Yangzhou Fried Rice
Serves 4
After you’ve unboxed your wok, you’ll be itching to get started. However, it’s that first cook in your wok that’s really going to help maintain the pre-seasoned surface and lock in that patina.
What to make? We suggest a classic fried rice. Easy to make, ready in mere minutes, and a dish everyone can get behind, fried rice has everything you want for a first-cook dish in your MAKO wok.
Let's cook: Yangzhou Fried Rice
Episode 3
Watch Marion use her MAKO for the first time to make delicious, Chinese-style fried rice.
INGREDIENTS
3 tbsp vegetable or other high smoke point oil
2 eggs, lightly whisked
1 small onion, finely diced
4 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
250g (9 oz) peeled and deveined prawns, tails intact
100g (3.5 oz) diced Chinese BBQ pork
½ cup mixed frozen vegetables (e.g. peas & diced carrots)
3 cups cooked jasmine rice
2 tbsp Chinese light soy sauce
½ cup finely sliced spring onion (scallions)
METHOD
Heat your wok over medium heat until just smoking, then swirl in 2 tablespoons of the vegetable oil. Add the eggs and use your spatula to spread them out into a flat omelette shape as they cook. Cook for a minute or until just set, then flip to briefly cook the other side. Slide the omelette out onto a chopping board. Use a knife to roughly chop the omelette and set aside for later.
Place the wok back over a high heat (no need to wash it). When the wok is just smoking again, swirl in the remaining tablespoon of oil. Add the onion, garlic and prawns and cook for half a minute. Spread everything out in the wok, allow it to sear for another half a minute, then keep stir-frying for another 1-2 minutes or until the prawns are just cooked and everything is light golden.
Next, add the barbecue pork, frozen vegetables and the rice. Pour the soy sauce around the edges of the wok (so that it hits the heat straight away and starts to caramelise). Add the chopped omelette, then use your spatula to stir-fry and break up the rice for 2-3 minutes or until each rice grain is evenly coated and everything is well combined. Toss through the spring onion, then remove from the heat and serve.
Top tips
- Start with a hot wok.
Slowly heat your wok until whispers of smoke appear. - Then add oil.
Swirl your 2-3 tablespoons of oil so it coats the bottom and some of the sides. - Get cooking.
Embrace the heat and smoke. If your wok isn’t hot enough, the ingredients will stick and stew, not sear.