Preparation
Fried rice is made from cold rice already cooked by steaming. The use of leftover rice and other leftover ingredients is common when cooked at home. It is important to use leftover rice because the moisture in fresh rice will cause it to steam instead of fry. The oil may be seasoned with aromatics such as garlic before the rice and other ingredients are stir-fried together in a wok. The other ingredients used in fried rice are greatly varied. They can include eggs, meat (chicken, beef, or cured pork), seafood (shrimp or lobster), vegetables (carrots, broccoli, bean sprouts, celery, peas, corn), mushrooms, spices and peppers, and soy sauce or sometimes oyster sauce. The base of vegetable fried rice does not contain any meat or seafood; others are named for the primary addition (e.g., "chicken fried rice" or "shrimp fried rice"). Other "house" versions may contain several meats and seafoods. It is often stir-fried in a wok with vegetable oil or animal fat to prevent sticking, as well as for flavor. Onions, scallion and garlic are often added for extra flavor. It is popularly eaten either as an accompaniment to another dish, or as a course by itself. Popular garnishes include fried shallots, sprigs of parsley or coriander leaves, carrots carved into intricate shapes or sliced chili sprinkled on top of the heaped rice.
Many food stands found on the streets across Southeast Asia serve fried rice with a selection of garnishes and side dishes that the customer can choose to add.
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Famous quotes containing the word preparation:
“With memory set smarting like a reopened wound, a man’s past is not simply a dead history, an outworn preparation of the present: it is not a repented error shaken loose from the life: it is a still quivering part of himself, bringing shudders and bitter flavours and the tinglings of a merited shame.”
—George Eliot [Mary Ann (or Marian)
“Living each day as a preparation for the next is an exciting way to live. Looking forward to something is much more fun than looking back at something—and much more constructive. If we can prepare ourselves so that we never have to think, “Oh, if I had only known, if I had only been ready,” our lives can really be the great adventure we so passionately want them to be.”
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“It’s sad but true that if you focus your attention on housework and meal preparation and diapers, raising children does start to look like drudgery pretty quickly. On the other hand, if you see yourself as nothing less than your child’s nurturer, role model, teacher, spiritual guide, and mentor, your days take on a very different cast.”
—Joyce Maynard (20th century)