, for one, it's super easy to make. I made my fried rice in about 20 minutes with one single pan. And, it's definitely a nice change on just normal fried rice because the sourness of the kimchi really peps things up. I also think this would be the perfect recipe for those who might think that kimchi is too strong of a flavor for them - whether it be the heat or acidity or even the fermented cabbage flavor or smell. By cooking the kimchi for just a couple minutes, it really mellows the cabbage down and makes it more palatable for people who may not be used to kimchi at first. Now for those of you that love kimchi, I almost felt guilty cooking away the natural and raw kimchi flavor, so what I ended up doing was towards the end of the dish, I re-added some uncooked pieces of kimchi right back into the fried rice. Anyways, hope you all enjoy making this - it's definitely quick and easy, and clean-up is a cinch.
kimchi fried rice
(Serves 2-3)
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 large onion
- 1 stalk scallion
- 1 teaspoon garlic (finely chopped)
- 1/2 cup kimchi
- 1/2 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon fish sauce
- 4 tablespoons kimchi liquid
- 2 large eggs
- 3 cups white rice
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- (Additional ingredients like chicken or pork may be added)
Directions
- Heat 2 tablespoon of the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add chopped onions with small pinch of salt and saute for 4 minutes. Add white part of scallions and garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add diced up kimchi and cook for an additional minute.
- Turn heat to medium high. Move onion kimchi mixture to side of pan. Add remaining tablespoon of oil to pan. Scramble 2 large eggs and to pan stirring as it cooks to break the egg to small pieces.
3. Put rice into pan. Add kimchi juice, soy sauce, fish sauce, salt and pepper into the rice and stir around to mix. Additional meats like chicken maybe added at this point as well. Once well mixed, top rice off with chopped scallions (green parts) and serve hot.