Sambal Fried Rice with Chicken
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Sambal Fried Rice is made with tender chicken pieces, scrambled eggs, fluffy rice grains, fragrant aromatics and veggies and tossed in a savory-sweet sauce that will tantalize your taste buds! It’s quick and easy to make under 30 minutes and can be served as a side or main dish!
Whenever I visit Singapore, I always visit Sin Hoi Sai Eating House and enjoy their delicious sambal chicken fried rice made extra spicy!
Although my Chinese Sambal Fried Rice recipe is not exactly the same as I include red bell peppers for some crunch and freshness, it was inspired by their dish at the ‘tze char’ (essentially means Singapore style Chinese fast food) eatery.
Here’s what we have going on:
- Tender, savory chicken pieces.
- Fragrant aromatics like fresh garlic, red chilies and spring onion.
- Soft scrambled eggs.
- Fluffy rice grains.
- Crisp red bell pepper and onion.
- And everything gets kissed by a savory-sweet umami-loaded sauce made with spicy sambal!
While similar to Nasi Goreng in some ways, this fried rice has more Chinese and Singaporean influences.
It’s made with mostly everyday ingredients and comes together in under 30 minutes. You can have it as a filling main dish on its own any night of the week. Or serve it as a side to other Chinese main dishes.
For more easy weeknight fried rice recipes, check out my kimchi chicken fried rice, nasi goreng with chicken and spicy chicken fried rice!
Why This Recipe Works
- Quick and easy. Ready in 30 minutes, this fried rice is perfect for busy weeknights!
- Tantalizing flavors! It’s savory, spicy, a little sweet and packed with incredible flavors!
- Customizable. You can switch out the chicken for beef, pork or shrimp. Or use tofu or tempeh to make it vegetarian/vegan.
- Meal Prep Friendly. Leftovers store and reheat well. Make a ouble batch today to reheat for an easy lunch or dinner during the week!
Ingredient Notes and Substitutes
- Marinated Chicken: I used bite-sized pieces of boneless and skinless chicken breasts and marinated with salt, white pepper, low sodium light soy sauce, and corn starch. Boneless and skinless chicken thighs can be used instead if preferred.
- Veggies: I kept it simple and used yellow onion and red bell pepper. Feel free to use other or add more stir-fry friendly veggies. See the ‘Variations’ section below for more options.
- Aromatics: Garlic, fresh red chilies and spring onion (green onion/scallion). Thai Bird’s Eye or any other hot red chilies will spice up this fried rice beautifully. Leave out the chilies or use less for a milder flavored dish.
- Egg: Because fried rice always tastes better with a scrambled egg or two!
- Cooked Long Grain Rice: Feel free to use long-grain Thai jasmine white rice, or any other medium or long-grain cooked rice. Day-old or even 2-day old cold rice from the fridge works best for fried rice.
- Peanut Oil: Or use any neutral flavored cooking oil with a high smoke point.
- Seasonings: Fine sea salt and ground white pepper. Use black pepper in a pinch, but I like the subtle kick of heat that white pepper gives to this fried rice with sambal.
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- Low Sodium Light Soy Sauce: Low sodium so that we have better control over the salty flavors.
- Sambal Pedas: An Indonesian chili garlic paste made with chilies, garlic, salt and sugar. I use a spicy (‘pedas’) version, but you can use a milder version. Huy Fong Sambal Oelek or Huy Fong Chili Garlic Sauce can be used instead.
- Dark Soy Sauce: A thick and savory soy sauce used for color. Substitute with more low sodium light soy sauce if unavailable.
- White Sugar Replacement: I used Lakanto Classic Monkfruit Sweetener but regular granulated white sugar can be used instead.
- Shrimp Paste with Soybean Oil: Shrimp paste is known by many different names like ‘belacan’, ‘gapi’, ‘kapi’, and ‘trassi’. It’s added to this sambal fried rice to enhance its flavors. I use a spicy Thai shrimp paste with soybean oil which comes in small glass bottles. It is less potent than the aforementioned shrimp pastes and adds spicy and savory delicious notes! However, any type of shrimp paste will work for this recipe though. Use whichever type you have on hand or can easily purchase.
Full ingredient list and amounts are in the recipe card below.
How to Make Sambal Fried Rice
- Cook the marinated chicken. Heat oil in a large nonstick wok or heavy bottomed deep skillet and cook the chicken until just cooked through. Transfer to a clean bowl and set aside.
