To make baked fried rice, just place uncooked rice, stock, soy sauce and a few other flavourings in a baking pan, give it a mix then shove it in the oven. Out comes fluffy, seasoned fried rice that’s so good, you may never wok-toss fried rice ever again!
(Well, maybe not. Nothing beats the real deal, after all. But this emergency version is excellent for the minimal effort required!)
Emergency baked fried rice
OK, you’re right, this isn’t fried rice per se! It’s a baked rice. But I call it a baked fried rice because it’s everything we love about fried rice, without the frying! It will save you on all those nights when you’re scrambling for a quick side dish that will go with almost everything and please everyone.
Unlike the normal way fried rice is cooked, there’s no need to plan ahead and cook rice the day before so that it has time to dry out overnight in the fridge. You don’t even need to chop anything (hello, frozen veg!).
Just dump everything in the pan – uncooked rice, stock, frozen pre-chopped vegetables, raw bacon – then whack it in the oven. There’s no need to stir while cooking – in fact, I forbid it, because it makes the rice mushy!
And for all that effort, you will be rewarded with THIS ↓↓↓ (“this” being a big pan of fluffy seasoned fried rice that’s littered with vegetables and oh wow, even the bacon is nice and golden!!🙌🏻)
Ingredients for baked fried rice
This is an excellent recipe to customise and make your own, with lots of options for changing up add-ins! Here’s what I use in this baked fried rice recipe:
Rice – Best made with long grain white rice because it’s the least sticky. This means you get that nice, crumbly and fluffy fried rice texture with this “dump ‘n bake” cooking method.
Other rice types that work:
→ Basmati rice: Has the same fluffy texture but you get the basmati aroma (it’s not traditional with fried rice seasoning, but it’s rather nice!)
→ Medium and short grain white rice: Works perfectly but these rices are a bit stickier so don’t expect quite the same rice texture you see in the video (it will clump a little more).
→ Jasmine rice: Reduce water by 1/4 cup (water to rice ratio is lower, see here for cooking plain jasmine rice).This recipe won’t work as-written for the following: Brown rice, paella or risotto rice, wild rice, quinoa or other speciality rices. I’d need to figure out special liquid/rice ratios and bake times, which I have not done!
Stock/broth – Chicken stock will give a better flavour (it’s not chicken-y as such, it has just a more deeply seasoned flavour), but vegetable stock works just fine too. Whichever you use, make sure it’s low sodium otherwise the rice ends up a tad saltier than is ideal.
Don’t have liquid stock? Use water plus stock powder. Make up 2 cups according to the stock powder directions and use per the recipe.
Vegetables – Because this is conceived as a recipe for “dinner emergencies”, I’ve used frozen diced vegetables here. Fresh vegetables can be used, but you’ll need to increase the water by 1/4 cup because the liquid to rice ratio factors in the water that comes off the frozen vegetables (a surprising amount!).
Garlic – I can’t ever imagine making any type of fried rice without garlic. And that includes an emergency baked version!
Bacon (uncooked) or ham – Just like we do in wok tossed fried rice! Here, it’s scattered across the surface and it adds flavour into the stock as it cooks.
There’s no need to cook the bacon beforehand, it will brown at the end when we finish the rice off uncovered in the oven.
Soy sauce – I’ve used light soy sauce here which adds seasoning without discolouring the rice too much. All purpose soy sauce will work just fine too.
Dark soy sauce – It’s much more intense in flavour so use half the quantity and be prepared for your rice to be much browner in colour.
Chinese cooking wine (Shaoxing wine) – adds umami / depth of flavour which is important for this method of cooking that skips the usual “sauté garlic and onion” etc.
Best substitute – Dry sherry, followed by cooking sake, followed by mirin (though rice will be a touch sweeter).
Non alcoholic option – Skip the wine and add an extra 1/2 tbsp of soy sauce PLUS add 30g / 2 tbsp of unsalted butter with the sesame (butter compensates for loss of flavour from skipping the cooking wine). It’s not the same, but equally delicious!
Pepper – For a touch of warmth. White pepper is typically used for fried rice because you can’t see it. Substitute with black pepper.
Sesame oil & green onion – For finishing. We add sesame oil at the end to preserve the flavour, and the green onion is tossed through at the end for a hit of freshness and colour.
How to make baked fried rice
Are you ready to see how easy it is??
Put the uncooked rice into the baking pan;
Add everything else except the bacon;
Give it a mix, then scatter the bacon across the surface (because we want it to get some colour when we bake it uncovered);
Cover with foil and bake 40 minutes at 200°C / 390°F (180°C fan);
Remove foil and bake for a further 15 minutes. This gives the bacon some nice colour;
Remove from the oven, cover with foil then let it rest for 10 minutes. To finish the dish, add sesame oil and green onion, fluff with a fork then serve!
Why we rest rice – When you take it out of the oven, there should be no liquid left in the pan and the rice will be cooked through though a tiny bit firmer than ideal. You’ll also notice that the surface of the rice grains will be wet.
