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Kimchi Fried Rice, or Korean Fried Rice, is made with kimchi, carrot, ginger, and garlic in a hot and spicy sauce, served with a fried egg on top! It’s perfect as a quick and easy weeknight dinner, taking a total time of 20 minutes to make!
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Fried rice is a delicious, internationally popular dish that comes in many varieties. You have more than likely had Chinese Fried Rice before, as it is the most classic fried rice dish. You can get it from any Asian restaurant as a side or main dish. As a main dish, it is usually served with meat protein like chicken, shrimp, beef, or pork, but this recipe is vegetarian (and vegan friendly), and is one of the best fried rice recipe I have tried yet!
Kimchi Fried Rice is a Korean style of fried rice, also known as kimchi-bokkeumbap. Kimchi is a spicy fermented Chinese cabbage and is a traditional Korean side dish staple that is served with practically every meal.
Sautéing the kimchi and ginger together makes this dish very aromatic. It has a slightly spicy and sharp flavor, as well as being sweet and sour to taste, with a strong garlic profile too. It’s so delicious! Accompanied by a fried egg and a spicy hot sauce, this dish is so flavorful and has so many different textures in it.
Kimchi-bokkeumbap is often finished with enoki (very long and thin Asian mushrooms), but you can add other vegetables to make it more filling if you want. Since enoki mushrooms can be a bit hard to come by, I have used shredded carrots in this recipe. When you order this dish at a Korean restaurant, it will likely be served with seaweed strips as a garnish too!
This recipe for kimchi fried rice is super healthy as it provides lots of nutrients, and it is super easy to add in even more. There is protein from the egg, carbohydrates from the rice, as well as lots of other vitamins from the kimchi and ginger, making it a well-balanced nutritious meal. You can add extra goodness with vegetables like peas, green beans, or mushrooms too!
This Kimchi Fried Rice recipe is one of my favorite vegetarian main dishes. It’s a very convenient way of using up leftover rice from the day before. You can easily serve it as vegan kimchi fried rice, simply without adding the fried egg when serving. It is also delicious with fried tofu or as a side dish to other Asian dishes. This recipe is always popular at dinnertime in my house, but we also love this recipe for tofu fried rice.
Ingredients
See recipe card for quantities.
- Kimchi → Korean fermented Chinese cabbage. Slightly spicy and acidic. Now available in almost every supermarket. Can also be prepared yourself.
- Rice → Jasmine rice or basmati rice from the day before is best.
- Carrot → Some vegetables never hurt! 😉 Can also be replaced by Enoki mushrooms (from the Asia Shop).
- Ginger, Garlic, Scallions, Toasted Sesame Seeds → Provide more flavor and topping!
- Gochujang → Is a spicy, fermented Korean spice paste. It is mainly made of glutinous rice, fermented soybeans, and chili. It’s available in the Asia Shop. The recipe also works without gochujang (if you can’t find it) and can be substituted with sriracha, sambal oelek, or chili oil.
- Kimchi Juice, Soy Sauce, Sesame Oil → Makes a delicious spicy sauce!
- Eggs → For the fried egg! Allow for one egg per person, preferably organic. Vegan: omit eggs, tastes great without!
Instructions
This visual step-by-step instruction will help you along the way – definitely recommended if you’re a cooking beginner! The exact quantities and everything else you need to know for the recipe can be found in the recipe card below.
- Prepare the rice: It’s best to cook the rice a day ahead or use leftovers. If you’re in a hurry, cook rice according to package directions, spread on a flat plate or platter, and let it cool quickly in the fridge or freezer.
- Prepare pan and sauté ingredients: Heat a wok or large skillet with 2 tablespoons oil. Sauté ginger, garlic, and the white part of green onion in it for 2 minutes. Add carrots and kimchi, and sauté for another 2 minutes.
- Add rice: Add the cooked rice to the pan, and stir fry for 5 minutes.
- Make kimchi sauce: Mix kimchi juice, soy sauce, sesame oil, and gochujang in a small bowl and stir into rice. Stir-fry for another minute.
- Prepare the eggs: Meanwhile, heat a frying pan with 1 tablespoon oil and fry fried eggs in it. → Use 1 fried egg per person.
- Garnish and serve: Arrange Kimchi Fried Rice on plates, place fried egg on top, garnish with green part of scallions and toasted sesame seeds.
Storage & Reheating Instructions
How do I keep leftovers? Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
How do I reheat fried rice? Reheat in the microwave or wok! The great thing about this dish is that it tastes great cold as well as hot, so the next day’s lunch is a quick grab-and-go!
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📖 Recipe
Kimchi Fried Rice (Korean Fried Rice)
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Ingredients
Kimchi Fried Rice
- 3 cups (500 g) cooked jasmine rice from the day before, or 1 cup (200g) raw jamine rice (Note 1)
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 inch piece (2 cm) ginger minced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 scallions finely sliced, green and white parts separated
- 1 ⅔ cups (250 g) kimchi rougly chopped
- 2 carrots grated
- some roasted sesame seeds to serve
Sauce
- 4 tbsp kimchi juice liquid from the kimchi container
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 2 tsp Gochujang Korean red chili paste (Note 2)
Fried Eggs
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 organic eggs
Instructions
- Rice: You can either use 3 cups of day-old rice (best method) or cook 1 cup of raw jasmine rice according to the package instructions. Drain, spread on a plate, and place in the refrigerator or freezer until chilled.
- Heat a wok/large frying pan with 2 tablespoons oil. Add ginger, garlic, and white part of the scallion, sauté for 2 minutes. Add carrots and kimchi, stir-fry for another 2 minutes.
- Add rice, stir-fry for 5 minutes.
- Mix kimchi juice, soy sauce, sesame oil, and gochujang in a small bowl and add it to the rice. Stir-fry for another minute.
- Meanwhile, heat a frying pan with 1 tablespoon of oil and fry the eggs in it. → 1 fried egg per person!
- Arrange Kimchi Fried Rice on plates, place the fried egg on top, and sprinkle with the green part of the scallion and roasted sesame seeds.
Notes
- Rice: Works with white long-grain rice, basmati rice, or jasmine rice. Plus, it’s an excellent recipe to use leftover rice. Cooked rice equals about 3 times the amount of raw rice, so make sure to use 3 cups (~ 500-600g) of cooked rice. Last Minute Way: Cook 1 cup (200g) raw rice, spread it on a plate, and quickly chill it in the fridge or freezer.
- Gochujang: Is a spicy, fermented Korean chili paste. It consists mainly of glutinous rice, fermented soybeans, and chili. It’s available in the Asia Shop. The recipe also works without gochujang (if you can’t find it) and can be substituted with sriracha, sambal oelek, or chili oil.
- Carrots: Can be substituted with Enoki mushrooms.
- Fried egg: Use one fried egg per person. The recipe serves 2-4 people.
- Vegan: Omit eggs, tastes also delicious without them!
- Leftovers keep fresh for 3 days. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator.