Bacon fried rice is a delightful dish that combines the smokiness of bacon with the comfort of classic fried rice. A quick, easy and tasty fried rice recipe made with ingredients already available in your kitchen.
This bacon fried rice was my favorite fried rice dish at a local Asian restaurant when I was younger. I still enjoy making and eating it at home from time to time. The restaurant dish I had was probably more flavorful since it was cooked on a teppanyaki table, but the home kitchen version is still tasty, quick, and easy to cook.
In case you want more ideas for your fried rice rotation, check out these recipes:
- Crab Fried Rice (with video)
- Scallop Fried Rice
- Salted Egg Fried Rice (with video)
- Beef Fried Rice
Ingredients
Here are the main ingredients for this bacon fried rice:
- cooked rice: I prefer long-grain rice (such as jasmine rice) that is day-old and refrigerated. When cooking the rice in your rice cooker, use 10-15% less water than you usually do. This will make it easier to achieve a soft-chewy texture for the fried rice later.
- bacon: I like to use thin-cut bacon and slice into small pieces. Choose good quality bacon that is not overly salty.
- other add-ins: eggs and carrots. You can also add green peas if you want.
- aromatics: garlic, onions, scallions.
- seasonings: salt, pepper and some soy sauce (I like Kikkoman soy sauce).
Cooking Tips
Fried rice is often straightforward to cook. Things to keep in mind here are:
- Make sure your pan is very hot and work quickly so that the rice can get a soft-chewy texture while not becoming too clumpy.
- Also, don’t overfill the pan with rice, or it will be difficult to toss the rice.
This dish can be cooked with just one heavy-bottomed pan and it comes together quickly. Therefore, prepare your ingredients in advance to ensure a smooth cooking process.
How to Make Bacon Fried Rice
1️⃣ Cook the bacon: the first step will be cooking the bacon slowly to render the fat. We will reserve the fat to cook other ingredients and fry the rice for added flavor. In this dish, I actually prefer the bacon not crispy.
2️⃣ Cook other add-ins: we will scramble the eggs and sauté onion, garlic and carrot in some of the bacon fat.
3️⃣ Fry the rice: stir and toss the rice constantly, and be generous with using the rendered bacon fat if you don’t mind. Season the rice lightly with some salt and soy sauce.
4️⃣ Bring everything together: once the rice has become lightly crisp and heated through, return the cooked bacon and scrambled eggs. Mix everything briefly and the bacon fried rice is ready!
Please find the detailed measurements and instructions in the recipe card below. Give this recipe a try and let us know how it turns out in the comments section.
Note: the post was originally posted on September 29th, 2021. It has been updated with additional photos and tips in May, 2023.
Related Recipes
⭐️ I’d love to hear what you think about the dish, so please feel free to leave a comment and a rating if you have tried it. New recipes are added every week so let’s connect on Facebook, Youtube, Pinterest and Instagram for the latest updates. You can find my collection of Vietnamese recipes here.
Bacon Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup diced thin-cut bacon (about 4oz)
- 2 medium to large eggs, beaten
- 1/4 cup diced yellow onion
- 1/4 cup finely diced carrots
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 1/2 cup day-old, refrigerated cooked rice (about 7.5oz, preferably long grain white rice)
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce (to taste)
- 2 tablespoons chopped scallions
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly-cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Place a heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat. Once the pan is hot, add diced bacon. Stir and cook slowly to render the fat, about 3-4 minutes. The bacon does not need to be crispy. Transfer bacon to a bowl and set aside.
- Reserve 3-4 tablespoons of bacon fat and discard the rest. Add about ½ tablespoon of bacon fat back to the pan and once it is hot, pour the beaten egg into the pan. Scramble quickly and remove the eggs from the pan while it is still fairly runny.
- Add another tablespoons of bacon fat to the pan, then add diced onion and carrots. Stir and cook for about 1-2 minutes. Then add minced garlic and cook for another 30 seconds until fragrant.
- Add more bacon fat to the pan if needed. Increase the heat to medium-high and add the cooked rice. Stir and toss constantly to break up the rice for a minute. Add salt and soy sauce, then continue to toss and cook for another 1-2 minutes until the rice firms up.
- Add bacon to the pan and stir to combine with the rice for 30-45 seconds. Then add beaten eggs and chopped scallions. Give everything a quick stir. Taste and adjust seasonings to your likings.
- Transfer the fried rice to a serving plate and sprinkle black pepper on top. Serve hot.
Notes
Nutrition
Corrie
Thanks for the recipe! It is a nice alternative for leftover rice, when you don’t feel like making a fussy dinner. For those of us who enjoy bacon, bacon fried rice is a great choice!