Vegan Kimchi Fried Rice
Kimchi Fried Rice!
Have you had kimchi before? I’ve been working on trying to add in more probiotic-rich foods into our diet and kimchi is one of those foods that I really enjoy but never know what to do with.
I’ve had a jar of kimchi staring at me from the fridge for the last few weeks and I finally decided to make fried rice with it a few nights ago. Fried rice felt like the perfect dish that everyone in my family would actually eat. BL swears that he has an expanded palate, but I also knew there was no way he would touch a bowl with kimchi piled on top.
Fried rice is the ultimate easy one-pot meal: throw everything into a wok and it’s done in a matter of minutes. And now it tastes even better with kimchi chopped in.
This recipe comes together fairly quick and it customizable to whatever vegetables you had on hand. I used shiitake mushrooms and baby bok choy, but I think that broccoli would tastes just as delicious.
You’ll want to use day-old rice in this recipe so if you don’t have leftovers naturally then plan ahead and cook the rice the night before. Making fried rice with just cooked, warm rice ensures that your dish will be soggy, without the distinct chewy grains that good fried rice has.
No day-old rice? Try this trick. Make a batch of rice and spread it in a thin layer on a sheet tray. Put the tray in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes (this keeps the grains from clumping), then stick in the freezer for 1 hour to finish drying out. Remove, bring the rice to room temperature, and you’ve got dried rice ready to go!
One last thing, you’ll want to make sure everything is ready to go before you start cooking. Fried rice should be made quickly over high-heat and you’ll loose the momentum if you need to stop to chop ingredients.
My favorite kimchi brands are Mother-In-Law’s Kimchi and Sunja’s Medium Spicy Kimchi. They are both so delicious and perfectly pungent. I think fried rice tastes best with smaller pieces of vegetables, so I always roughly chop my kimchi before adding it to the rice.
Enjoy this one! xo
Kimchi Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 1 16 ounce jar kimchi
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- 3 scallions, sliced
- 8 ounces firm tofu, drained and pressed
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
- 2 bunches baby Bok Choy, thinly sliced
- 4 ounces shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 cups cooked and cooled brown rice
- 2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Sriracha or Gochujang, optional depending on spice level
Instructions
- Drain the kimchi in a colander, reserving the liquid. Roughly chop the kimchi a few times into bite-size pieces, then set aside.
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the scallions and cook, stirring frequently, for 2-3 minutes, or until tender. Crumble in the tofu and stir to combine, cook for an additional 2-3 minutes until lightly browned. Stir in the garlic and ginger.
- Add in the bok choy and mushrooms and and cook until bok choy is bright green and tender, another 2-3 minutes. Â
- Add in the chopped kimchi and soy sauce and cook until just heated through.
- Add in the rice, 1 tablespoon reserved kimchi brine and rice wine vinegar and cook, stirring frequently, for 3-4 minutes until mixture is heated through. Season to taste, adding more soy sauce, toasted sesame oil or kimchi brine, Sriracha/Gochujang, as desired. Serve immediately.
Nutrition
