Chicken Fried Rice

Chris loves rice dishes, so fried rice was almost guaranteed to go over well (it did thankfully). This is a pretty simple take on the dish, a staple of Chinese restaurants. You can use white or brown rice or a combination, as I did here. To make this a quick week-night dish,  cook the rice ahead of time (I did it the day before).

Chicken Fried Rice

1 lb. chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3 tbsp. soy sauce
3 tbsp. dry sherry
1 tbsp. cornstarch
3 tbsp. canola oil (vegetable or peanut oil would work too)
1 medium sweet onion, peeled and diced
1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and diced
1 carrot, peeled and diced
3/4 cup peas, fresh or frozen
1 tbsp. minced garlic (about 3 cloves)
1 tbsp. minced ginger (about 1 inch of peeled ginger root)
3 cups cooked rice (white or brown)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tsp. dark sesame oil
Freshly ground black pepper
Sesame seeds

1. Whisk together soy sauce, sherry and cornstarch. Combine chicken and soy sauce mixture in a medium-size bowl, stirring to coat chicken. Set aside to marinate a few minutes.

2. Heat 1 tbsp. oil over medium-high heat in a large sauté pan. Add onion, bell pepper and carrot and sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Add peas and cook another 2 minutes. Remove cooked vegetables from pan.

3. Add 1 tbsp. oil to pan. Add chicken with marindate and sauté until lightly browned and cooked through, about 5-7 minutes. Remove chicken from pan.

4. Add remaining 1 tbsp. oil to pan. Add garlic and ginger and sauté about 1 minute. Add cooked rice and stir to break up and mix with the oil. Make a well in the middle of the pan. Add the egg and stir to scramble. Once it solidifies, mix together with the rice. Add cooked chicken and vegetables. Add 2 tbsp. soy sauce, 2 tbsp. sherry and 1 tsp. sesame oil. Stir to combine all ingredients and cook about 2 minutes to warm through. Season with freshly ground black pepper and serve topped with sesame seeds.