Veg Fried Rice

Fried rice is probably one of the most popular Indo- Chinese dishes. I’m sure every Chinese food lover must have had it at least once in their lifetime. It’s quick to put together although you need to have your ingredients prepped!

The key to a good fried rice lies in the rice itself. I prefer to cook the rice a couple of hours earlier and let it cool completely. In fact, if you have leftover rice, that would work great as well ! Traditionally, any stir fry is prepared on high heat, now that is fine if you have an iron wok. Since I used a non-stick wok, I’ve maintained medium heat throughout, as non-stick pans tend to leach chemicals into food at high temperatures.

Fried rice can be served as a one pot meal just by adding any proteins of your choice or as a side to any Indo-Chinese based gravies. It’s truly versatile! Here is how I’ve learnt to make it from my mum, she doesn’t use ginger garlic nor the chilli sauce , but I’ve used it since I prefer it’s flavors.

Ingredients:

3 cups cooked Basmati rice

1/2 cup colored bell peppers/ green bell pepper julienne’s ( capsicum)

1/2 cup carrot julienne’s

1/2 cup red onions, sliced thinly / white part of scallions ( spring onions )

2 tablespoons dark soy sauce

1 teaspoon chilli sauce

1 tablespoon tomato ketchup

1 teaspoon Chinese rice vinegar/ white vinegar

1 & 1/2 inch ginger, finely minced

2 big garlic cloves, finely minced

salt and pepper

Handful of finely chopped scallions ( green part)

1-2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Preparation:

1. Slice all the veggies and keep them ready. Finely mince the ginger and garlic and set them aside. Make sure the rice is ready before you start anything.
2. In a wok, heat oil, add minced ginger and garlic, saute until fragrant.
3. Next, add the veggies, a tiny pinch of salt ( as the sauces already have salt) & about 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, saute on medium heat for about a minute.
4. Add the soy sauce, ketchup, chilli sauce & vinegar. Mix it well.
5. Now add the cooked rice, little at a time, mix gently to incorporate with the veggies. Stir fry the rice for another minute.
6. Finally, sprinkle some finely chopped scallion greens ( spring onions). Switch off the heat. Serve hot. This goes great with some sweet and sour chicken .

Note:

1. You can make a non-vegetarian version, by adding any protein of your choice. Saute boiled meat pieces before adding the veggies.
2. You can add more vegetables to this, like cabbage, celery, peas, french beans, etc.
3. You can also add scrambled eggs just before adding the chopped scallions to make it an egg fried rice.

I would love to hear from you, please feel free to share your feedback with photos and suggestions to me at aromaticessence77@gmail.com

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Regards,

Freda

Schezwan Sauce | Szechuan Sauce | Sichuan Sauce is a fiery hot Indo-Chinese sauce. Why buy it when you can easily make it at home, with fresh ingredients. Learn how to make Schezwan Sauce at home in easy steps.

Today’s post is all about this super simple Indo Chinese condiment, spicy Szechuan sauce!! If you love spicy food, I’m sure you are well versed with this sauce too.

• What is schezwan sauce?
• Ingredients needed to make szechuan sauce at home
• How do you prepare Szechuan sauce?
• Is this sauce spicy?
• Here are some of the dishes that I have made or served as a dipping sauce using my homemade schezwan sauce
• How to make schezwan sauce – Step by step instructions
• Schezwan Sauce | Szechuan Sauce | How To Make Schezwan Sauce

What is schezwan sauce?

Schezwan Sauce is a popular Indo-Chinese sauce made with chillies, garlic, ginger and other ingredients. As for the taste of Schezwan sauce, it is fiery hot and tangy with a subtle hint of sweetness.

This sauce is so versatile, use it as a dip with chicken lollipops , momos, spring rolls , or incorporate it in a dish like schezwan fried rice, schezwan paneer, schezwan noodles , schezwan potatoes , schezwan chicken or schezwan vegetables, etc. You can add a delicious twist to your favorite stir-fry with a few tablespoons of this sauce.

Well, it’s a never-ending list really! A little goes a long way, as it is flavor-packed.

Ingredients needed to make szechuan sauce at home

You will need the following ingredients to make you favorite Indo-Chinese sauce at home;

• Dried chillies
• Lots of fresh garlic and ginger
• Soy sauce
• Vinegar
• Tomato ketchup
• And some sugar to balance out all the spicy elements.
• You can also add some chopped celery.

Traditionally sichuan peppers go into the making of this Chinese spicy sauce, but I generally make this with dry Kashmiri chilies, a common ingredient used in Indian food, which is always stocked up in my pantry.

Kashmiri chillies not only impart a vibrant red color but has a reasonably bearable spice tolerance as well. You can leave the seeds in for a spicy sauce or deseed it for a mild sauce.

How do you prepare Szechuan sauce?

To make schezwan sauce recipe, you will start off by soaking the chillies in water. This helps them plump up facilitating in easier grinding to a smooth chilli paste.

Then saute the ginger and garlic in oil, add the spicy red chilli paste and the other ingredients. Let it simmer for a few minutes. That’s it, your spicy szechuan sauce is ready!

For a Jain Schezwan sauce, simply skip the onions, ginger, and garlic, and use finely chopped celery and capsicum instead.

Today’s post is about an Indo-Chinese version of this popular sauce. It is quite different from Mcdonalds szechuan sauce recipe that uses ground Szechuan peppercorns, ginger, garlic, and other dry spices.