- Stir-fry the veggies. Add the remaining oil to the wok and sauté the onion and red bell pepper until starting to soften.
- Add the aromatics. Stir-fry the garlic and chilies until fragrant.
- Cook the egg. Push everything to the side of the wok and pour in the beaten egg. Allow to set for a few seconds, then gently scramble and toss to combine with everything else.
- Add the cooked chicken. Toss briefly to combine.
- Add the rice and sauce. Stir-fry until every grain is evenly coated in the sauce.
- Season and toss through spring onion. Season with salt and white pepper. Toss through the spring onion, then switch off the heat.
- Serve! Divide evenly onto plates and sprinkle with more spring onion. Serve immediately while hot off the wok!
Full detailed instructions are in the recipe card below.
Cook’s Tips
- Use day-old rice. Cold, day-old or 2-day old rice is more firm and dry than freshly cooked rice. It will “fry” in the wok and absorb the sauce whereas fresh rice will steam and become mushy.
- Mise en place. This sambal fried rice recipe cooks in a matter of minutes. Prepare all your ingredients first and have them next to your wok before you begin cooking.
- Cook over high heat. Low heat will cause the rice to steam and become soggy instead of fry.
- Use a large enough wok. I recommend using at least a 32cm (12.5-inch) wok or deep heavy bottomed skillet for 1 batch. Anything smaller will overcrowd the wok and result in a mushy fried rice instead of perfectly seared rice grains.
- Use the pause and flatten method. Stir fry the rice to coat in the sauce, but flatten and pause for 10 seconds 2-3 times to allow the rice to absorb the sauce and fry. If you use a constant scooping motion, you run the risk of the fried rice steaming instead of frying.
Variations
- Use a different protein. Shrimp/prawns, sliced pork fillet (tenderloin) or beef flank or skirt steak would all taste great in this sambal fried rice!
- Make it vegetarian/vegan. Use crispy pan-fried tofu or tempeh instead of chicken for the protein. Leave out the shrimp paste and add more light light soy sauce. Alternatively, use a Thai vegan shrimp paste which is similar to dark red miso paste and made from fermented bean protein.
- Use different veggies. Chopped green beans, snake beans, carrots, green peas or any other stir-fry friendly veggies can be added or swapped for the red bell pepper.
- Make it milder. Use less fresh red chilies or omit them to make it milder. I don’t recommend reducing the amount of sambal as it is a signature flavor in this fried rice. However, you can use a milder sambal paste/sauce.
- Serve with a fried egg. Instead of scrambling the egg into the fried rice, you can top each plate with a fried egg instead.
FAQs
If stored properly in an airtight sealed container in the fridge, it will last for 3-4 days. Reheat leftovers in the microwave for 2-3 minutes, stirring halfway through, until warm throughout.
With sambal being a paste made of chilies and garlic as well as the addition of fresh red chilies, this sambal fried rice is spicy. However, you can use a milder flavored sambal paste and less (or omit) fresh red chilies to make this recipe milder.
While nasi goreng does have sambal and is similar in some ways, sambal fried rice is different as it has more Chinese influences. One of the main differences is the use of Indonesian sweet dark soy sauce (kecap manis) over Chinese dark soy sauce in nasi goreng. The sweet dark soy sauce caramelizes while cooking and makes nasi goreng sweeter than Chinese sambal fried rice. Chinese sambal fried rice has a more savory flavor profile and is often made spicy by tze char (also spelled zi char) eateries in Singapore.
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More Fried Rice Recipes You May Also Like
Sambal Fried Rice
Sambal Fried Rice is made with tender chicken pieces, scrambled eggs, fluffy rice grains, fragrant aromatics, and veggies and is tossed in a tantalizing savory-sweet and spicy sauce made with sambal!
