Mixed Fried Rice with Lemon Leaf

Sharing one of my very favorite, family secret recipes of fried rice with all the tips I am aware of!
Mixed fried rice with lemon leaf!
It’s really that much flavorful and tasty... Which gonna blow your mind away!

Ingredients:

For boiling the rice:

▪️ 1.5 cup uncooked kalijira rice (don’t recommend basmati rice for this recipe )
▪️ 1 tbsp oil
▪️ 3 medium-sized lemon leaves
▪️ Salt to taste

For making the chicken and shrimp:

For marination:

▪️ 1/2 cup chicken (thinly sliced)
▪️ 1/2 cup shrimp
▪️ 1/2 tsp milk
▪️ 1/2 tsp thin soy sauce
▪️ 1/2 tsp seasoning sauce
▪️ 1/4 tsp lemon juice
▪️ 1/2 tsp black pepper powder
▪️ 1/8 tsp salt
▪️ 1 tbsp cornflour or corn starch
▪️ 1/4 tsp red chili powder (optional, used for color)

For frying:

▪️ 1.5 tbsp butter/ oil
▪️ 1 tsp garlic paste
▪️ 1/4 tsp ginger paste

For making the scrambled eggs:

▪️ 2 eggs
▪️ 1/4 tsp onion powder (optional)
▪️ 1/8 tsp red chili powder (optional, used for color)
▪️ 1/4 tsp salt
▪️ 2.5 tbsp oil for frying

Vegetables needed:

▪️ 1/3 cup carrot (small cubes)
▪️  1/3 cup cauliflower (small cut)
▪️ 1/3 cup green pea
▪️ 1/3 cup bell peppers (julienne cut)
▪️ 1/3 cup green onion
▪️ 1/3 cup white part of the green onion (small cut)
▪️ 1/2 cup mushrooms (thinly sliced)

For making the rice:

▪️ 3 tbsp oil
▪️ 1/2 cup onion (small cubes)
▪️ 1 tbsp garlic (finely chopped)
▪️ 2-3 green chili
▪️ 2 medium-sized lemon leaves
▪️ 1 chicken bouillon cube
▪️ 1/2 tbsp tomato chili/ tomato sauce
▪️ 1.5 tsp thin soy sauce
▪️ 1 tsp oyster sauce
▪️ 1.5 tsp black pepper powder
▪️ 1 tsp lemon juice
▪️ Salt to taste
▪️ Pinch of sugar
▪️ 1/4 tsp tasting salt (optional)

Directions:

For boiling the rice:

▪️ Soak the rice in water for about 15-20 minutes. Then wash well and strain.

▪️ Cook in plenty of boiling water with oil, lemon leaves and salt added.
Boil the rice until 85-90% is done.

▪️ Rinse the cooked rice with cold water and strain well. Let those dry for a while.

▪️ Refrigerate in a covered box for at least 2 hours. Better overnight.

For making the chicken and shrimp :

▪️ Marinate the chicken and shrimp with everything.

▪️ Pour butter. When melted add garlic and ginger paste. Saute until fragrant.

▪️ Add chicken and shrimp. Fry well.

for making the scrambled eggs:

▪️ Add onion powder, red chili powder, salt with the eggs. Beat a bit.

▪️ Heat the oil well. Pour the eggs. When set a little bit, scramble.

▪️ Fry the mushrooms on the same pan for a while and keep aside. No need to use extra oil. You can brush a bit if needed.

For making the rice :

▪️ Pour the oil. When hot, add onion. After 1 minute add the white part of the green onion and chopped garlic.

▪️ Fry a bit. Add green chili. Now, wait until everything is lightly golden.

▪️ Add carrot and cauliflower, lemon leaves and chicken bouillon. Saute for a while.

▪️ Then add the green pea. Saute again.

▪️ Add chicken and shrimp now. And give it a good mix.

▪️ Pour rice. Mix a bit and then add soy sauce, oyster sauce, black pepper powder, lemon juice, salt, sugar, tasting salt and bell peppers.

▪️ Mix everything very well on high heat. In the meantime add eggs. And again give everything a very good mix.

▪️ Now when almost done add mushrooms and green onion as well. Toss again, turn off the stove and serve with any Thai/ Chinese dish of your choices. Enjoy!

Notes:

▪️ The overall taste largely depends on the kind of rice chosen. You can use any fragrant rice of your choices.
But I don’t recommend using Basmati rice for this recipe.

▪️ Soaking the rice and shortening the cooking time, helps to get more flavorful results.

▪️ Adding oil while boiling the rice helps the rice not to stick together.

▪️ Boiling the rice until 85-90% is done, will help to keep the right texture when mixed with everything later.

▪️ Rinsing with cold water is important as that removes the thin layer of starch from the surface of each grain and prevents the rice from sticking together.

▪️ Refrigerating the cooked rice is also recommended for the nice textured fried rice. Refrigerated rice is drier and less sticky. Therefore it is easier to fry which will not stick to the pan.

▪️ Adding milk while marinating chicken and shrimp helps those to be soft and juicy after frying.

▪️ Try to use good quality soy sauce.

▪️ Take care not to pour the butter when the pan is too hot. Otherwise, it would get burned.

▪️ For the best flavor, avoid frying the eggs for a long time.

▪️ The vegetables used in the recipe are also recommended not to overcook.

▪️  Don’t use lemon leaf too much. That may overwhelm all other flavors and tastes.

▪️ It is all about the technique to create the desired aroma, texture, and flavor.
So high heat is very important while cooking.

▪️ Using a little bit of sugar helps to remove the harshness of the salt and will maintain a balanced taste.