“Better than Takeout” Chicken Fried Rice

Last week in Iceland, we had some very nice spring days and I took out the grill and made my summer chicken. The next day I had some leftover chicken, rice, and some grilled vegetables. I had probably around 3-4 cups of cooked rice and 3 cooked boneless chicken thighs leftover—the perfect ingredients for chicken fried rice!

I encourage you to not cook a new dish but stir up what you have on hand. Unlock your culinary creativity by using your leftovers. Good luck, have fun and enjoy!

• Heat a large pan/wok to medium high and added 1-2 tbsp of oil (use oil/butter of choice)
• Add raw vegetables (such as sliced onions and thinly sliced carrots)
• Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring constantly to prevent burning
• Add 1-2 cloves of minced garlic and stir
• Add the cooked rice and mix
• Make a hole in the rice and add 2 eggs
• Scramble eggs in the pan with the vegetables and rice
• Add 2 tbsp soy sauce and 2 tbsp teriyaki sauce and mix
• Cube the cooked chicken and add to the pan (remember, the chicken is already cooked, you don’t need to cook it again, just heat it up)
• Add some green peas
• Add a tbsp of rice vinegar or white wine vinegar
• Stir together
• Add some soy or teriyaki sauce if the rice is dry

• If you want some spice—add some minced chilies
• If you have and like mushrooms—slice them up and add early in the process
• If you like herbs—chop them up and add at the end
• If you like your food sweeter—add some more teriyaki sauce or some honey

Remember, you know what you like best and what you have in the refrigerator. Add what you like and remove what you don’t like. If the food is burning, lower the heat, if the rice is too soggy add some heat and stir without a lid. Food is not science. Food is art and you are the artist. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes, everyone does. The best chefs made millions of mistakes—remember that!

In the US about 92 billion pounds of food is thrown away annually with over 40% of that coming from household waste, either throwing away food from our pantries or refrigerators. Let’s do our share and use our leftovers to create something delicious that’s good for us and for the planet.