This fast fried rice with Minute Rice—or another instant rice—is ready in about 10 minutes, with no leftover rice needed. All you need is a hot skillet and a few pantry staples.
Keep it plain as fried rice without vegetables, or add egg, vegetables, or both. Add chicken or shrimp to turn it into a quick meal.
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Featured Comment by Jerri:
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"This dish has made it into our regular meal rotation. My husband loves it!"
🤔 TL;DR — Recipe Summary
What: Quick fried rice made with Minute Rice or another instant rice—no leftover rice needed.
Why: Ready in about 10 minutes and easy to customize—make it without vegetables or add egg, vegetables, chicken, or shrimp.
How: Cook the rice in broth, combine it with soy sauce and your chosen add-ins, then fry until lightly browned.
🍚 Ingredients for Fried Rice with Minute Rice
Main Ingredients
- Instant rice: Minute Rice or a similar instant rice.
- Chicken broth: Adds more flavor than water.
- Butter or oil: For cooking the onion and frying the rice.
- Soy sauce: Provides the classic savory fried-rice flavor.
Optional Add-Ins
- Onion: Adds flavor but may be omitted.
- Egg: Use one or two, or leave it out.
- Vegetables: Peas, carrots, bell pepper, broccoli, cabbage, or snow peas.
- Protein: Precooked chicken, shrimp, ham, or pork.
- Sesame oil: A small amount adds traditional toasted flavor.
- Oyster sauce: Adds richer savory flavor; use it with or in place of some soy sauce.
- Green onion: Add as a garnish before serving.
Vegetables and proteins added during cooking should be fully cooked and hot because this quick recipe does not provide enough time to cook them from raw.
👨🍳 How to Make Fried Rice with Minute Rice
1. Stir the instant rice into boiling chicken broth, using the amount listed in this recipe—not the package directions. Remove from the heat, cover for 5 minutes, then fluff with a fork.
2. If using onion, sauté it in butter. Add the egg, if using, and scramble just until barely set.
3. Transfer the rice to the skillet and add the soy sauce. Mix in the onion and egg, if using, along with sesame oil or any hot, precooked add-ins.
4. Stir-fry everything over medium-high heat for 3–4 minutes, letting it sit briefly between stirs to develop some color.
✅ Pro Tip: A little browning means more flavor—don’t rush the frying.
👇 This is a quick overview, not the full recipe. Scroll down to the recipe card for complete instructions and exact measurements.
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😊 Tips for Minute Rice Fried Rice
- Use the recipe’s liquid ratio: Cook 1⅓ cups of instant rice with 1 cup of broth. Using less liquid than the package directions keeps the rice drier so it fries better.
- Heat add-ins first: Fully cook and warm any meat before adding it. Microwave frozen vegetables until hot so they don’t cool the skillet or remain undercooked.
🍽️ Serving Suggestions
Serve this quick fried rice as a side dish with one of these Chinese-style main dishes:
❄️ Storage and Reheating
- Refrigerate: Cool promptly and store in an airtight container for 3–4 days.
- Freeze: Freeze for up to 2 months. The rice may be slightly softer after thawing.
- Reheat: Microwave in short intervals or warm in a skillet with a splash of water or broth until hot.
❓ FAQs
Yes. Cook Minute Rice in broth, then stir-fry it with soy sauce and your choice of add-ins. No leftover rice is needed, and it is ready in about 10 minutes.
Yes. For fried rice without vegetables, omit the onion and all other vegetables. The egg is also optional and can be omitted independently. Add a precooked protein if desired.
Instant rice, such as Minute Rice, has been fully cooked and dehydrated, so it cooks quickly when hot liquid is added. For this recipe, use 1 cup of broth with 1⅓ cups of rice for the best stir-fry texture.
Use tamari labeled gluten-free instead of regular soy sauce. Also check the labels on the broth and any additional sauces or precooked ingredients.
📖The Recipe Card
Fried Rice with Minute Rice (Easy 10-Minute Recipe)
Video Slideshow
Ingredients
- 1⅓ cup instant rice - like Minute® Rice
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1–2 eggs
- 1 small onion (diced)
- 1 cup frozen peas and carrots
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon oyster sauce
- sliced green onion - for topping
- bell pepper, broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, snow peas, or cabbage - cooked and hot
- shrimp, ham, pork, or chicken - cooked and hot
Step-by-Step Instructions
Cook the rice in broth
- Bring the chicken broth to a boil in a saucepan. Stir in the instant rice, remove from the heat, and cover for 5 minutes. Microwave any frozen vegetables until hot.
Cook the optional onion and egg
- While the rice rests, melt the butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. If using onion, sauté it for 1–2 minutes. Add the egg, if using, and scramble just until set.
Combine the rice and add-ins
- Fluff the rice and add it to the skillet with the soy sauce. Stir in sesame oil and any hot, fully cooked vegetables or proteins, if using.
Fry until lightly browned
- Stir-fry over medium-high heat for 3–4 minutes. Let the rice sit briefly between stirrings, so it develops a little browning.
