A speedy weeknight stir-fry with fiery ginger, punchy chilli bean paste and crisp, crunchy vegetables
Diana Henry The Telegraph's award-winning cookery writer
Diana Henry is the Telegraph’s much-loved cookery writer. She shares recipes each week, for everything from speedy family dinners to special menus that friends will remember for months. She is also a regular broadcaster on BBC Radio 4, and her journalism and recipe books, including Simple and How to Eat a Peach, are multi-award-winning. A mother of two sons, Diana can satisfy even the fussiest of eaters.
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Woks in our home kitchens never get as hot as they do in restaurants, where they have a lot of power under them – so dishes like this won’t be as perfect as they could be. Unless you’ve grown up stir-frying, it’s hard to get it right too.
All those different elements cooked in one pan? You have to think about how much time each one needs. Nevertheless, I have, over the years, managed to do chicken and egg fried rice in a way that works, at least for the family on a weeknight. I cook the dish in stages and do the eggs in a separate pan, otherwise I end up with rice and scrambled eggs.
I don’t even think about making this with freshly cooked rice (it will just get sticky). I use Chinese chilli bean paste in other dishes too, so don’t feel buying it is a waste of money. The alcohol is my own thing (goodness knows what Ken Hom would think) but I love its flavour with ginger. You can leave it out if you don’t fancy it.
Requires 20 minutes for the rice in advance
Overview
Prep time
10 mins
Cook time
30 mins
Serves
4
Ingredients
- 3½ tbsp groundnut oil
- 300g chestnut mushrooms, sliced
- 3 shallots, chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 3cm piece fresh root ginger, peeled and grated
- 4 spring onions, trimmed and chopped
- 175g Savoy cabbage or white cabbage, hard core removed and the leaves cut into narrow slices
- 300g chicken thigh fillets, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 250g pak choi, washed and sliced lengthways
- 4 large eggs
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 600g cold cooked rice
- 1 tbsp Chinese chilli bean sauce or paste
- 5 tbsp Shaoxing wine or dry sherry (optional)
- Soy sauce and chilli oil or chilli sauce, to serve (optional)
Method
Step
Heat 1 tbsp of the groundnut oil in a wok.
Step
When it’s really hot, add 300g sliced chestnut mushrooms and fry briskly to get a good colour. Season. The mushrooms will exude water, so make sure this has evaporated off. Remove from the pan into a bowl.
Step
In the same wok, heat 1½ tbsp of the oil and toss in 3 chopped shallots, 4 chopped garlic cloves, 3cm piece fresh root ginger (peeled and grated), the white bits of the 4 chopped spring onions and 175g sliced Savoy cabbage or white cabbage.
Step
Stir-fry for a minute, keeping things moving, and add 300g chicken thigh fillets (cut into bite-sized pieces). You want to get a good colour on them.
Step
Season and stir-fry for 2 minutes, add the 250g sliced pak choi, and cook for a further minute.
Step
Add everything in the wok to the mushrooms.
Step
Mix 4 large eggs with a little salt and 2 tsp sesame oil.
Step
Heat ½ tbsp oil in a small pan and cook the eggs as you might an omelette, tilting the pan and pushing the cooked egg away from you to let the uncooked egg flow into the hot pan. Use chopsticks to break the egg into ribbons.
Step
Put the remaining ½ tbsp oil into the wok and heat till very hot.
Step
Toss in 600g cold cooked rice and stir-fry for 3 minutes or until you can see and smell some of the rice toasting.
Step
Season, then add the cooked ingredients, the egg and 1 tbsp Chinese chilli bean sauce or paste.
Step
Add 5 tbsp Shaoxing wine or dry sherry, if using, and toss the mixture around.
Step
Serve with the green bits of the spring onions on top, and soy sauce, chilli oil or chilli sauce on the side, if you like.