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Kimchi Fried Rice with Scallion Salad

All the goodness of kimchi, perfectly seasoned and textured fried rice, with a fresh scallion salad topping it all off.  Or go a step further and top everything with an egg!

Course Main Course
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients

Scallion Salad

  • 8 scallions roots and dark green parts removed
  • 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
  • 1 tsp rice wine vinegar
  • 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds
  • kosher salt

Kimchi Fried Rice

  • 1 @ 16 oz (448 g) jar of cabbage kimchi including the juice
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 yellow onion finely diced (I used a red one)
  • 2 garlic cloves minced
  • kosher salt
  • 4 cups (560 g) day old cooked brown or white rice
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce, tamari, or coconut aminos to taste

Instructions

Scallion Salad

  1. Cut the scallions thinly on the diagonal or into small matchsticks (to do this, cut the scallions into 3 even pieces and then cut each in half lengthwise. Then slice finely)

  2. Put the scallions, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar and sesame seeds into a medium bowl and stir to combine. Season to taste with salt. Set aside

Kimchi Fried Rice

  1. Put a sieve over a large bowl and drain the kimchi. Reserve the juice. Finely chop the kimchi.

  2. In a large skillet over medium high heat, warm the olive oil. Add the onion and garlic and sprinkle with a large pinch of salt.

    Cook, stirring now and then until the onion begins to turn translucent, about 5 minutes.

  3. Add the chopped kimchi and cook, stirring until the edges of the kimchi become ever so slightly crisp and begin to stick to the pan, about 5 minutes.
  4. Crumble the rice into the skillet and stir to combine. Add the reserved kimchi juice and cook until the rice is warmed through, about 3 minutes.

  5. Turn off the heat and drizzle the soy sauce over the rice mixture. Taste and re-season if necessary.

    Transfer to a serving bowl and top with the scallion salad. Serve immediately.

Recipe Notes

Since Kimchi loses its active bacterial cultures as it cooks, I actually eat some raw while I'm cooking the rest! I also add a bit more chopped raw kimchi at the very end.  This way we get the flavour, but also some of the health benefits. I add my kimchi juice at the the end and barely cook through.
As Julia mentions, to make this even more substantial, feel free to add some poached or fried eggs to the dish.
This can be totally personalized by adding fresh chopped or shaved veggies that you will cook at the same time as the onion. Then add cooked chicken or even shredded rotisserie chicken towards the end to just warm through, and sprinkle with cashews. Voila, a great chicken fried rice.