A vibrant, aromatic, spicy Singapore fried rice recipe filled with delicious flavors and textures. Chilies, vegetables and peanuts give this dish a unique and memorable taste that is sure to have you wanting more. Serve this dish as a main without any sides.
About Singapore Fried Rice
Singapore fried rice is one of the many different types of fried rice fusion recipes and has nothing to do with Singapore. It’s a spicy rice recipe that is part of the menu of many Chinese restaurants and street food takeaways in India.
I make my this dish the same way I make my Singapore fried noodles. You don’t need any accompanying dish with it. You can serve it with any sauce you fancy or it can be served plain.
To make the dish, you need to have your cooked rice ready. You can steam or cook the rice. Leftover rice is also great.
When I’m cooking rice for recipes like these, I prefer rice that is cooked al dente. Too soft or too hard may render the recipe unpalatable.
A disadvantage of rice cooked al dente is that the rice grains may break into tiny pieces. So, to avoid breaking the grains, remember to mix gently.
The recipe requires vegetables. When making such recipes that need many different veggies, I suggest to use a food processor or food chopper to cut the veggies as it’s easier and quicker
This is a spicy recipe as red chilies are used, this also gives smoky pungent notes to the dish. Feel free to reduce the spiciness to suit your taste by simply adding less red chilies, less of the sriracha, and chili sauce.
How to Make Singapore Fried Rice
Cook Rice
1. Rinse 1 cup of basmati rice or any non-sticky long grained rice very well in water till the water runs clear of starch.
Then soak the rice in enough water for 20 to 30 minutes. After 20 to 30 minutes drain all the water from the rice and keep it aside.
2. Add 4.5 cups of water into a pot or pan and add ½ teaspoon salt.
3. Bring the water to a boil on high heat.
4. Add the rice to the rolling boil. Gently stir with a fork or spoon. Cook the rice uncovered on medium to high flame.
This is the rapid boiling method of cooking rice. Hence, there is no need to cover the pan with a lid.
5. Cook till the rice grains are al dente (almost cooked: not too soft and not too hard).
6. Gently rinse the rice with running water and strain with a colander or strainer. This will stop the rice from further cooking.
Cover and keep the rice aside till it cools down. The rice has to be cooled at room temperature before you add it to the stir-fried veggies.
7. While the rice is cooling, it’s time to prep your veggies. You will need the following veggies:
- ⅓ cup of chopped spring onions (scallions)
- ¾ cup of finely chopped or shredded cabbage
- ½ cup of finely chopped carrots or shredded carrots
- ⅓ cup of finely chopped capsicum or thinly sliced capsicum
- ¼ cup of finely chopped french beans
You can add your choice of mixed vegetables. You can add onions instead of spring onions. Remember to finely chop the french beans so that they cook well.
Stir Fry
8. Heat 3 tablespoons of oil in a heavy wok or pan. Keep the heat to a low, add ½ tablespoon finely chopped garlic. You can use sesame or peanut or sunflower oil.
10. Add 2 to 3 dry red chilies (broken and without the seeds) immediately after adding chopped garlic. You can reduce the red chilies as required.
11. Fry till the color of the red chilies darken a bit. Do not burn the chilies.
12. Then add ⅓ cup of chopped spring onions or green onions.
13. Increase the heat to medium or high and stir for a minute.
14. Then add 10 to 12 cashews. You may add 1 tablespoon of roasted peanuts instead of cashews.
15. Stir fry for half a minute.
16. Now add the mix chopped veggies – cabbage, carrots, capsicum, and french beans.
17. Mix very well.
18. Begin to stir fry the veggies on a medium to high heat. Stir regularly.
19. On a medium to high heat stir fry for about 6 to 8 minutes or till you see some golden spots on the edges of the chopped veggies.
20. Reduce the heat. Then add the following spices:
- ¼ teaspoon of Kashmiri red chili powder or paprika or cayenne pepper
- ¼ teaspoon of ground black pepper or white pepper
- ½ teaspoon of coriander powder (ground coriander)
- ½ teaspoon of garam masala powder or curry powder
21. Mix very well.
22. Add the the below listed sauces:
- ½ tablespoon of soy sauce (I have used naturally brewed soy sauce)
- ½ tablespoon of red chili sauce or sriracha sauce
- 2 tablespoons tomato ketchup
23. Mix very well again.
Make Singapore Fried Rice
24. Add the cooked rice. You can add rice in parts if you want.
25. Season with salt as per taste.
26. Begin to mix.
27. Mix very well.
28. Add ½ teaspoon of rice vinegar or white vinegar. Mix again. Check the taste add more ground spices, sauces, and salt as required.
Remember to mix gently to avoid breaking your rice grains into tiny pieces. Mix thoroughly to get even color.
29. Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of chopped spring onion greens.
30 Serve veggie Singapore Fried Rice hot or warm.
Expert Tips
- Rice: Singapore rice requires that the rice is cooked al dente. It comes out right if your rice is not too soft and not too hard.
Correct rice prep is also important for example, add water through rice immediately after cooking and strain out the water. The rice must have cooled down before it is added to the mix, do not add hot rice to the stir fry to prevent mushy fried rice. - Mixed veggies: I always make sure that the French beans are finely chopped so that they cook very well. Although you may add your choice of mixed vegetables, I prefer spring onions to onions. Though not a veggie, but you can opt to add button mushrooms to the dish.
