Shake up your midweek meal routine with a lambtastic twist on an old favourite! My easy Chinese Style Lamb Fried Rice is easy to make, takes just 15 minutes to cook and only uses one pan – perfect for those busy weeknights or as part of a bigger spread for a Chinese themed party or Chinese New Year celebrations.
Egg fried rice is an absolute staple in my house – it’s so quick and easy and perfect for feeding hungry mouths on a busy midweek evening. It’s a brilliant way of using up leftover rice and it’s also super versatile – it can be eaten on its own, or you can throw in some cooked prawns or leftover chicken…but it also goes brilliantly with lamb!
Yes, you heard me right!! It might not be a well-known match, but lamb goes brilliantly with Chinese flavours such as soy sauce and sesame oil – and it is a really lovely addition to egg fried rice. It turns what can feel a bit like a side dish into a substantial main meal in its own right and makes humble egg fried rice seem like real treat.
And my Chinese Style Lamb Fried Rice is so quick and easy to make too! If you are starting with ready cooked rice (either leftover from last night’s meal, or buy it in one of those pre-cooked microwavable bags), this Chinese Style Lamb Fried Rice can be made in just 15 minutes – perfect if you haven’t got a lot of time but you still want to eat well.
Egg fried rice is best made with cold, cooked rice – which is why leftover rice, or those precooked rice packs you can buy from the supermarket, are perfect for this recipe!
But, if you haven’t got any cold, cooked rice, then it’s the simplest thing to make some first before you start this recipe. Simply cook 200g long grain, basmati or jasmine rice in 400ml boiling water, over a low heat, with the lid on, until the water is all absorbed and the rice is cooked through (usually 7-10 mins). But then, THIS IS THE IMPORTANT BIT, cool it down by putting the rice in a large sieve and running cold water over it until its cool, then drain thoroughly. Then you can continue with the recipe. (Don’t use hot rice as it really doesn’t work well.)
Even if you have to cook up some rice first, this Chinese Style Lamb Fried Rice recipe still takes less than 30 minutes.
I have kept this recipe super simple – for me it is a quick midweek supper, but if you want to get a bit more fancy, you could add some garlic, ginger, spring onions, sweetcorn, diced carrot, red peppers or fresh red chillies. A scattering of coriander also works really well with this dish.
And, if you are trying to be a bit healthier at the moment, this works brilliantly with brown rice too!
Although this Chinese Style Lamb Fried Rice makes a fab meal in its own right, this would also work well as part of a larger spread with other Chinese inspired dishes, such as stir fries and noodles – perfect for celebrating Chinese New Year!
Chinese Style Lamb Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 500 g lamb mince
- 500 g cold, cooked white rice (long grain/basmati/jasmine all work well)
- 2 large eggs beaten
- 4 tablespoons soy sauce (or gluten free tamari)
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 100 g frozen peas
- Fresh coriander, chopped spring onions or sliced red chillies to garnish (optional)
Method
- Stir-fry the lamb mince in a wok or very large non-stick frying pan over a high heat until browned. Drain off as much of the fat as possible.
- Add the cooked rice and continue stir-frying for 3 minutes.
- Make a well in the centre of the rice/lamb mix and add the beaten egg. Allow to cook for 30 seconds, then mix in with the rice/lamb mix and stir-fry for a further 3 minutes.
- Add the soy sauce, sesame oil and peas and cook for 1 more minute or until the peas are cooked and you are starting to get lots of lovely crispy bits!
- Serve scattered with coriander, chopped spring onions or sliced red chillies.
Notes
To create 500g cold, cooked rice, simply cook 200g long grain, basmati or jasmine rice in 400ml boiling water, over a low heat, with the lid on, until the water is all absorbed and the rice is cooked through (usually 7-10 mins). Cool it down by putting the rice in a large sieve and running cold water over it until cool, then drain thoroughly.
Nutrition information is approximate and meant as a guideline only.
This is a collaborative post with the ‘LAMB. Tasty Easy Fun’ campaign. ‘LAMB. Tasty Easy Fun’ is an EU funded campaign which aims to increase the use of lamb in everyday cooking. Lamb is often considered difficult to cook, expensive, or something to be saved for Sunday roasts. The aim of the campaign is to demonstrate just how tasty, easy and fun lamb is to cook with every day of the week! They also have a wonderful website, full of tasty and easy lamb recipes that go way beyond the traditional roast lamb we all know and love.
Want more delicious lamb recipes? Find more here…
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Linkies
I am linking this up to Brilliant Blog Posts, Cook Blog Share, Free From Fridays and Recipe of the Week.
I know I’ve said this before and I’ll probably say it again: you’re the queen of one-pot dishes! If I need a one-pot recipe, I’ll always come your way 🙂 xxx Thanks for joining in with #FreeFromFridays.
Haha – you are so right. I just love a one pot dish! I am always frustrated when I read a recipe, which sounds lovely, but you just know would use just about every pot and pan in the house (Celebrity chefs, who clearly have someone else to do the washing up, I am looking at YOU!). For me easy food is not easy unless it is also easy on the washing up too!! Eb x
I second Mel’s comment! Mind you we are huge fans of fried rice dishes….. not least because we always cook way too much rice. That may of course not be a coincidence….. perhaps we know there is a tasty fried rice dish at the end of it….. and it goes well with pretty much any additions! x
Hi again Eb. I notice you have linked this dish to Free From Fridays as GF and DF. You might want to put a note by your soy sauce in the ingredients section, to ensure people use GF Tamari Soy sauce as normal soy sauce contains wheat…. xx
Oooh – thanks for that tip Kate – I usually do say that when I put soy sauce in my dishes, but must have skipped my mind this time. I will go and amend right now! Eb x
Haha – I’m going to have to get a cabinet to fit all my accolades in soon…queen of one pot, queen of traybakes, queen of 30 minute meals 😀 But seriously, I am chuffed that I am known for easy, tasty food – that’s what I aim for in every recipe! I can totally understand the accidentally/on purpose cooking of too much rice – fried rice is so delicious! Eb x
What can I say another fantastic one-pot mid-week meal.
Aw, thanks Jacqui 🙂 Eb x
This is beautiful. I learned from a friend to combine my brown jasmine rice with long-grain sticky white rice to use for casserole-type dairy-free meals. We’ve been mixing in all sorts of good savories, but I hadn’t tried lamb yet. Love it!
Yum! That sounds lovely. I definitely recommend you add some lamb into the mix – it works so well!! Eb x