When we rest the rice for 10 minutes, the grains finish cooking through using the residual heat, and the wetness on the rice grains gets absorbed. This is an essential step with any rice you cook, no matter what method you use – stove, absorption, boil and drain, oven, microwave or rice cooker!
Here’s a nice close up for you so you can see how the grains are fluffy and separated, and how the bacon bits are lovely and golden.
No mushy, overcooked rice in sight!
What to serve with baked fried rice
Serve to accompany dishes you would with fried rice, which these days is far and beyond just Asian foods! Try it with the Mushroom Stuffed Chicken I shared a couple of weeks ago, or as a side for a fillet of seasoned pan fried fish.
Pair it with something sticky like this Chilli Chicken, Honey Garlic Chicken or a tropical Hawaiian Huli-Huli chicken. For vegetarian options, skip the bacon and instead, pile over juicy and buttery garlic mushrooms or a medley of marinated grilled vegetables.
The rules are: there are no rules! This is a rice side that will go with virtually anything, Asian or not! – Nagi x
PS. I just had a fleeting thought. If you’d like to turn this into a meal, trying stirring through a big handful of baby spinach or chopped English spinach when fluffing it up at the end. By upping the veg in this, it would be great as a meal!
Watch how to make it
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Emergency “Dump ‘n Bake” Fried Rice
Ingredients
Baked Fried Rice:
- 1 1/2 cups long grain white rice , UNCOOKED (Note 1)
- 2 cups chicken or veg stock , low sodium
- 1 1/2 tbsp light soy sauce (Note 2)
- 1 tbsp Chinese cooking wine (dry sherry, mirin or sake, Note 3)
- 2 garlic cloves , minced with crusher (straight into pan)
- 2 cups frozen diced veg (carrots, peas, corn mix, Note 4 fresh veg)
- 1/4 tsp white pepper
- 1 1/4 cups / 180g bacon (uncooked) or ham , chopped (I use store bought chopped bacon, Note 5)
Finishing:
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1/2 cup green onion , finely sliced (2 – 3 stems)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200°C / 390°F (180°C fan).
- Mix ingredients in baking dish: Place all Baked Fried Rice ingredients except bacon in a baking dish (~22 x 32cm / 9 x 13"). Stir, then spread rice evenly across pan.
- Top with bacon: Scatter bacon across surface.
- Bake covered 40 min: Cover with foil. Bake 40 minutes.
- Bake uncovered 15 min: Remove foil. Bake uncovered 15 minutes – this will colour the bacon. Liquid should be absorbed, rice should be cooked (but will seem wet, will absorb and soften while resting).
- Rest 10 min: Cover loosely with foil, stand for 10 minutes.
- Fluff: Add green onion and sesame oil. Fluff rice with fork, marvel at how perfectly cooked the rice grains are. Serve!
Recipe Notes:
1. Rice types – Best made with long grain rice because it’s the least sticky so you get that nice crumbly, fluffy fried rice texture with this “dump ‘n bake” cooking method. Other rice types that work:
- Basmati rice – same fluffy texture but you get the basmati aroma (it’s not traditional with fried rice seasoning, but it’s rather nice!)
- Medium and short grain white rice – works perfectly but the rice is a bit stickier (that’s the way it is) so don’t expect the same rice texture you see in the video (it will clump a little more).
- Jasmine rice – NOT RECOMMENDED. This rice is softer and difficult to get exactly right for this recipe.
- Carrots, peas, corn, onion – use in recipe as written.
- Cauliflower, broccoli, green beans, asparagus, zucchini, capsicum/bell peppers (chopped) – add them 30 min into bake time.
- Egg – Cook separately and stir in when fluffing rice. Either scramble, or make ribbons (cook a thin omelette using 2 whisked eggs, roll it up like a cigar then finely slice)
- Cooked chicken (or other cooked protein), char siu – dice or shred, toss on top of rice when resting (residual heat will warm up), then mix through well fluffing rice.
- Raw prawns/shrimp – small ones. When you remove the foil, scatter them across the surface, pop into oven for the last 15 min uncovered bake time.
- Baby spinach or chopped spinach – Stir it through at end with fluffing rice, residual heat will make it wilt.
- Spicy! Add a squirt of sriracha or dollop of your favourite chilli paste during cooking, or stir through a big handful of chopped kimchi just before serving.
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
Weekend car problems. Dozer was keen to help. (Well that’s a big fat lie! We all know he was just snuffling around for treats from the road side assistance man.)
This baked fried rice is ridiculous…ridiculously AMAZING! Omg, Nagi, I won’t be making rice any other way! I used jasmine rice and while you said to decrease the liquid by 1/4 c. for this type of rice, when I pulled it out after the 40 minute cook, it looked very dry, so I added it back in. The finished rice was just perfect! This is the third recipe I’ve made of yours (I’m relatively new to your site) and all have been just delicious. Thank you so, so much! Btw, did I miss it somewhere? I’m wondering about the name of your blog, recipetineats, and what it means. Thanks Nagi – you’re the best!!