- Dry red chilies: I usually use 2 to 3 dry red chilies for 1 cup of basmati rice. But you adjust the amount to suit your taste. Remember to remove the seeds from the red chili before adding them to the oil. You can choose to swap green chillies with dry red chillies
- Vinegar: Add ½ teaspoon of rice vinegar or white vinegar when mixing the veggie with the rice. If you do not have vinegar, omit adding it. You can also add mirin or Chinese rice wine instead of vinegar.
FAQs
No, you do not have to use cashews but, they add a delicious nutty flavor and some crunch to this stir fry. Feel free to use peanuts instead or skip the nuts altogether if you like.
Singapore rice is usually made with precooked white rice, vegetables, chili, nuts, turmeric which gives it its infamous yellow color and more.
Yes, you should boil the rice before you fry it. This will soften the rice and help it to absorb all of the flavors when being stir-fried.
Alternatively, you can also use leftover white rice as well. If using leftover rice, then add 3 to 3.5 cups of leftover rice. Make sure the rice is not too soft as this will result in a mushy stir fry.
Yes, you should rinse rice for fried rice. When you rinse rice before cooking it the rice sheds some of its starch, which prevents the grains from being clumpy when cooked.
More Delicious Fried Rice Variants
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Singapore Fried Rice
Ingredients
For cooking rice
- 1 cup basmati rice or any long grained rice
- 4.5 cups water
- ½ teaspoon salt
For stir frying
- 3 tablespoons oil – sesame or peanut or sunflower oil
- ½ tablespoon finely chopped garlic
- 2 to 3 dry red chilies – broken and seeds removed
- ⅓ cup chopped spring onions (scallions or green onions)
- ¾ cup finely chopped cabbage or shredded cabbage
- ½ cup finely chopped carrots or shredded carrots
- ⅓ cup finely chopped capsicum or thinly sliced capsicum (bell pepper)
- ¼ cup finely chopped french beans
- 10 to 12 cashews or 1 tablespoon roasted peanuts
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder (ground turmeric)
- ¼ teaspoon kashmiri red chili powder or regular red chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper powder or white pepper powder
- ½ teaspoon Coriander Powder (ground coriander)
- ½ teaspoon Garam Masala or curry powder
- ½ tablespoon soy sauce (naturally fermented or naturally brewed)
- ½ tablespoon red chili sauce or sriracha sauce
- 2 tablespoons tomato ketchup
- ½ teaspoon rice vinegar or white vinegar or apple cider vinegar
- salt as required
- 2 to 3 tablespoons chopped spring onion greens
- 1 to 2 tablespoons chopped spring onion greens – for garnish, optional
Instructions
Cooking rice
- Rinse basmati rice very well in water till the water runs clear of starch. Then soak rice in enough water for 20 to 30 minutes. After 20 to 30 minutes drain the rice and keep aside.
- In a pot or pan take 4.5 cups water. Also add ½ teaspoon salt.
- Bring the water to a boil on high heat.
- When the water comes to a rolling boil, add the rice. Gently stir with a fork or spoon.
- Cook the rice uncovered on medium to high heat. Do not cover the pan with any lid.
- Cook till the rice grains are al dente (almost cooked) or cooked well.
- Then in a colander or strainer, strain the rice. Gently rinse the rice with running water. This will stop cooking of the rice. Cover and keep the rice aside till it cools down. The rice has to be cooled at room temperature before you add it to the stir fried veggies.
Chopping veggies
- Meanwhile when the rice is cooling, you can prep the veggies. You can either shred or finely chop veggies.
- Feel free to add your choice of mix vegetables.
Making singapore fried rice
- Heat oil in a heavy wok or pan. Keep the heat to a low and then add finely chopped garlic.
- After adding garlic, immediately add the dry red chilies (broken and seeds removed). You can add less red chilies if you prefer.
- Fry till the color of the red chilies change and darken a bit. Do not burn them
- Add chopped spring onions.
- Increase the heat to medium or high and stir fry onions for a minute.
- Then add 10 to 12 cashews. Stir fry for half a minute.
- Now add the mix chopped veggies – cabbage, carrots, capsicum, french beans. mix very well.
- On a medium to high heat, stir fry the veggies stirring often for 6 to 8 minutes or till your see some golden spots on the edges of the chopped veggies.
- Lower the heat. Then add kashmiri red chili powder or paprika or cayenne pepper, ground black pepper powder (or white pepper powder), coriander powder and garam masala powder.
- Mix very well.
- Add soy sauce, red chili sauce (or sriracha sauce) and tomato ketchup. Mix to combine the sauces with the rest of the stir-fried ingredients.
- Add the cooked rice. You can add rice in portions if you want. Season with salt as per taste. Mix gently but very well.
- Add rice vinegar or white vinegar. Mix again. Check the taste and you can add more of the ground spice powders, sauces or salt if you want.
- Add 2 to 3 tablespoons chopped spring onion greens.
- Serve Singapore Fried Rice hot or warm garnished with some spring onion greens if you like.
Notes
- According to your taste preferences, adjust the spices and seasonings as needed.
- Use aged basmati rice for best texture and flavor. You can also make the dish with a non-sticky variety of long grained rice.
- For less spicy taste, reduce the red chillies, chilli sauce or sriracha sauce.
- Use 3 to 3.5 cups of leftover rice if you have it instead of cooking rice from scratch. But make sure that the rice is cooled completely.
Nutrition Info (Approximate Values)
This Singapore Fried Rice recipe post from the archives first published in November 2017 has been republished and updated on 25 June 2022.
Great rice!! Thank you 🙏