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First, don’t forget to pin this recipe for later!
I made this kimchi, bacon, and egg fried rice last night and you have to try it! I completely forgot how much I love this dish because I haven’t made it in a while. It’s not difficult in the least, and it’s also quick with minimal mess. You do have to preplan a little though. This recipe is basically just a mish mash of leftovers with some kimchi. I should have called this the leftovers blog, because that seems to be the theme lately, especially on my Instagram stories. See my other post on leftover udon noodles here. I love a good leftover makeover. Why does no one warn you as a kid that adulthood is deciding what to eat for dinner every single night for the rest of your life? Eating the same meal over and over gets boring, hence the makeover part. Fried rice is an easy way to change up the leftovers and clean out the fridge. I mean you can throw practically anything into fried rice and it will work.
What is Kimchi?
Kimchi is a traditional Korean condiment/side dish made of an assortment of fermented vegetables with aromatics, usually napa cabbage, radish, garlic, ginger, gochugaru (Korean red chili) and some sort of fish sauce. Ingredients vary, no kimchi ever seems to be the same. It’s loaded with probiotics and fantastic for gut health. If you make it yourself, great! In the words of Ina though, store bought is fine. This is about a quick leftovers dish, not making kimchi from scratch. I love this brand from my local market. It’s delicious and uses anchovy. It’s garlicy and salty. This is the actual kimchi I used for this recipe. I also like the Wild Brine brand which is more on the sour side and vegan. Obviously this recipe is not for vegans but it’s also applicable if you have a shellfish or seafood allergy. Even if you don’t have an Asian market nearby you can usually find some sort of kimchi at the grocery store in the produce section.
Prep Tips for Kimchi Bacon Egg Fried Rice
If you plan ahead a little bit it’s less work for you. You can even use leftover bacon and scrambled eggs from breakfast. If you’re making rice for another meal, double the batch and then make your fried rice the next day. I do it in my pressure cooker. You definitely don’t want freshly steamed rice, it just doesn’t work and gets mushy. If you don’t have a pressure cooker yet I highly recommend getting one. Most people go for the Instant Pot. I have an older off brand that pretty much does the same thing. I can’t even find it online anymore. Pressure cookers save some cooking time and I really like the way rice turns out. For perfect brown rice, check out Perfect Instant Pot Brown Rice – Tested by Amy + Jacky
I use my pressure cooker for bone broth, soups, and all sorts of other things when I don’t have time to stand over a stove for hours. Some food snobs turn up their noses and say they are for people who don’t know how to cook. I snorted when a friend said that. It’s just a tool, it’s not some magical vessel that will make you a chef. You can make something good or absolutely awful in one. Ever burnt the bottom of your pressure cooker meal? Absolute disaster. Moving on.
Ingredients for Kimchi, Bacon, and Egg Fried Rice
This recipe is pretty simple. You’ll need:
- Kimchi
- A few cups of brown or white rice (I used brown)
- Bacon, precooked works but I use the grease for frying in this recipe
- Eggs
- Onion
- Garlic
- Sesame oil
- Scallion for garnish
Other Notes
Use more or less kimchi according to your tastes. I like it heavy on the kimchi but I know my kids and significant-other would not, so in that case 1 cup per 4 cups of rice is good. For myself I double that amount. You can skip the garlic if you want to, there is plenty in the kimchi. I can never have enough though. Give me all the garlic please. It’s a natural infection fighter. Everything you eat counts!
Make it a one pan (or wok) meal and cook your bacon first, then your onions, add rice, and then push everything to the side to scramble your eggs. Then just mix everything up in the wok with your kimchi and you’re done. This picture is really ugly but you see what I’m saying.
Did you like this kimchi, bacon, and egg fried rice? Share and leave a comment below!
Kimchi, Bacon, and Egg Fried Rice
Equipment
- 1 wok or deep skillet
- 1 Knife
- 1 Cutting Board
Ingredients
- 4 cups cold precooked rice brown or white
- 5 strips bacon
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 large sweet onion
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1-2 cups kimchi with juice
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 2 tbsp bacon grease or cooking oil
- scallion, green parts for garnish
Instructions
- Prep all vegetables. Finely mince garlic, chop up onion, slice scallions. Roughly chop your kimchi.
- Heat pan over medium heat and cook bacon until crisp, a few minutes on each side. Remove to a plate lined with paper towels or a brown bag, and reserve some of the fat. You'll use it for the next step. Skip if using precooked bacon.
- Use a couple spoons of bacon fat or cooking oil in pan. Add onions and cook until browned, about 2 minutes. Add garlic and cook for one minute.
- Add pre cooked cold rice, turn heat up to medium high, and mix well. Push rice mixture to one side of the pan and add the eggs to the other side. Scramble the eggs while the rice warms through.
- Once eggs are fully or atleast mostly cooked, add your kimchi to the pan and stir everything up well.
- Drizzle with sesame oil and give it one more stir. Taste for salt and add some if necessary. Serve immediately and crumble up pieces of bacon on top of each bowl. Sprinkle with sliced scallions and enjoy.
That looks so good, any other suggestions for things to add? (Peppers??) thanks for posting!
Peppers would work! Mushrooms if you like them. I am a human garbage disposal so I’ll add just about anything to fried rice 🙂