Khao Pad, commonly known as Thai Fried Rice, is a classic dish and typical street food from Thailand. The word “khao” means “rice” and “pad” means “stir-fried”. This is a dish you’ll find everywhere in Thailand, whether you are at a high end restaurant or a humble street food stall. Thai cuisine is no doubt one of the most flavor-packed cuisines of the world. Their fried rice is no exception! It was even listed in the ‘World’s 50 Best Foods’ by CNN Travel.
Thailand is a foodie’s dream destination. Bangkok, the capital city, is thought of to be the Street Food Capital of the World (sources: Virtual Tourist & Frommer’s). I’m so glad I got to travel to this beautiful country a few years ago, try out their delicious food, see some of their beautiful buildings, visit local markets, commute in the colorful tuk-tuks, learn to cook from the locals – it was a memorable trip! Someday, I want to go back there again.
Thai fried rice is incredibly easy to make and is one of those quick-fix meals I adore – probably why I have made this dish countless times! It’s one of our family favorites.
Variants of Fried Rice in Thailand
In Thailand, you’ll find many variants of fried rice depending on the main ingredient or the flavoring component used. Some common types of fried rice you’ll come across in Thai cuisine are:
- Khao pad goong (with shrimp)
- Khao pad bpu (with crab meat)
- Khao pad gai (with chicken)
- Khao pad moo (with pork)
- Khao pad sapparot (with pineapple)
- Khao pad kaprao (with basil)
- Khao pad gaeng khiao wan (with green curry flavor)
- Khao pad tom yum (with tom yum flavor which is hot and sour)
You can use my recipe for all these fried rice dishes except the last two. Since green curry fried rice and tom yum fried rice use curry pastes, there is a slight difference in how the fried rice is made. I’ll try to make a post on that in the future. To make a vegetarian Thai fried rice, I have provided some tips later on in this post.
How is Thai Fried Rice different from Chinese Fried Rice?
Thai fried rice is different from Chinese Fried Rice in a few ways, the most significant being the seasonings used. Chinese fried rice is made with soy sauce while a traditional Thai fried rice is made with fish sauce. A purist would say if you use soy sauce, the fried rice is not Thai. Although that may have been true in the past, many Thai households and restaurants today do use soy sauce. Most often, soy sauce is used in combination with fish sauce and / or oyster sauce.
Another difference is in the type of rice that is used. In Thailand, fried rice is always made with fragrant Thai jasmine rice. However, Chinese fried rice can be made with any medium to long grain white rice.
Chinese fried rice also has more veggies in it than its Thai counterpart. Traditional Thai fried rice has very few or no veggies.
Ingredients
To make this easy Thai Fried Rice, you will need the following ingredients:
- Rice: For authentic Thai fried rice, use fragrant jasmine rice. However, if that’s not available, you can use any long grain white rice (I have sometimes used basmati rice). Avoid short grain rice as this may be sticky and you could end up with a mushy fried rice.
- Seasonings: Every Thai household and food vendor have their own combination of sauces that they use in fried rice. I have provided a choice of 2 sauce mixes here in this recipe. One contains fish sauce, and the other has soy sauce. But, both have oyster sauce – a key ingredient. Vegetarians can use vegetarian oyster sauce, but please don’t skip it. The sauces give the fried rice its saltiness and the umami flavor Thai fried rice is known for. The flavors are balanced with a wee bit of sugar.
- Protein: You can use any protein of your choice. This recipe uses egg and shrimp. Popular choices are crab meat, shrimp, chicken and pork. If using shrimp, leave the tail on to make a fried rice just like the ones you get in Thailand. If using meat, cut it into small pieces so that they cook fast while stir-frying.
- Garlic: Mince the garlic finely. I use a garlic press to do this. Alternately, pound the garlic in a mortar like this one.
- Onion: You can use any onion, although I prefer yellow or white onion for the authentic look. I have used red onions occasionally and they tasted fine. The street-style fried rice I had at Thailand had long slices of onion in it. So, that’s how I like to make my fried rice. Some home cooks chop onion to small pieces because they don’t want any big pieces in their fried rice. Go with what you prefer – there is no right or wrong!
- Greens: Gai lan (Chinese broccoli) is the common choice of green to add into Thai fried rice. However, you can use other Asian greens such as bok choy and choy sum. Don’t have Asian greens? Kale or spinach also work. When making basil fried rice, use thai basil or holy basil or Italian basil instead of other greens. Whatever leaves you use to make the fried rice, make sure you cut them into bite-size pieces, and cook till they just wilt. Don’t overcook.
- Green Onions: Chop them to small pieces and add towards the end of the cooking process. They add extra freshness to the fried rice.
Freshly cooked vs leftover rice
A common myth about rice used for fried rice is that it’s best to use cold, day-old cooked rice. This is what I always did in the past, and still do if I want to use up leftover rice. The idea behind the practice is that cold rice is drier and stays separate when stir-fried. Using freshly cooked rice mostly ends up in mushy fried rice because the grains are sticky, which is a big no-no.
However, if for some reason you are cooking rice just before making fried rice, be sure to cool it well before stir-frying or use less water when you cook the rice. I use 1:1 water to rice ratio when I cook jasmine rice for fried rice and it always turns out perfect!
So, fresh or leftover rice? It doesn’t matter as long as the rice is cool and dry!
