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This mouthwatering chicken fried rice recipe that’s sure to become a family favorite. This restaurant-style dish combines tender, juicy chicken with fluffy rice (leftover rice is perfect), and colorful veggies, all whipped up in the comfort of your kitchen in just 30 minutes! What I love about this recipe is its versatility; you can customize it to your heart’s content by adding your favorite vegetables, turning up the heat with some spicy peppers, or even swapping out the chicken for your preferred protein. Trust me, once you taste this homemade version, you might just bid farewell to takeout for good!
Make delicious homemade chicken fried rice in just 30 minutes. Quick, easy and perfectly satisfying, this is a tasty and full-flavored dish that never disappoints.
You might also like turkey fried rice, kimchee fried rice, hibachi fried rice, or even this unusual spam fried rice.
Why You’ll Love It
A speedy dish to make: Using leftover rice ensures you can cook this dish from scratch in under half an hour.
Tastes delicious: Chicken, veggies, rice, eggs, and Chinese seasonings taste so good together.
Easy to make: This is a very simple dish. It’s a one-skillet meal too, which cuts down on the washing up afterwards!
Chicken Fried Rice Ingredients
A complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Chicken breasts: I like to use boneless skinless chicken breasts. You could use chicken thighs if you prefer.
Toasted sesame oil: For a tasty sesame flavor.
Vegetables: Frozen peas and carrots are good in this dish, along with onion.
Long grain white rice: Leftover rice is best because it’s dryer than freshly cooked rice and therefore separates well without getting mushy. You could use brown rice or another type of cooked white rice in this dish.
Soy sauce: I use low sodium soy sauce so the dish isn’t too salty.
Butter: Adds a rich and indulgent flavor.
How to Make Chicken Fried Rice
For more detailed instructions with weights and measurements, jump to the printable recipe card.
Sauté the chicken: Season chicken and sauté it in sesame oil in a large skillet over a medium high heat. Then set the chicken aside.
Cook the vegetables and garlic: Add more oil to the skillet and cook the vegetables. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant.
Cook the eggs: Scramble the eggs in the same skillet after pushing the vegetables to one side.
The finishing touches: Put the chicken back in the skillet and add the rice, soy sauce, butter, and remaining sesame oil, toss to combine and then serve this best fried rice recipe hot.
Substitutions and Variations
Gluten free option: Make sure you’re using gluten free soy sauce (some brands contain wheat gluten).
Protein swaps: Add chicken thighs, shrimp, tofu, or diced ham.
Cooking oil: Use peanut oil, canola oil, olive oil, avocado oil or any neutral oil you prefer.
Vegetable swaps: Broccoli, diced zucchini, snow peas, shelled edamame, diced bell peppers, or baby corn are good in chicken fried rice. I like to use whatever fresh veggies I find in the crisper drawer in the fridge! This is a great recipe to use them up.
Spice it up: Add some chili paste, sriracha hot sauce, red pepper flakes, or chili crunch for some heat.
Reduced carb version: Cauliflower rice can be used as a low-carb alternative.
Garnishes: Garnish with cilantro and/or green onions.
Add a deluxe flavor: I like to add a splash of Shaoxing cooking wine (Chinese cooking wine) to mine. You can also add a little oyster sauce for umami flavor.
Serving Suggestions
Appetizers: Begin with crab cake egg rolls or ground turkey potstickers.
Side dishes: Pair your juicy chicken fried rice with zoodle salad or miso soup.
Desserts: Finish the meal with strawberry mousse tartlets.
How to Store Chicken Fried Rice
Store: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator and eat within 3 days.
Freeze: You can freeze chicken fried rice in an airtight container or Ziploc freezer bag for up to 3 months.
Thaw: Defrost in the refrigerator overnight before reheating.
Reheat: Warm your chicken fried rice back up in a skillet over a medium heat with a splash of soy sauce or chicken broth to loosen it up.
Top Tips
Use leftover rice: Use day-old cooked rice or leftover rice for the best texture. In a pinch, you can make the rice fresh but it may result in the chicken fried rice being mushy.
Cooking the chicken: Cut the chicken into even pieces to ensure evening cooking. Don’t overcrowd the pan – you might need to cook the chicken in batches.
Seasoning: Adjust the salt to your liking. If you’re using salted butter and regular soy sauce, omit the salt on the chicken.
Don’t forget the butter: Adding more butter at the end adds richness to the rice and chicken, so don’t skip it!
Best Chicken Fried Rice FAQs
I find that long grain white rice is best and, for the best results, use leftover cooked rice from a day or so ago. Freshly cooked rice has more moisture so tends to go mushy when used it a fried rice dish.
Cut them thinly and on the diagonal for the quickest cooking time. Matchstick-cut carrots are going to cook about 3 times faster than thick carrot slices, for example.
Better than Takeout Chicken Fried Rice Recipe
Chicken Fried Rice
Equipment
- Skillet Large or Wok
Ingredients
- 1 Pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, diced into ¾-inch pieces
- ½ Teaspoon salt
- ½ Teaspoon black pepper
- 1 Tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 2 Tablespoons cooking oil
- 1 white onion, small, diced, or yellow onion
- 1 ½ Cups frozen peas and carrots
- 3 Cloves garlic, minced
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 3 Cups long grain white rice, cooked
- ¼ Cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter
Instructions
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper.
- Heat 1 teaspoon of sesame oil with 1 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet or wok over a medium-high heat.
- Once hot, add the chicken and sauté until cooked through, about 6 minutes.
- Transfer the chicken to a plate and set aside.
- Add 1 teaspoon of sesame oil and the remaining tablespoon of oil to the same pan.
- Add the onions, peas and carrots, and sauté for 2 minutes.
- Add the garlic and cook for a minute or until fragrant.
- Push the vegetables to one side of the pan, add the eggs to the other side and scramble them.
- Return the chicken to the skillet along with the cooked rice, soy sauce, butter, and remaining teaspoon of sesame oil.
- Toss to combine and cook for 2 minutes or until heated through.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
Cooking the chicken: Cut the chicken into even pieces to ensure evening cooking. Don’t overcrowd the pan – you might need to cook the chicken in batches.
Seasoning: Adjust the salt to your liking. If you’re using salted butter and regular soy sauce, omit the salt on the chicken.
Don’t forget the butter: Adding more butter at the end adds richness to the rice and chicken, so don’t skip it!
Nutrition
Treat yourself to this restaurant quality fried rice dish with chicken. You might agree it’s even better than restaurant fried rice. A tasty combination of chicken, day old rice, vegetables, and Chinese seasonings in a savory sauce, this makes a flavor-packed and satisfying dinner for the whole family.
Other Recipes to Try
Bella Bucchiotti
Bella Bucchiotti is a Canadian-based syndicated food, travel, and lifestyle writer, photographer, and creator at xoxoBella. She founded xoxoBella in 2015, where she shares her love for food, dogs, sustainability, fitness, crafts, outdoor adventures, travel, and philanthropy to encourage others to run the extra mile, try new recipes, visit unfamiliar places, and stand for a cause. Bella creates stress-free and family-friendly recipes for weeknight dinners and festive feasts.
Wow, the flavors are incredible! My family devoured it in minutes.