Thai-Inspired Chicken Fried Rice

Ingredients

2 tablespoons avocado oil

3 garlic cloves, minced

½ cup halved and thinly sliced shallot (about 1 large shallot)

1/2 cup minced carrot (about 1 carrot)

1 to 3 thinly sliced fresh Thai chiles (1 for mild, 3 for hot)

1 cup diced cooked chicken (store-bought rotisserie or Fauxtisserie Chicken, page 247)

4 green onions, cut on the diagonal into 2-inch lengths (about 1 cup)

1 teaspoon kosher salt

½ teaspoon ground white pepper

2 cups chilled cooked rice (see note)

2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds

2 tablespoons coconut aminos

2 tablespoons fish sauce

2 eggs, well whisked

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice (about 1 lime)

¼ cup loosely packed chopped fresh cilantro leaves, plus more for serving

¼ cup loosely packed chopped fresh mint leaves

¼ cup loosely packed chopped fresh Thai basil leaves

½ cup thinly sliced cucumber, for serving

1 lime, cut into wedges, for serving

Directions

IN a large nonstick skillet, heat the avocado oil over medium-high heat.

Add the garlic, shallot, carrot, and Thai chiles and cook, stirring, until the veggies are just tender, about 3 minutes. Add the diced chicken, green onions, salt, white pepper, rice, and sesame seeds and stir to combine. Spread the rice into a single layer, press down with your spatula, and cook undisturbed until golden brown on the bottom, 2 to 3 minutes.

ADD the coconut aminos and fish sauce and cook, stirring to combine and let the sauce soak into the rice, about 2 minutes.

PUSH the rice to one half of the skillet and pour the eggs onto the empty half. Cook the eggs, stirring, until softly scrambled, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir the scrambled eggs into the rice until well combined.

REMOVE the skillet from the heat and stir in the lime juice, cilantro, mint, and Thai basil.

SERVE topped with cucumber slices, cilantro leaves, and a wedge of lime.

Notes

FROM MY KITCHEN TO YOURS

When cooking any sort of fried rice, leftover, day-old rice works best. When rice is freshly cooked, it retains a lot of moisture, which makes it difficult to crisp up. If you're making the rice the same day, make a batch of rice and spread it in a thin layer on a sheet pan. Put the tray in the refrigerator and let it sit for 30 to 60 minutes to dry out the rice as much as possible before frying.