- Prep Time: 12
- Cook Time: 15
- Total Time: 27 minutes
- Yield: 2 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stir-fry
- Cuisine: Singapore-Chinese
Ingredients
Chicken Marinade:
- 300 grams / 10.6 ounces Chicken Breast, boneless, skinless – cut into bite-sized pieces
- ¼ + ⅛ TSP Fine Sea Salt
- ¼ TSP ground White Pepper
- 1 TSP Low Sodium Light Soy Sauce
- 1 TSP Corn Starch
- 1 TSP Peanut Oil (or other neutral flavored cooking oil with a high smoke point)
Sauce:
- 2 TSP Low Sodium Light Soy Sauce
- 2 TBSP Sambal Pedas (Indonesian chili garlic sauce – note 1)
- ½ TSP Dark Soy Sauce
- ½ TSP White Sugar Replacement (or granulated white sugar – I used Lakanto Classic Monkfruit Sweetener)
- ½ TBSP Shrimp Paste with Soybean Oil (or any type of shrimp paste – note 2)
Sambal Fried Rice:
- 80 grams / ⅓ medium Yellow Onion – finely chopped
- 100 grams / ½ medium Red Bell Pepper – finely diced
- 20 grams / 4 Garlic cloves – minced
- 28 grams / 9 fresh Red Chilies (Thai Bird’s Eye or any other small hot red chilies – note 3*), to taste – finely chopped
- 20 grams / 1 medium Spring Onion (Scallion/Green Onion) – chopped
- 1 large Egg – lightly beaten in a bowl
- 240 grams / 1.5 cups cooked Thai Jasmine White Rice, day-old, chilled (100 grams / 3.5 ounces uncooked weight – note 4)
- 1 TBSP Peanut Oil
- ¼ TSP Fine Sea Salt
- ⅛ TSP ground White Pepper
Instructions
- Cook the chicken: Heat 1 teaspoon peanut oil in a large nonstick wok or heavy bottomed deep skillet over high heat. Add the marinated chicken pieces and immediately spread out the pieces in the wok. Allow to sear for 40 seconds, then stir-fry for 1-2 minutes or until just cooked. Transfer to a clean bowl and set aside.
- Stir-fry the veggies and aromatics: Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil in the wok over high heat. Add the yellow onion and red bell pepper and sauté for 30 seconds until starting to soften. Add the garlic and chilies and stir-fry for 20-30 seconds until fragrant.
- Cook the egg: Push everything to the side of the wok and pour in the beaten egg. Allow to set for 15 seconds, then gently scramble and toss to combine with everything else.
- Add the chicken: Add the chicken and toss briefly to combine.
- Add the rice and sauce: Then add the cooked rice and pour the sauce on top. Stir-fry for 1 minute, flattening and pausing for 10 seconds 2-3 times, until every grain is evenly coated in the sauce.
- Season and toss through spring onion: Season with fine sea salt and ground white pepper. Toss through the spring onion (reserve some for garnish). Switch off the heat.
- To Serve: Divide evenly onto plates and sprinkle with the reserved spring onion. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Sambal Pedas. This is an Indonesian chili garlic paste made with chilies, garlic, salt and sugar. I use I use a spicy (‘pedas’) version, but you can use a milder version. Huy Fong Sambal Oelek or Huy Fong Chili Garlic Sauce can be used instead.
- Shrimp Paste with Soybean Oil. Shrimp paste is known by many different names like ‘belacan’, ‘gapi’, ‘kapi’, and ‘trassi’. It’s added to this sambal fried rice to enhance its flavors. I use a spicy Thai shrimp paste with soybean oil which comes in small glass bottles. It is less potent than the aforementioned shrimp pastes and adds spicy and savory delicious notes! However, any type of shrimp paste will work for this recipe though. Use whichever type you have on hand or can easily purchase.
- Fresh Red Chilies. Use more or less to make this sambal fried rice as spicy or mild as you like. Leave them out if you prefer a milder dish.
- Thai Jasmine Rice. Feel free to use long-grain Thai jasmine brown rice, or any other medium or long-grain cooked rice. Day-old or even 2-day old cold rice from the fridge works best for fried rice. It has less moisture than freshly cooked rice after chilling in the fridge overnight and is less likely to become mushy in the wok.
- Meal Prep. Leftovers store well in the fridge for 3-4 days. You can make a double batch to enjoy during the week for an easy lunch or dinner. Click the ‘2x’ button at the top of the recipe card to double the ingredient amounts.
- Storing and reheating leftovers. Store any leftovers in sealed airtight containers in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat in the microwave for 2-3 minutes, stirring halfway through, until warm throughout.
- See the ‘Variations’ section in the post if you’d like to customize this sambal fried rice recipe.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/2 of recipe
- Calories: 598
- Sugar: 7.1g
- Sodium: 1617.1mg
- Fat: 20.5g
- Saturated Fat: 4g
- Unsaturated Fat: 16.4g
- Trans Fat: 0.1g
- Carbohydrates: 56.9g
- Fiber: 3g
- Protein: 43.6g
- Cholesterol: 241.3mg
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