Fried Rice Recipe for Meal Prep

As a mom, one of my many jobs is to make sure my kids are eating their full serving of veggies and creating a food menu that they actually eat. I got sick and tired of cooking healthy meals that just ended up in the leftover containers or upgraded for cereal. So I started cooking their favorite foods right at home, like fried rice. This is not only one of my husband’s favorite side dishes but my kids too. I love cooking this dish because it’s full of different veggies and super easy to make when meal prepping for the week.

Umm did I mention how inexpensive it is to make fried rice over buying it? Now,  I am no Aysha Curry in the kitchen, but this dish is always highly requested for our weekly meal prep. We use to buy the frozen fried rice at Trader Joes every other week, but now that small bag is not enough. I’m telling you once you buy the few ingredients needed you will keep being asked to make fried rice at least once a week. For my family, this dish has been a game changer and pairs well with so many meals.

Turn boring meal prep into the food your looking forward to eating at home. Say bye bye to drive-thru Panda Express.

Meal Prep Ideas

So one item I still buy from Trader Joes is the frozen orange chicken that pairs excellently with fried rice. But more recently I have been reserving my fried rice for my vegan meals like fried tofu with Hoisin sauce. That’s the great thing about this dish, you can throw any meat or vegan options on top and it’s a delicious full meal.

Here are some of my favorite meat and vegan options that just need some Hoisin or Teriyaki sauce and your good to go:

• Chicken
• Beef
• Shrimp
• Tofu

Ingredients

So most of these ingredients I normally bulk up on from Costco for a very reasonable price. The fish sauce is probably the only ingredient you won’t be able to find at Costco. I usually buy this sauce at my regular supermarket in the international section. When it comes to the frozen mixed veggies it’s super easy to bulk up at these whenever they’re on sale at your supermarket.

So, let’s go over what you’ll need to get this dish for your weekly meal prep.

• 2 tbs of butter

• 2-3 eggs

• 1 bag of frozen mixed veggies

• 2 cups of cold cooked rice

• 1 tbs Fish sauce (to taste)

• 5 tbs Soy Sauce (to taste)

Cooking Secrets

I want to share two secrets that I’ve learned while learning how to cook fried rice.

1. Use butter instead of oil or cooking spray. The butter ups the good flavor of the ingredients compared to using oil.
2. For the white rice, you want to either refrigerate your rice for an hour before making your fried rice or use leftover rice that’s cold. This avoids the rice from getting sticky and absorbs the flavor instead of soaking it.

Directions

1. First, you want to cook 2 cups of white rice and either refrigerate for an hour before making or use cold leftover rice as noted above. I usually cook my rice in the rice cooker to save some time and energy.
2. Second, you want to cook the scrambled eggs with 1 tbs of butter for maximum flavor. Usually, 2-3 eggs are enough for 2 cups of rice. When the eggs are almost done cooking add some salt to taste and once fully cooked then place in a dish on the side.
3. After that, you want to add 1 tbs of butter to the pot and add the frozen mixed veggie. Mix in the garlic once the veggies really start cooking.
4. Once the veggies and garlic are done cooking usually within a few minutes of sauteing, you want to add the cold rice. After that, you will add in the fish sauce and soy sauce to taste.
5. Lastly, you want to turn the heat off and add the scrambled eggs back in. Then just make sure you mix everything in good.
6. Then enjoy with your desired toppings.