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Asian Dinner Rice

The Best Chicken Fried Rice Recipe

Name: The Best Chicken Fried Rice Recipe (Better Than Takeout)
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Asian
Ingredients: 2 cups day-old white rice, from the fridge; 300 g chicken breast or thighs, cut into small pieces; 1 carrot, sliced into thin strips; ¼ cabbage, thinly sliced into strips; 2 garlic cloves, minced; 1 tsp minced ginger; 1 medium white onion, sliced into strips; 3 green onions, sliced into strips (plus 1 extra for garnish); Handful of fresh basil; 2 whole eggs; 3 tbsp soy sauce; 1 tbsp dark soy sauce (optional); 3 tbsp oyster sauce; 1 tsp curry powder; Cooking oil; Salt and pepper

(better than takeout)

By Ido

· April 13, 2026 ·

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This chicken fried rice recipe is the one I grew up eating, loosely recreated and made my own. Day-old rice, a hot wok, eggs scrambled right into the pan, and a sauce built from soy sauce, oyster sauce, and a touch of curry powder that makes it taste different from every other fried rice you have tried. It is a proper weeknight dinner that uses up leftover rice and comes together in under 20 minutes once everything is prepped.

Prep

min

Cook

min

Serves

portions

Level

Intermediate

Jump to Recipe

Fried rice served in a white bowl with steam rising and green onions on top

What you need

For 4 servings · tap to check off

For the Fried Rice

2 cups day-old white rice, from the fridge
300 g chicken breast or thighs, cut into small pieces
1 carrot, sliced into thin strips
¼ cabbage, thinly sliced into strips
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp minced ginger
1 medium white onion, sliced into strips
3 green onions, plus 1 finely chopped for garnish
Handful of basil
2 whole eggs
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp dark soy sauce (optional)
2 tbsp oyster sauce
1 tsp curry powder
Cooking oil
Salt and pepper

For the Chicken’s First Fry

1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp oyster sauce

What Makes This Fried Rice Recipe Different

Most fried rice recipes are variations of the same thing. This chicken fried rice recipe has two things that set it apart. First, the curry powder. It is a small amount but it adds a warmth and complexity that makes people ask what is in it without being able to identify it. Second, the chicken gets a quick first fry with soy sauce, oyster sauce, and fresh herbs before anything else goes into the pan. Those juices stay in the dish and season the rice from the inside.

🍚

Rice Tip

Day-old rice from the fridge is not optional here. Freshly cooked rice has too much moisture and turns the whole dish soggy. Cook your rice the day before and refrigerate it uncovered overnight.

Fried rice ingredients prepped on a cutting board — Fried rice ingredients prepped on the cutting board

How to Make It, Phase by Phase

Fry the chicken first

In a hot wide pan or wok, add oil and cook the chicken for a couple of minutes. Do not dry it out.
Season with salt, pepper, soy sauce, and oyster sauce. Add half the green onions and basil, stir, then remove the chicken and set aside along with all its juices.

Fry the rice

Add a little more oil to the same pan. Add the cold rice and fry for 2 to 3 minutes, breaking up any clumps, until every grain is coated with oil.
Remove and set aside.

🔥

High Heat Only

Every step in this recipe needs a properly hot pan. If the pan is not hot enough the rice steams instead of fries and you lose all the texture.

Build the base

Add a bit more oil to the pan, then add the white onion, ginger, and garlic. Fry for about 1 minute on high heat.
Add the carrots and cabbage and continue frying for about 2 minutes.

Bring it all together

Return the chicken with its juices and the rice to the pan. Add soy sauce, oyster sauce, curry powder, salt, and pepper. Stir everything together on high heat.
Push the rice to one side of the pan. Add a bit of oil to the empty side, crack in the eggs, and scramble until medium done.
Mix the eggs into the rice until fully combined.
Add the remaining fresh green onions and basil, then turn off the heat.

🥚

Egg Timing

Scramble the eggs to medium done before mixing them in. Fully cooked eggs will go rubbery when tossed through the hot rice.

Dad's fried rice overhead shot in a white bowl with green onion garnish — Dad’s fried rice overhead — white bowl, green onion garnish

Tips for the Best Fried Rice

🍚 Old rice is non-negotiable: Fresh rice has too much moisture. Day-old rice from the fridge has dried out enough to fry properly without clumping. Spread fresh rice on a tray uncovered in the fridge for a few hours if needed.
🔥 Hot pan: A properly hot wok or wide pan is what gives fried rice its slightly smoky, restaurant quality. Do not be afraid of high heat.
🍛 Curry powder: Use just 1 tsp. It should be a background note, not the dominant flavour. Too much and it overpowers everything else.
🫙 Save the chicken juices: When you remove the chicken after the first fry, keep all the liquid with it and add it back when you return the chicken to the pan. That is where a lot of the flavour lives.
🌿 Basil: Add it at the end with the heat off. It wilts fast and loses its fragrance if it sits too long in a hot pan.

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes. Skip the chicken entirely or replace it with firm tofu cut into small cubes and pan-fried until golden. Use a vegetarian oyster sauce substitute, which is widely available in Asian grocery stores. Everything else stays the same.

Long-grain jasmine rice is the most common choice and works really well. Short-grain rice tends to clump more. Whatever you use, the key is that it is cold and at least a day old before it goes into the wok.

Absolutely. Frozen peas, corn, bean sprouts, and mushrooms all work well. Add harder vegetables early with the carrots and softer ones like peas or bean sprouts in the last minute so they do not go mushy.

Yes. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Reheat in a hot pan with a tiny splash of water to loosen it up. It reheats really well — avoid the microwave which makes the rice go soft and uneven.

Drop a comment below and let me know how it turned out. Did you add the curry powder? I want to know if you could taste the difference. If you enjoyed this, check out the cheese and spinach bourekas — another recipe that comes together faster than you’d expect. Tag your photos and show off that bowl.

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