Char Siu Fried Rice, is full of sweet, salty, and spicy flavors! Made with char siu, also known as Chinese BBQ pork, white rice, and plenty of seasonings, sauces, and other aromatics, it’s a restaurant-quality meal that’s so easy to make.
Restaurant-Inspired Char Siu Fried Rice
I love ordering Chinese takeout. It’s such a fun treat that everyone in my house loves. Now, as easy as it is to make a quick phone call and then wait for my delivery, I wanted to try to make one of my favorite dishes — char siu fried rice — from scratch!
It’s not the first time I’ve recreated a take-out meal. Crispy pork belly in the air fryer, Instant Pot sweet and sour spare ribs, and Chinese crispy noodles are just a few. Today’s recipe starts with another favorite: char siu Chinese BBQ pork. It’s the perfect way to use leftovers. This dish boasts a complex flavor but is oh-so-simple to whip up. Add in some white rice and some flavorful add-ons and you’ve got yourself a warm and filling char siu rice. It all comes together in about 20 minutes — faster than waiting around for your food to get delivered!
Char Siu Fried Rice Key Ingredients
(Full recipe instructions and ingredient amounts are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post)
- Char Siu Pork. Use my recipe to make your own from scratch — as I mentioned, it’s a great way to make use of any leftovers.
- Onion & Garlic. These aromatics are essential for this char siu rice recipe! They add so much savory flavor.
- Ginger. Peppery, sweet, and warm, ginger also adds a lot of flavor to the overall results.
- White Rice. I like to use cooked white rice for this dish, as it retains its fluffy texture when fried. You can use brown rice if you’d like.
- Shoyu. Also called Japanese soy sauce, shoyu is a staple in my kitchen. It has a salty and umami flavor that I can’t get enough of.
- Oyster Sauce. To add a bit more umami to the mix. Oyster sauce is sweet, salty, and a little bit tangy.
- Eggs. A key ingredient for most fried rice dishes! Eggs make this meal even more hearty.
How to make perfect Char Siu Fried Rice
Heat the char siu. Add your cooking oil of choice to a large wok or frying pan over medium-high heat and cook the char siu until it is warmed completely.
Add the aromatics. Add the onions to the pan and cook until fragrant. Then, add the garlic and ginger and continue to cook until the onions become translucent.
Incorporate the rice & sauces. Place the cooked white rice in the pan and stir to combine. Then, drizzle in the shoyu, oyster sauce, and sesame oil. Mix until the ingredients are well combined.
Mix in the eggs. Create a well in the center of the rice and pork mixture. Add the eggs to a small bowl with salt and pepper and whisk to combine. Pour the eggs into the well and scramble to your preference.
Mix, toss, & serve. Mix the scrambled eggs into the char siu rice, then top with green onions. Toss until just combined and eat it while it’s hot!
Tips
- Use a wok. While you can definitely use a standard frying pan to make this char siu rice recipe, I prefer to use a wok. It’s the perfect pan to make fried rice!
- Don’t skip the sauces. Make sure to use the shoyu, oyster sauce, and sesame oil as instructed. These sauces add so much to the flavor profile of this dish.
- Cold rice is best. This char siu fried rice dish is the ultimate way to use up any leftovers. Cold rice fries up a lot better than warm, so if you do use fresh rice, make sure to chill it thoroughly before getting started.
Frequently asked Questions about Char Siu Rice
Traditional Chinese pork fried rice is made with pork, eggs, rice, vegetables, and several different sauces and seasonings. My version is made with Chinese BBQ pork for even more added flavor! If you do want to add some veggies to the mix, I recommend using carrots and peas.
The distinct red color in char siu fried rice is thanks to the Chinese BBQ pork. It’s prepared with red food coloring in order to achieve the color normally associated with the dish.
It all goes back to using cold rice. It fries up wonderfully! Using warm rice could give you mushy or even soggy results.
Other Chinese-Inspired Dishes You’ll Love
- 25 Minute Beef Tomato Recipe
- Honey Walnut Shrimp Recipe
- Hawaiian Style Chow Fun
- Won Ton Chips
- Prune Mui
Char Siu Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil
- 1 pound char siu thinly sliced into bite sized pieces
- 1 small onion finely diced
- 3 cloves garlic finely diced
- 1 inch ginger finely minced
- 4 cups white rice cooked
- 3 tablespoon shoyu
- 2 tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 3 stalks green onion thinly sliced
Instructions
- Set a large wok or pan over medium high heat. Add cooking oil of choice and char siu. Cook until the char siu has heated through.
- Then add onions. Cook until fragrant. Next add garlic and ginger. Continue cooking until the onions have become translucent.
- Add the rice to the wok and stir to combine.
- Next drizzle over shoyu, oyster sauce, and sesame oil. Mix until well combined.
- Create a well in the center of the rice. Add eggs to a small bowl along with salt and pepper. Whisk to combine and pour into the well in the rice. Scramble eggs to your preference and cook through.
- Then mix eggs into the rice. Top with green onions. Toss until just combined. Serve hot and ENJOY!
Notes
Tips
- Use a wok. While you can definitely use a standard frying pan to make this char siu rice recipe, I prefer to use a wok. It’s the perfect pan to make fried rice!
- Don’t skip the sauces. Make sure to use the shoyu, oyster sauce, and sesame oil as instructed. These sauces add so much to the flavor profile of this dish.
- Cold rice is best. This char siu fried rice dish is the ultimate way to use up any leftovers. Cold rice fries up a lot better than warm, so if you do use fresh rice, make sure to chill it thoroughly before getting started.
Nutrition
© Relle Lum for Keeping It Relle. Please do not copy and paste or screenshot recipes online or on social media. I’d love it if you share a link with a photo instead. Mahalo!
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I don’t use my wok often enough but I used it for this recipe and boy was it good! We ate all of it and the kids asked for it again soon!
So great to hear. Thank you for sharing. Isn’t the wok awesome!
This was so tasty and easy to make! I have always wanted to make authentic pork dishes like this one but have been intimidated. You made this easy enough that even I could make it! Thanks for the great recipe!
Aloha Brooke. So great to hear. Thank you.
Anything with onions, garlic, and ginger to me is just bliss. This fried rice has such a delicious fragrance you’ll want to dive in immediately!
Agreed. Thank you for stopping by.
This was unbelievably delicious. I made this for a few friends and it was a huge hit! Will definitely be making this again.
Yay. So happy to hear. Thank you for sharing.
The spice combo here was divine! And it made excellent leftovers the next day. Already can’t wait to make it again – thanks! 🙂
Thank you. It’s one of my favorites.
So ONO! I’ve made fried rice forever with either bacon or spam; had some leftover char siu in the freezer so gave this a try! My husband, who’s a ‘local boy’(!) said it was the best he’s EVER had! I think the oyster sauce put it over the top! Mahalo!
Oh that’s so great to hear. Thank you for sharing. If you wouldn’t mind, can you give this recipe a star rating by clicking the stars in the recipe card. I appreciate you!