Simple Fried Rice (No Protein)

Simple vegetable fried rice with scrambled egg and green onions in a wok

Simple Fried Rice showcases perfectly seasoned grains with vegetables in a savory soy-based sauce, proving that fried rice doesn't need meat to be utterly satisfying. Quick-cooking vegetables add color and texture while garlic and ginger provide aromatic depth. Ready in 15 minutes, it's the ultimate side dish or light meal. Having the sauce fully whisked together and sitting right next to the stove before cooking even begins is a genuine necessity for this dish rather than a suggestion — fried rice moves through several distinct stages in rapid succession, and pausing mid-cook to measure or mix anything drops the pan's temperature and undermines the high-heat searing this technique depends on throughout. Scrambling the eggs separately and removing them immediately, well before they're fully set, protects them from the rubbery overcooking that would happen if they stayed in the same hot wok through the rest of the cooking process. Using fully cooled rice, exactly as required for the crispy rice preparation elsewhere in this collection, is what allows the grains to separate cleanly when broken up rather than clumping into a mushy mass. The sauce goes in only at the very end, poured directly onto the hot metal at the wok's edges rather than over the rice itself, letting it briefly caramelize before being tossed through everything. The result is a genuinely fast, vegetable-forward fried rice with real depth despite its short cooking time.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 12

Total Time 22

Servings: 4

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Asian

Calories: 320

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

For the Rice

450 g cooked long-grain rice cooled
100 g frozen peas and carrots thawed
60 g white onion diced
2 cloves garlic minced
10 g fresh ginger minced

For the Sauce

40 ml soy sauce
15 ml oyster sauce
10 ml sesame oil
5 ml rice vinegar
3 g granulated sugar
2 g white pepper

For Cooking

45 ml vegetable oil
2 large eggs beaten
30 g green onions sliced

Method

Prepare the Sauce

Whisk together the 40ml soy sauce, 15ml oyster sauce, 10ml sesame oil, 5ml rice vinegar, 3g sugar, and 2g white pepper until sugar dissolves. Keep the sauce next to the stove — fried rice moves fast, and pausing mid-cook drops pan heat.

Scramble the Eggs

Heat a wok or large skillet over high heat until very hot. Add 15ml vegetable oil, swirl, pour in the eggs, and scramble quickly for about 45 seconds until just set (soft curds). Remove to a plate immediately; eggs overcook fast in a hot wok and become rubbery.

Stir-Fry Aromatics and Vegetables

Add the remaining 30ml oil to the hot wok. Stir-fry the 60g onion for 2 minutes until softened, then add garlic and ginger for 30 seconds until fragrant (keep it moving so it doesn't burn). Add the 100g peas and carrots and stir-fry 2 minutes to heat through and drive off surface moisture.

Fry the Rice

Add the 450g cooled rice, breaking up clumps with a spatula so grains separate before sauce goes in. Stir-fry 3–4 minutes, tossing constantly, until rice is hot and some grains are slightly crisp. Pour the sauce around the edges of the wok (onto hot metal) and toss quickly to coat; add the scrambled eggs and 30g green onions and toss 1 minute. Serve immediately.

Notes

Having the sauce fully prepared and positioned beside the stove before cooking begins is genuinely essential rather than just tidy kitchen practice. Fried rice moves through distinct stages — eggs, aromatics, vegetables, rice, sauce — in rapid succession over sustained high heat, and any pause to measure or mix ingredients mid-process drops the wok's temperature significantly, undermining the crispness and char this dish depends on.

Removing the eggs from the wok immediately after they're just set, rather than letting them finish cooking alongside everything else, protects their texture specifically. A hot wok continues cooking residual heat into the eggs even off direct flame, and eggs left in that environment through the rest of the cooking process turn rubbery and tough by the time the dish is finished.

Pouring the sauce onto the hot metal at the wok's edges, rather than directly over the rice itself, allows it to briefly caramelize and develop a touch of char before being tossed through — a technique that adds a subtle layer of depth a simple pour-and-stir over the rice wouldn't achieve.