Fried Rice With Salted Fish And Chicken 鹹魚雞粒炒飯

I would describe this dish as simple, delicious and elegant, however there is a very fine line between an elegant dish and a crude one. In order for such a simple dish to be deemed a success, ingredients should always be diced and chopped into similar smallish pieces and most importantly the bean sprouts are topped and tailed.

Many would die for a bowl of this right now but just as many would simply look away especially those who are not used to certain strong smelling (and tasting) ingredients used in many Asian cooking. The divisive culprit here is of course the salted fish; like ikan bilis, shrimp paste and fish sauce, it is something that one either loves or hates passionately. Although we are not the biggest fans of salted fish, we do really enjoy this Cantonese classic which tummy could corder in Cantonese when dinning out.

I do urge everyone to give it a try; very much like tasting fish sauce or shrimp paste for the first time, once you get past the initial smell test the complex umami charged flavours will have you come back for more.

serves 3 as a one dish meal

you'll need;

2 chicken thighs, diced and marinated with a little soy and corn flour

3 tbs of diced salted fish, fried with a little oil till golden

2 cloves of garlic, chopped

a handful of bean sprouts, topped and tailed

4 spring onions, chopped

3 eggs, lightly beaten

4 cups of overnight rice, loosen

a splash of light soy

a pinch of salt

a pinch of white pepper

oil for cooking

Prepare all the ingredients and you are ready to go.

Heat up a wok then saute the chicken until just cooked, remove and set aside.

Add a little more oil to the hot wok and lightly saute the garlic. Push the garlic aside before pouring in the beaten egg and scramble a little, add rice and stir fry on high heat for a minute. Return slated fish and chicken to the wok and continue to stir fry on high heat for 2 minutes, season with soy, a little salt and white pepper.

Finally add in the spring onions follow by the bean sprouts and cook for a further 30 seconds. Check for seasonings before serving.

Serve with some cut chili or homemade chili oil on the side.