Hawaiʻi Local-Style Fried Rice (Plantation-Camp Wok Rice)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Large 14-inch wok or 12-inch cast-iron skillet
• •Wide metal spatula or sturdy rice paddle
• •Rice cooker, for making the rice ahead

Instructions

1. 1

   Break the rice

   Use rice that was cooked ahead, cooled fast, and kept cold. Break the clumps apart with clean hands so the grains are loose before they ever touch the pan. If the rice feels wet, spread it on a tray in the fridge for 20 minutes. The pan can brown dry rice, but it only steams wet rice into a heavy lump.

   For safety, don't leave cooked rice sitting on the counter overnight. Cool it in a shallow container and refrigerate it within 2 hours, then fry it the next day.
2. 2

   Brown the meats

   Heat a large wok or skillet over medium-high heat, then add 1 tablespoon of the oil. Add the Spam and Portuguese sausage and let them sit long enough to take color before you start pushing them around. When the edges are browned and glossy, fold in the char siu just until it warms and shines, then move all the meat to a plate.

   Char siu is already cooked, so don't fry it hard until it dries out. It only needs to wake up in the fat from the Spam and sausage.
3. 3

   Scramble the eggs

   Add a small splash of oil if the pan is dry, then pour in the beaten eggs. Stir them into soft curds, still tender and a little glossy, then slide them onto the same plate as the meat. They will finish when they go back through the rice.

4. 4

   Wake the aromatics

   Add the remaining oil, then the onion and the white parts of the green onion. Stir until the onion smells sweet and loses its raw bite, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and the peas and carrots if you're using them, and cook until the vegetables look dry on the surface, not watery.

5. 5

   Fry the rice

   Turn the heat high. Add the cold rice and spread it across the pan so the grains touch hot metal. Press, wait, then toss. Do that a few times until the rice separates, the edges pick up a little brown, and the pan smells toasted instead of damp. Drizzle the shoyu around the hot edge of the pan so it sizzles before it hits the rice, then add the oyster sauce if using and toss until every grain carries a light brown sheen.

   If your pan is small, fry the rice in two batches. Crowding the pan makes wet rice, and wet rice no like become fried rice.
6. 6

   Finish and share

   Fold the browned meats and soft egg back through the rice. Add the sesame oil, pepper, and green onion tops, then taste before adding any paʻakai because the Spam, sausage, char siu, and shoyu already brought plenty salt. Serve it hot and glossy in a plate-lunch clamshell, a plain bowl, or straight from the pan at home. Eat what you have, and waste nothing.

Chef Tips

• •Cold rice is the whole trick. Cook extra rice the night before, cool it properly, and tomorrow's meal is halfway made already.
• •Spam, Portuguese sausage, and char siu are the Hawaiʻi Local trio here, but use what get. Leftover roast pork, chicken, kamaboko, bacon, or plain egg all belong when the point is feeding people and wasting nothing.
• •Shoyu goes around the hot edge of the pan, not straight into a cold pile of rice. That quick sizzle gives you the smell of a saimin stand or drive-in kitchen.
• •This one is Hawaiʻi's. Sāmoan sapasui, Tongan kapisi pulu, and Cook Islands chop suey sit near it as everyday cousin foods from contact and survival, but each belongs to its own table.

Advance Preparation

• •Cook the rice 1 day ahead. Spread it shallow, cool it quickly, refrigerate it uncovered until cold, then cover it so it doesn't dry into hard pebbles.
• •Dice the Spam, Portuguese sausage, char siu, onion, and green onions up to 2 days ahead and keep them chilled in separate containers.
• •Fried rice keeps 4 days in the refrigerator. Reheat it in a hot skillet with a tiny splash of oil so the grains wake back up instead of turning soft in the microwave.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 280g)