Forum: cooking.stackexchange.com
Tags: <rice><chinese-cuisine>
Title: How can I make Chinese Fried Rice like they do on the East Coast?
Question: I've been living in California for about 14 years and really miss the Chinese fried rice I would get at Chinese restaurants on the East Coast (Boston in specific).  The fried rice I get at Chinese restaurants in California is much lighter in color and flavor.  I thought adding more soy sauce would do the trick.  There's definitely something else in the mix.  The rice that I'm trying to emulate has more of a malty, savory taste to it.

Answers:
sents: text: My fried rice started getting closer to east coast restaurant style when I started doing a couple of new things: Use Chinese 5 Spice Powder
text: - Like Indian Garam Masala, this is a spice mixture that is so common in Chinese cooking that it's sold pre-mixed.
text: I've started using it in a lot of my chinese cooking.
text: It makes a big difference.
text: Add a bit more soy sauce -
text: This seems to be where most of your coloring comes from, so judge by look.
text: Use some sesame oil
text: - I find sesame oil provides a nice flavor element in asian dishes.
text: Use more oil while frying the rice
text: - I use a mix of sesame and vegetable or canola.
text: This makes it quite a lot greasier than I was making it, but it's closer to restaurant style.
text: Let the rice sit while frying - Once the rice is in the wok, I don't stir it too much.
text: This lets some of the rice on the bottom get a bit more fried than if you stir frequently.
text: Hope one of those helps.
answer_details: author: cooking.stackexchange.com/users/1259/yossarian
score: 14
sents: text: A basic ingredient of Chinese fried rice which nobody seems to be aware of is stock .
text: That's right
text: , you heard me right.
text: Chinese fried rice is made with stock .
text: I kid you not.
text: You should consider it an indispensable ingredient.
text: You can make a simple stock out of a stock cube and some hot water.
text: You add the stock after you put the rice in the frying pan/wok.
text: Another basic ingredient is scrambled eggs.
text: You should fry these separately from the rest of the ingredients and add them at the end of the cooking.
answer_details: author: cooking.stackexchange.com/users/None/
score: 11
sents: text: What you're missing is monosodium glutamate (a.k.a. MSG, Accent , or flavour enhancer).
text: Trust me: my girlfriend is from Hong Kong.
text: Using stock, as The Galloping Gourmet suggested, is right on the money as most commercial stock contains MSG.
answer_details: author: cooking.stackexchange.com/users/1574/splicer
score: 5
sents: text: It's molasses, not more soy sauce, that you're after.
text: Use day-old rice and start with 1 teaspoon of molasses (less if the amount of rice is small), and add more to taste.
text: You can always add more molasses but not take away, so be careful.
answer_details: author: cooking.stackexchange.com/users/8455/rozzygirl
score: 3
sents: text: They use DARK soy sauce.
text: One tablespoon per 3 cups rice is ideal.
text: Stores like Whole Foods and Central Market carry it.
text: It makes the rice much darker.
text: Also, add large pieces of onion (1-inch by 1-inch) crispy tender.
text: Some people add peas.
text: Stir in scrambled eggs.
answer_details: author: cooking.stackexchange.com/users/8923/Kootz
score: 3
sents: text: Not sure about East Coast
text: but I know as a Chinese-Canadian that Oyster Sauce is a traditional ingredient in most fried rice dishes.
text: That would shortly explain the darker color and savouriness.
text: Source:
text: My parents from southern China
answer_details: author: cooking.stackexchange.com/users/23963/Pdxd
score: 3
sents: text: This is from a Polynesian Chinese restaurant owner and his daughters who are chefs as well.
text: It's black Chinese molasses or sweet sauce.
text: This is found mostly in New England Chinese restaurants.
text: You take rice cook it the day before and refrigerate overnight.
text: You need a gas stove or high temp wok to obtain about 400 degrees.
text: Stir fry your scallions, egg, shrimp, bean sprouts etc in the molasses, soy sauce(sparingly), neutral oil, like grape seed, and whatever seasonings you like in the pan.
