This is the recipe we use for kimchi fried rice in our house! It’s obviously not Taiwanese, but if you enjoy our other recipes, you might share our taste for this kimchi fried rice as well. 😀
Kimchi fried rice is perfect for a busy week night meal. Most of the ingredients we’re using here can actually be eaten as is, so the cooking process is just a matter of heating everything up and bringing out the flavor.
What is kimchi FRIED RICE?
Flan is a dessert known by many different names, and can also mean different desserts. In Spain and South America, flan is a made from custard and caramel; perhaps more descriptively named, there is a French dessert called creme carmel that is their version of flan. On the other hand, if you were to order flan in the UK you’d likely be served an tart with either a sweet or savory filling.
The Taiwanese version of flan is more similar to the Spanish variation of the dish. Flan can be found in most dairy aisles of grocery stores in Taiwan – however, anyone unfamiliar with the Taiwanese spin on it might be a little confused at the lighter color and taste, and the softer texture. We actually call it pudding so I kept getting redirected to the wrong thing when I first looked for it in the United States.
Why this recipe?
The preparation for this recipe takes ten minutes or less – any dessert that’s that quick is always working making in my book! But seriously, the main benefits of this recipe are:
- Easily customizable for dietary restrictions (just switch out the milk used)
- No separate process to make the caramel
- Can be made in advance and refrigerated until you’re ready to service it, making it one less thing to worry about when hosting!
Ingredients and Equipment
There are only four ingredients for this recipe, ingredients that you’ll likely have in your kitchen if you bake regularly – eggs, milk, vanilla, and brown sugar. I prefer to use Taiwanese brown sugar[link] since it tastes stronger and packs a lot more flavor than most western brands, almost giving off a slight caramel taste without any additional cooking needed. Standard brown sugar works as well though, if that’s what you happen to have in your kitchen!
The other thing to watch out for is the consistency of the milk. In order for the flan to harden, the milk will need to be thick enough. I’ve found that some store bought brands are a little too watered down; I recommended using [] or []. Or better yet, you can make your own soy milk using this recipe! [link] If you only have a thinner milk on hand, you can also make it work. Just simmer the milk for around 5-10 minutes until thicker, bringing to the point of almost boiling to change the consistency of the milk and voila! Continue on with the recipe!
The equipment is a little trickier – you’ll need to have small cups that can are oven-safe, as well as a pan that is high enough to hold some water. The cups don’t have to be anything special; I’ve actually used bowls before and those worked just as well! The ones I have in my kitchen are actually reused from pre-made desserts from Costco.
Cooking Process
The cooking process is as simple as the ingredients! It can be basically broken into three main sections:
Preparation
Melt the part of the brown sugar in the soy milk by stovetop or microwave. The milk should just be warm enough to melt the sugar; if it starts to boil STOP! You’ve gone too far. Keep in mind you’ll have to mix the warmed milk and eggs together later on which is another incentive to avoid overheating it or else the eggs will cook when you combine the two or melt the brown sugar in the cups. If you do overheat it, no worries, just wait a little bit for the milk to cool down before proceeding.
The next phase of preparation is to beat the eggs. The trick to attaining the smooth texture of a perfectly made flan is to thoroughly beat the eggs. I usually beat by hand for a couple of minutes with a fork.
Finally, prepare the cups by putting a thin layer of brown sugar on the bottom of the cups. I usually gently shake the cup a little after adding in the sugar to balance it out.
Combination
Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl until thoroughly combined. The order doesn’t matter too much as long as everything is fully combined. As a reminder, make sure that the milk isn’t too hot before combining with the rest of the ingredients.
Carefully pour the flan mixture into the prepared cups. During the mixing, you may notice that quite a bit of foam has been created in the process. I usually use a sieve when pouring into the cups – this will help catch the majority of the foam and create a flan with a smooth texture on top and not just on the inside.
Baking
Cover the cups with aluminum foil and then place into a pan filled with warm water. Carefully move to the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Be careful not to overcook or else the flan will start to harden too much.
Remove from the oven to cool. It’ll be too hot to place directly into the refrigerator. I usually let it sit on the counter for around 20 minutes before transition to the fridge. The flan is ready to be served as soon as it’s complete cooled. This usually takes a couple of hours. Make sure to allow the flan to fully cool or else the flan will still be a little watery. I was naughty here and took out the flan too early.
The good news is that there’s an easy fix for watery tops! Just place it back into the fridge until it fully cools.
Quick and Easy Kimchi Fried Rice
Equipment
- 1 large wok or pot
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 1 T water
- 1 t garlic minced
- 1 c onion finely chopped
- 1 tofu firm
- 1 [optional] spam package
- 1 c kimchi chopped
- 1 c corn
- 4 c cooked rice around 1 c uncooked
- 3 green onion stalks chopped
- salt season to taste
Instructions
- Heat some oil in the pot, and then add the eggs and water. Stir fry until almost cooked, then transfer to a plate and set aside.
- Heat the same pot again with some oil and stir fry the garlic until fragrant.
- Add the onion and meat and continue to stir fry completely heated. Make sure that any raw meat is cooked (you can also avoid using raw meat which will speed up the process)
- Add the kimchi and stir fry until heat is evenly distributed.
