Yangzhou Fried Rice
Day-old rice, char siu, shrimp, egg, peas — the canonical fried rice.
Ingredients
- 600 g Jasmine rice
- 150 g Shrimp
- 150 g Pork loin
- 3 Egg
- 100 g Snow peas
- 10 g Ginger
- 2 tbsp Light soy sauce
- 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine
- 3 tbsp Peanut oil
- 1 tsp Salt
- 3 Scallions (optional)
- 1 tsp White pepper (optional)
- 1 tsp Toasted sesame oil (optional)
Method
- Fluff the cold rice with wet fingers to break up the clumps.
- Mince the ginger. Slice the scallions thin, separating whites and greens.
- Dice the pork into small cubes. Peel and devein the shrimp.
- Beat the eggs with a pinch of salt and the white pepper.
- Heat the wok dry until smoking. Add a little peanut oil and pour in the eggs. Scramble loosely, then tip onto a plate.
- Add a little more oil. Sear the pork until crisp at the edges.
- Add the shrimp and toss until pink and curled. Scoop everything onto the egg plate.
- Add a final splash of oil. Fry the ginger and scallion whites until fragrant, about 15 seconds.
- Tip in the rice. Press and toss against the hot wok until it sears and dances in the pan.
- Return the pork, shrimp, and egg. Add the snow peas. Splash the soy and wine around the rim of the wok.
- Toss until everything is glossed and steaming. Finish with the scallion greens and sesame oil.
- Plate at once into wide bowls.
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About Yangzhou Fried Rice
Yangzhou fried rice is the benchmark against which other fried rices are measured, a Huaiyang classic from the city of Yangzhou that is deliberately restrained and elegant rather than heavy. It brings together a small confetti of ingredients — char siu-style pork, shrimp, egg, peas, and scallion — over grains of rice that stay separate and distinct. The defining requirement is cold, day-old jasmine rice, fluffed with wet fingers to break the clumps, because fresh rice steams and clumps in the wok while dried-out grains fry up loose and toothsome.
What makes this fried rice sing is technique more than any single flavor: the wok is heated dry until smoking, the eggs are scrambled loose and set aside, and the pork is seared until its edges crisp before everything is folded back together. The result is delicate and layered — sweet pork, plump shrimp, silky egg, the snap of snow peas, and the aromatic lift of ginger and scallion whites, all seasoned lightly with soy, Shaoxing wine, and white pepper rather than drowned in sauce. It is a full meal on its own or the anchor of a larger Chinese spread, and because it comes together in about twenty minutes it is an ideal way to turn leftover rice and small amounts of protein into something that tastes intentional.
Yangzhou Fried Rice: frequently asked questions
How many calories are in Yangzhou Fried Rice?
A serving has about 464 calories — 26.6g protein, 47.9g carbs, 18.3g fat, 2.4g fiber. Figures are estimated from the ingredient amounts and will shift with your portions and brands.
Is it high in protein?
Each serving has about 26.6g of protein, roughly 23% of its calories.
Is Yangzhou Fried Rice gluten-free?
As written, no — it contains Light soy sauce. You'd need a certified gluten-free swap for that ingredient to make it gluten-free.
Do I need every ingredient to make Yangzhou Fried Rice?
The core ingredients are essential, but you can leave out scallions, white pepper, toasted sesame oil — they're optional and mainly there for extra flavor or finish.
How many servings does Yangzhou Fried Rice make?
This recipe makes 4 servings. In the app you can scale it up or down and the ingredient amounts adjust automatically.