How to make Thai fried rice
Making Thai fried rice is very straightforward and simple. Prepare all the ingredients before you start cooking. Once you start, everything happens super quick – you’ll be done in 5 minutes!
There is no rocket science involved. Just add ingredients one after the other into a large wok or frying pan, and stir fry each time. However, it’s worth noting that Thais have a unique way of adding egg into their fried rice. The egg is mixed with the rice while still a bit runny and then stir-fried, resulting in the rice grains being coated with egg. Watch the video here.
Do I need a wok or Thai utensils?
No, you can make Thai fried rice in a wok or a regular frying pan as long as there is enough space to stir the ingredients. If the pan is overcrowded, steam will generate causing the fried rice to be mushy. This is why a large wok is the common choice for cooking fried rice, it is not an absolute necessity. Apart from the wok or frying pan, you only need a regular spatula or something to stir the ingredients with.
How do I make this recipe vegetarian?
To make this fried rice vegetarian, use the sauce option 2, but substitute regular oyster sauce with vegetarian oyster sauce. This is available in many stores and on Amazon. Check the Amazon store specific to your country and you’ll probably be surprised they have it. I searched on Amazon US, Canada and India, and it’s there. Sourcing ingredients has become so much easier now than it was some years ago!
For the protein, use extra-firm tofu or more egg than mentioned in the recipe card. If using egg, leave it to cook longer before scrambling so that you have bite-sized pieces of egg in the fried rice in addition to egg coated on rice for the flavor.
How is Thai fried rice served?
In Thailand, fried rice is served hot with lime, sliced cucumber and a local condiment called Prik Nam Pla, which is basically fish sauce with Thai chillies. Sometimes, the fried rice is also topped with freshly ground pepper.
For a true Thai experience, squeeze the lime onto the rice, pour some Prik Nam Pla in (based on your heat and salt preferences), mix everything in and devour! The cucumber slices help to cut the heat. Some stall vendors also add a fried egg on the side or top, if you ask for it.
Looking for more East Asian recipes?
- Hainanese Chicken Rice
- Lamb Rendang
- Chinese Pork & Cabbage Dumplings
- Chinese Dumpling Sauce
- Prik Nam Pla (Thai Chilli Fish Sauce)
Thai Fried Rice | Khao Pad
Ingredients
- 1 – 2 tbsp Vegetable Oil
- 2 Garlic Cloves, minced
- ¼ Large Onion, sliced or diced (Refer to notes)
- 150 g Shrimps , tail-on (Or any protein – Refer to notes)
- 1.5 cups Cooked Jasmine Rice (Refer to notes)
- 1 Egg
- 1 – 2 stalks Gai Lan (Chinese Broccoli), sliced crosswise into ribbons (Refer to notes)
- 2 Green Onions, chopped
Sauce Option 1
- ½ tbsp Oyster Sauce
- ½ tbsp Fish Sauce
- ¼ tsp Sugar
Sauce Option 2
- ½ – ¾ tbsp Oyster Sauce
- ½ tbsp Soy Sauce
- ⅛ tsp Sugar
To serve
- Lime wedge
- Prik Nam Pla (Traditional Thai condiment)
- Cucumber slices
- Freshly ground pepper (optional)
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix together the ingredients listed for one of the sauce options. Keep this sauce mix aside for later.
- Heat oil in a wok or large skillet on medium-high heat.
- Once oil is hot, add garlic. Stirring continuously, fry for around 15 sec.
- Then, add onion and stir fry for another 20 sec.
- Now, add shrimps and fry for around a minute or until they turn pink in colour.
- Add in half of the rice and stir-fry till well combined.
- Push all the rice to one side of the wok / frying pan. Crack open the egg and pour on the empty side of the pan. Scramble the egg.
- Mix the egg into the rice while it's still runny. Continue stir frying till the egg is fully cooked. (It took me around 25 sec.)
- Add in the remaining rice and mix till combined.
- Now, add the sauce mix you had prepared and set aside in the beginning. Continue stirring till the rice is evenly coated in the sauce.
- Add in the chopped Gai Lan and stir fry till the leaves wilt.
- Then, add in green onions and stir fry for an additional 10 seconds.
- Serve immediately with a wedge of lime and Prik Nam Pla (traditional Thai sauce made of chillies and fish sauce). Additionally, you can also top the fried rice with freshly ground pepper and place some cucumber slices on the side.
Video
Notes
- Onion: If you are using a small or medium-sized onion, you can use half an onion instead of a quarter of a large onion, like I did in the video.
- Rice: Use cold day-old cooked rice. If using freshly cooked rice, be sure to cool it well before stir-frying or use less water when you cook the rice. I use 1:1 water to rice ratio when I cook jasmine rice for fried rice.
- Protein: Use any protein of your choice. Popular choices are crab meat, shrimp, chicken and pork. If using shrimp, leave the tail on to make a fried rice just like the ones you get in Thailand. If using meat, cut it into small pieces so that they cook fast while stir-frying.
- Substitutions for Gail Lan: Bok choy, choy sum, kale, spinach. When making basil fried rice, use thai basil / holy basil / Italian basil instead of other greens.
- Make it vegetarian: Use sauce option 2 and substitute oyster sauce with vegetarian oyster sauce. For the protein, use extra-firm tofu or more egg than mentioned in the recipe card.
- Prik Nam Pla is a traditional Thai condiment made of fish sauce and chopped Thai chillies.
