Kimchi Fried-Rice
Who doesn’t like kimchi fried rice? It’s like the mashed potatoes of Korean comfort foods, and it’s super easy to make.
Like most Korean food, kimchi fried rice has countless variations. Consider this recipe just an idea-generator. 
You really put in whatever suits your fancy or, like me, whatever you happen to have on hand. You can basically use whatever vegetables sitting in your fridge that you need to get rid of! Green peas, corn, green onions, tofu, Korean radish–they’re all great additions. Just remember that you throw them into the pan in the order of how long it takes each ingredient to cook through.
And, of course, there are three components that you MUST have, no matter what: sticky rice, a touch of oil, and kimchi! I use a mixture of 0.5 brown and 0.5 white rice because I think brown rice by itself is a little too tough and chewy for kimchi fried rice. I also use freshly cooked rice straight out of the rice cooker because I like my fried rice to be a little stickier/moister, but day-old rice works just as well.
In Korea, some restaurants serve kimchi fried rice with an egg sunny-side up. You break the yolk with your spoon and mix it into the rice. And speaking of fried rice: if you go to a ddukbokki (떡볶이) place, you and your friends will be served a hot ddukbokki in a shallow metal pan–think paella–over a portable burner. When you are done eating, the server will take the pan with the leftover ddukbokki sauce, add some rice and vegetables, and sometimes some kimchi, and mix and mash them evenly over the pan, which is placed over the burner. The rice forms a crispy, chewy crust on the hot pan that you scrape off with your spoon and eat–it’s so good!
Kimchi Fried-Rice
sticky rice (brown, white, or combo)
kimchi + the juice it’s in
sesame oil
Korea red pepper paste (고추장/gochujang)
onions
carrots
garlic
Chinese chives (부추/boochoo)
roast seaweed sheets (like THIS)
sesame seeds
Chop the kimchi (approx. 3/4 – 1 cup per 2 cups of rice), carrots, and onions into approximately the same size. Mince the garlic. Heat enough sesame oil in the pan to lightly cover the bottom (don’t use too much!) and sauteé everything for a few minutes until the onions are translucent. If your kimchi is not the red, spicy type, you can add a spoonful or two of red pepper paste to the vegetables at this point and mix until everything is coated with the paste so that your rice has a bit of spiciness.
Add the rice to the pan, along with a bit more oil. Break up the rice with your spatula and mix thoroughly with the vegetables and oil. Then pour in a bit of kimchi juice–I use 1/4 cup per 2 cups of rice–and combine to bind everything together and add a bit more kimchi flavor (optional). Leave the rice over medium heat until it gets SLIGHTLY crispy and turns a very light golden brown on the bottom and then flip and mix with your spatula. Repeat a few times.
Turn the heat off, then mix in chopped garlic chives (optional) and rectangular roast seaweed sheets torn in half (optional; don’t worry if they look too big; they will wilt with the heat). Add sesame seeds for garnish (optional). Serve hot.
Cook + Prep Time: 15-20 min.