Whereas the Indo-Chinese sauce uses a red chilli paste made with dried chillies as the base.

Is this sauce spicy?

If you buy the bottled sauce, chances are that it will be spicy. So there is an added advantage of making schezwan sauce at home, you can totally customize it! You can use a mix of hot and mild chilli peppers, depending upon your heat tolerance.

So why buy the bottled sauce when you can easily make Chinese schezwan sauce at home with ingredients readily available in your pantry! No added color and artificial preservatives too.

Here are some of the dishes that I have made or served as a dipping sauce using my homemade schezwan sauce

Schezwan potatoes

Chicken Lollipops

Schezwan noodles

How to make schezwan sauce – Step by step instructions

Step 1: Deseed and soak the chillies

Deseed about 70% (or as per spice preference) of dried Kashmiri chillies (about 20-25). Also, discard the membrane of the chillies. Soak dried chillies in about 3 cups of hot water for about an hour.

Step 2: Make chilli paste

Strain the water, grind the red chilies to a smooth paste, add water little at a time if required.

Step 3: Saute aromatics

Heat 1/2 cup oil (I used sunflower oil) in a deep bottomed pan. Add 3/4 cup minced garlic & 3 tablespoons minced ginger. Sauté on medium-low heat until it turns golden brown and the raw smell is gone. Add 1/2 cups chopped onions, sauté until translucent.

Step 4: Saute red chili paste

Now add the red chilli paste, mix well. Keep stirring continuously on medium heat until the mixture leaves oil.

Step 5: Add ketchup, soy sauce, sugar, and vinegar

Now add 2 tablespoons of tomato ketchup, 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 to 2 teaspoons sugar & 1 tablespoon rice vinegar. Season with salt and pepper, Add 1/2 cup water. Mix everything well until it starts leaving oil. Taste for seasonings, adjust with more salt, sugar or vinegar.

Storage: Let the sauce cool down completely, transfer it into a sterile glass container. Refrigerate it for 2-3 weeks. Use a clean, dry spoon each time you use the sauce.

Notes

• Start with a tablespoon of vinegar, ketchup and 1 teaspoon of sugar. You can always add more as per your desired taste. If you find the sauce to be very hot, balance it by adding more vinegar, sugar or tomato ketchup.
• You can make this sauce with any dried chillies, use a mix of hot and mild dried chillies to suit your heat tolerance. For a really spicy sauce, make it entirely with fresh or dried Szechuan peppers or use a combination of Kashmiri and Byadagi dried chillies for a mildly spicy sauce.
• You can also add 2 tablespoons of finely chopped celery in step 3 along with chopped onions.
• Cook the red chilli paste well or else the sauce will taste raw.
• There should be a thin layer of oil over the sauce once you transfer to the jar, to preserve its shelf life. If you feel this quantity of oil is less, then heat a few tablespoons of oil, let it cool, then pour it over the sauce.

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Schezwan Sauce | Szechuan Sauce | How To Make Schezwan Sauce

Ingredients

• About 20-25 dried Kashmiri red chillies
• 3/4 cup minced garlic
• 3 tablespoons finely minced ginger
• 1/2 cup finely chopped red onions/ shallots
• 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar/white vinegar
• 1/2 tablespoon soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons tomato ketchup
• 1-2 teaspoons sugar, adjust as per taste
• 1/2 cup sunflower oil/or any other cooking oil
• Salt and black pepper, to taste

Instructions

• Deseed about 70% (or as per spice preference) of dried kashimiri chillies. Also, discard the membrane of the chillies. Soak dried chillies in about 3 cups of hot water for about an hour.
• Strain the water, grind the red chilies to a smooth paste, add water little at a time if required.
• Heat oil in a deep bottomed pan. Add minced garlic & ginger, sauté on medium-low heat until it turns golden brown and the raw smell is gone. Add finely chopped onions, sauté until translucent.
• Now add the red chili paste, mix well. Keep stirring continuously on medium heat until the mixture leaves oil.
• Now add tomato ketchup, soy sauce, sugar & vinegar. Season with salt and pepper. Add 1/2 cup water. Mix everything well until it starts leaving oil. Taste for seasonings, adjust with more salt, sugar or vinegar.
• Storage: Let the sauce cool down completely, transfer it into a sterile glass container. Refrigerate it for 2-3 weeks. Use a clean, dry spoon each time you use the sauce.

Notes

• Start with a tablespoon of vinegar, ketchup and 1 tsp of sugar. You can always add more as per your desired taste. If you find the sauce to be very hot, balance it by adding more vinegar, sugar or tomato ketchup.
• You can make this sauce with any dried chillies, use a mix of hot and mild dried chillies to suit your heat tolerance. For a really spicy sauce, make it entirely with fresh or dried Szechuan peppers or use a combination of Kashmiri and Byadagi dried chillies for a mildly spicy sauce.
• You can also add 2 tablespoons of finely chopped celery in step 3 along with chopped onions.
• Cook the red chilli paste well or else the sauce will taste raw.
• There should be a thin layer of oil over the sauce once you transfer to the jar, to preserve its shelf life. If you feel this quantity of oil is less, then heat a few tablespoons of oil, let it cool, then pour it over the sauce.
• Measuring cup used, 1 cup = 250 ml, 1 tsp = 5 ml