Indian Street-Cart Chicken Fried Rice (Easy version in recipe notes.)
Fried spiced chicken cubes folded into egg fried rice with peas and carrots, aromatics of ginger and garlic bloomed in the wok, seasoned with ground cumin, turmeric, and Kashmiri chili, finished with light and dark soy, ABC Hot & Sweet Chili Sauce, sesame and chili oil, and topped with crispy fried curry leaves. Reverse-engineered from a street cart video. This one is a little spicy and a little sweet.
Servings: 4
Equipment
- Carbon Steel Wok
- Wok Chuan also called a wok spatula
Ingredients
- 1 lb boneless chicken thighs cut into 1-inch pieces (or bone-in wing/drumette)
- 2 tbsp plain yogurt
- 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
- 2 tbsp Kashmiri chili powder divided (marinade + rice)
- 4 tsp cayenne pepper divided, half for chicken, half for rice
- 1 ½ tsp salt divided
- 4 tbsp cornstarch divided (marinade + coating slurry)
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 3 cups neutral oil for deep frying
- 6 tbsp neutral oil for the wok, divided - you'll add a little at a time as you go
- 1 tbsp fresh ginger julienned
- 2 garlic cloves julienned
- ½ cup carrot finely diced
- ½ cup frozen peas
- 2 large eggs beaten
- 4 cups day-old cooked basmati rice cold
- 1 tsp MSG Ajinomoto, optional
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 2 tsp white pepper ground
- 2 tbsp light soy sauce
- 2 tbsp dark soy sauce
- 3 tbsp ABC Hot & Sweet Chili Sauce
- 2 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 2 tsp chili oil
- 4 scallions whites and greens separated, sliced
- 20 fresh curry leaves
Instructions
- Marinate the chicken: Toss chicken with yogurt, ginger-garlic paste, 1 tbsp Kashmiri chili powder, 2 tsp cayenne, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1 tbsp cornstarch. Mix well and let sit at least 20-30 minutes, up to two hours.
- Coat and fry the chicken (first fry): Just before frying, toss the marinated chicken with flour and the remaining cornstarch. Heat oil to about 350F and fry in batches until cooked through and the coating is set, 4-5 minutes. Remove and drain.
- Cube the chicken: Once cool enough to handle, cut the fried chicken into bite-sized cubes (or off the bone if using wings/drumettes).
- Add a small amount of oil to the wok and fry curry leaves, then set aside on a plate with a paper towel.
- Scramble the egg: Heat oil in a hot wok. Pour in beaten eggs and scramble quickly breaking into small curds. Remove from wok. Set aside.
- Bloom the ginger, garlic and scallion whites: Add julienned ginger, garlic, scallion whites, and toss 15-20 seconds until fragrant, without browning. Push to the side, up the side of the wok.
- Add the carrot: Add the diced carrot and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes to soften slightly.
- Add the rice and peas: Add the cold rice and frozen peas to the wok, breaking up clumps of rice. Toss constantly over high heat until hot through and lightly charred in spots.
- Season with the dry spices: Sprinkle in MSG, then the remaining salt, ground cumin, turmeric, white pepper, cayenne, and the remaining Kashmiri chili powder, then toss well to combine.
- Add the chicken cubes: Fold the cubed chicken into the rice, tossing over high heat for a minute.
- Add the sauces: Drizzle in light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, ABC Hot & Sweet Chili Sauce, sesame oil, and chili oil. Add the scallion whites and toss over high heat for 1-2 minutes.
- Plate and finish: Plate the fried rice, top with the crispy curry leaves, and scatter the scallion greens on top.