text: Add a little more molasses and put the rice in.
text: The whole idea is to flash fry it at this point, hence the high heat and very brief cooking time.
text: About a minute or two.
text: That's how it's done.
text: I just released a trade secret, but it is soooooo good!
answer_details: author: cooking.stackexchange.com/users/32611/Craig
score: 3
sents: text: Try Maggi Asian Seasoning or Golden Mountain Seasoning.
answer_details: author: cooking.stackexchange.com/users/23957/Teresa
score: 1
sents: text: My wife worked at Dan Chan's in Fitchburg in the 70's.
text: She said they used a dark thick Oyster sauce.
text: It was my favorite.
text: Can't get it here in North Carolina either.
text: They use a yellow rice.
answer_details: author: cooking.stackexchange.com/users/34198/Gary G
score: 1
sents: text: Like the Californian, I too hate flavorless light-colored "fried rice."
text: I am from the city of St. Louis, Missouri where the fried rice is dark, rich in flavor, not sticky (from stock during cooking), nor tasteless (from cooking fresh rice).
text: While it is true that you want to make your fried rice with day-old cold rice, you want to add ingredients such as:1) seasoned wok oil2) chopped onion3)
text: mix in a separate cup 1 pkt of fried rice seasoning mix,
text: DARK soy sauce, 1 tsp molasses, and 1 tsp fish sauce or oyster sauce.
text: Add mixture to your rice when stir-frying over high heat.
text: Stir-fry until even in color and temperature.
text: You can add scrambled eggs and green onions afterward if desired.
text: Never add lots of liquid to the wok when stir-frying pre-cooked rice unless you enjoy soggy rice clumps.
text: The Chinese restaurants never serve clumped up fried rice because you can not get an even brown color throughout. Enjoy!
answer_details: author: cooking.stackexchange.com/users/40140/Almond Eyes
score: 1
sents: text: Dark Mushroom Soy Sauce is specifically the sauce.
text: I call it antimatter because it is WAY BLACK.
answer_details: author: cooking.stackexchange.com/users/60506/Twinankhs
score: 1
sents: text: First, use whole grain par boiled rice.
text: It is somewhat oval in shape.
text: Do not use fluffy rice.
text: I use garlic oil, good soy sauce, some oyster sauce and some MOLASSES, that is the secret ingredient.
text: Add it all to the rice.
text: fry up
text: diced fatty pork then on a very hot wok add all the ingredients.
text: Stir frequently for a minute or so.
text: Add diced scallion.
answer_details: author: cooking.stackexchange.com/users/20979/George
score: 0
sents: text: I know what everyone means and it is frustrating searching for the recipe that anyone on the East Coast probably takes for granted.
text: I have never achieved it.
text: I am attempting to figure it out.
text: Kekap Manis is a sweet and thick soy sauce.
text: So to all those who might sneer at the molasses, do not doubt.
text: I understand that if you cannot find the Kekap Manis it can be achieved by equal parts brown sugar and soy sauce, boiled till syrupy (Credit Recipe Tin Eats).
text: Now this makes sense.
text: The traditional Indonesian rice is called Nasi Goreng.
text: The rice is dark, not sticky and it really is not fried at all as we might think: it is tossed in and heated with the aromatics and whatever else you actually fried first..
text: I understand that many if not most regions use shrimp paste.
text: This is also not available easily.
text: Nevertheless with these basic concepts in mind, this has to be close.
answer_details: author: cooking.stackexchange.com/users/45927/elizabeth
score: 0

Summary of the answers:
The ingredients you are referring to could include Chinese 5 spice powder,  Maggi Asian Seasoning or Golden Mountain Seasoning, sesame oil, stock, MSG, black Chinese molasses or sweet sauce, dark soy sauce, oyster sauce or fish sauce.
Chinese fried rice is made with stock. It also uses 5 spice and sesame oil. The missing ingredients could be dark soy sauce, oyster sauce and molasses. You could also be missing MSG.