Recipe Notes
Tips
- Add-ins: Fully cook and heat any meat or vegetables before adding them. Microwave frozen vegetables until hot because the brief stir-fry time will not cook them from raw.
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3–4 days.
- Freeze for up to 2 months, but the texture may soften.
Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You can adjust the number of servings above; however, only the amount in the ingredient list is adjusted, not the instructions.
Nutrition Estimate (may vary)
Editor's Note: Originally Published May 14, 2012. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and improved organization.
Ann M. says
Hi,
.
Just came across your recipe for fried rice.
It sounded like a dish my family would enjoy, however, my husband is on a very restricted sodium diet so 3tbs. of soy sauce is out of the question.
I know soy sauce is part of fried rice, but what can I use as a substitute. Probably nothing that would taste like real fried rice, I know. Thanks..
DrDan says
Hi Ann,
Welcome to the blog.
Suggestions to decrease the sodium
1) Use salt free chicken broth
2) unsalted butter
3) low sodium soy sauce and decrease the amount to 2 tablespoons.
Those changes will decrease the sodium by over half and not much change in taste.
Dan
Rachel says
This was super easy and quick. I’ve never seen your site before tonight but will definitely be utilizing it in the future. Hubby is allergic to onions, ( I love onions) so I opted for diced up sweet peppers and minced garlic. I love how tweakable this recipe is, gonna try adding diced up bacon next time! Thanks so much for the starter ideas. Love throwing stuff together from whatever is left in my cupboards!
DrDan says
Hi Rachel,
As you have seen, the core of the recipe is the minute rice, chicken broth and soy sauce. The rest is mix and match what you want.
Thanks for the note.
Dan
Kellie Jo Gillett says
I've made this a few times and even my son that HATES rice, loves this. I've changed it up each time to make it my own. Beef with carrots is delicious and so is chicken with sugar snap Peas! Yummy.
DrDan says
Hi Kellie Jo,
Sorry for the late reply. I love adding some flavor to the rice. Plain white rice is just too boring.
Thanks for the note.
Dan
Jim says
I added a bit of garlic powder (about 1/2 teaspoon per serving) for a more Japanese flavor. Great recipe though.
Theresa Muhvich-Bertuleit says
I made this tonight and it was amazing with the pork roast
Gretchen says
Amazing quick and easy base recipe for a 1st timer making Fried Rice. Loved that I was able to change the serving size. Since I opted for the frozen peas and carrots, prior to adding the eggs I sauteed the onion with an 8 oz. bag of frozen peas and carrots and added a teaspoon of fresh minced garlic. Then added diced ham to the veggies before scrambling the eggs in. Got double thumbs up by the family. Thank you for sharing this recipe!
DrDan says
Hi Gretchen,
It is an easy recipe and it cries for modifications like you noted. A recipe is always "just guidelines" to start creating what you want out of it. I hope you inspire others.
Thanks so much for your note.
Dan
Lauren says
Great recipe! I used leftover brown rice and added some frozen peas and carrots. Kids loved it. Thanks!
Gina says
Yummy. I added leftover diced pork and a handful of frozen peas to the melting butter. Very good, quick, I ate both helpings.
Brad says
Substitute the soy sauce with oyster sauce for a less salty and sweeter flavor. Or use half soy and half oyster to add a sweet flavor kick to the soy sauce.
DrDan says
Thanks for the suggestions.
Dan
Beth says
This is easy and tastes good. I added some shredded carrot and peas in with the onion and sautéed three minutes, made a well then added the egg and scrambled. Once the egg was cooked a bit, I stirred all together. Voila!
Alonah says
It tastes really good!
Autum Clevenger says
I'm pregnant and I was craving fried rice.. I'm not disappointed!! This is really good and simple, which is exactly what I was looking for. Thank you for this recipe! I added peas and corn for a little bit of extra veggies and started the onion while the chicken broth was still boiling, since I like mine cooked a little more.. it's great and I have leftovers for tomorrow :)
Eric says
I googled "quick fried rice" needing to get a dinner together in a hurry and knew I was in luck when something from this site popped up. I made a couple changes, garlic for onion since I didn't have onion and I threw in some frozen peas. I also fried some chicken in peanut oil with some tumeric to move it from 'side' to 'dinner.' The recipie worked great, pretty much as good as fried rice from regularly cooked (and refridgerated overnight) rice and it doesn't require leftovers. Will definitely be playing with this for a little while.
DrDan says
All recipes are just guidelines. This is a great one to play with.
Thanks for the note
Dan
DrDan says
Thanks for the note. I think it is very tasty for an easy side
DrDan
Alicia Clinton says
Thank you so much, this has been a wonderful addition to our monthly rotation to sausage, asian vegetables and instant brown rice. We, of course, must nearly double the recipe to feed a family, but it's great. Try the reduced sodium soy sauce plus we sort of fry our onions too. Thanks again!
Melissa McKinney says
This is a great and easy recipe and turned out great! I also added chicken and cooked frozen veggies