Thank you Rose! So glad you enjoyed it! N x
I have tried many recipes for fried rice over the years and have always been disappointed. But took a chance with yours and I have to tell you just how wonderful it is. Thank you so much. I make it regularly now and thoroughly enjoy it. I sometimes add pineapple chunks and cooked prawns. My sincere thanks. I also follow your other recipes and have quite a collection of ones I now use.
Thanks! N x
Hi Nagi,
I’ve just discovered your exciting recipes.
I’m in the middle of the whole orange cake recipe.
Oranges are boiled (3 separate time X 10 minutes, as per recommendation) and blitzed.
However, I’ve just realised the only 2 round springform tins I have are 23cm, not 20cm.
I do have a loaf tin app of (app) 11X12cm dimensions.
Do you think this would work?
I’m obviously an amateur-I used to love cooking when I was young and have just started trying again to help with severe depression.
I’d really appreciate your advice.
I can’t bring myself to brave the shops yet for a new tin.
Hi Debra…well done to you for doing something good for yourself and something you love. You can definitely cook the orange cake in a 23cm tin so NO NEED to head to the shops. See the notes below the recipe…Note 5 says I usually cook it in a 23cm tin. Good luck! N x 😃
Thank you so much for your kind reply, N agi.
I put the orange pulp in fridge last night and will use it today, then.
Fingers crossed!
This is such an excellent recipe. So easy and so delicious. A big hit in our family!
Quick, easy, delicious! What’s not to like?? N x
Magic! This is definitely going into my “keepers” recipe file – so easy to make and so flexible – works with whatever I have in the fridge 😀
Absolutely delicious and so simple to make AND it tastes like authentic fried rice (I should never have doubted Nagi 😂). Mirin works really well! Another brilliant recipe!
Loved the ease of it. I will try adding the 1/4 cup extra liquid next time. It was a tad undercooked. I added 4 scrambled eggs, the crispy onions and some bean sprouts when it came out of the oven with the sesame oil.
So easy, so tasty! 4th time now – everybody loves it!
Came across this dish and saved it because of the easy factor! Have cooked it a few times now and it’s a winner in this household. I always add egg to round out the dish, and the family line up with their bowls. Thanks for a great time saving recipe that makes me feel all fancy pants!
I wasn’t sure either how this was going to turn out but it was delicious and so easy and my four critics were impressed with the crispy rice and bacon bits!! thumbs up to this one. thank you Nagi!
I have made this dish 3 times now, & it has been excellent. Cooked a variety of your recipes all stunning. My vegan partner loves it. I teamed it with chickenless schnitzel. So he only ate it this time,but to my amazement this morning the remainder was eaten cold. So much for leftovers. Thank you for your recipes.
I’ve made this several times and it’s a winner! Have used fresh and frozen (chunky-style) veg with 100% success. I keep it vegetarian and follow Nagi’s tips incl egg and fried asian shallots in packet for flavour punch. This is a keeper. Thanks Nagi!
Thanks for a quick fried rice recipe -you don’t have to worry about having leftover rice.
I’m not a big eater of bacon so I put cooked mushrooms with the egg at the end – sooo good with mushrooms 🍄 👍
This is the best “fried rice” recipe I have ever been able to make at home. So easy to make and tastes fantastic. The rice comes out of the oven perfectly cooked, fluffy with the grains separated.
I make a lot of Nagi recipes. Love them all for their taste, plus the recipes are always so easy to follow.
Thanks Nagi this is the best recipe site on the net.
Kind Regards
Ian.
Just eating it now and it’s great. After fluffing it up I had the same astonished expression I had as a newly wed after making that upside down throw everything in magic pudding from decades ago. Thanks Nagi it will make a regular appearance here.
Yummylicious!
Didn’t think it would turn out this good. Amazing flavour, I want this with EVERYTHING. All the time! Love it.
Got my eye on that flaky pastry meat pie next. Oh yes!
Easy peasy, so convenient, always have these ingredients on hand so makes this the perfect emergency (can’t be bothered cooking) meal. Love it, thanks again Nagi.
Omg made this for dinner tonight…it was sooooooo easy and yummy ..thank you love all your recipe’s..
I made this for dinner tonight. I have to admit, I didn’t hold high hopes. I was worried that the rice wouldn’t be cooked and I was mentally thinking of plan b meals. I’m happy to admit my fears were unfounded! It was amazing!
I used brown basmati rice and I cooked bacon and egg separately so I could serve it to my vegan Mum before I stirred them in. Next time I’ll try and make it less salty.
All in all, a delicious and easy meal! Thanks Nagi.
Loved this recipe, it is now a firm favourite weekly go to meal. It is so easy to prepare and cook and we all love the taste. We make it without the wine so add the extra soy sauce and butter, I am going to try it with sesame seeds instead of the oil. Sure it will be great.