Pork fried rice is a quick, 25-minute one-pan dinner packed with flavor and veggies. Budget-friendly ground pork gets extra crispy in the pan and mixes into the rice, so you end up with delicious, juicy bits of pork in each bite!
Quick Fried Rice With Ground Pork
Without fail, I always make too much rice. Whether it’s to have with butter chicken on curry night, or with sesame chicken or pork shop suey for a takeout fakeout dinner, I can never gauge it right. I tell myself that it’s better to have too much than too little. But, really, I think it’s just my subconscious knowing that when there’s leftover rice, there’s going to be fried rice the next day!
So, if you’re sitting with day-old rice in the fridge, pork fried rice is definitely in order.
I love chicken fried rice, and I’ve been making this easy pork fried rice recipe on repeat lately. All it takes is a package of ground pork, frozen veggies, eggs, and a few Asian staples, like soy sauce, hoisin, and rice vinegar, to flavor the rice.
Why Make This Pork Fried Rice Recipe
- Ground pork in every bite. Not only is ground pork readily available and easy to cook, but all those juicy pan-fried pork pieces get evenly distributed throughout the crispy rice.
- 25 minutes. I love that this pork fried rice takes less than 30 minutes, and it doubles as a side dish or a meal.
- One pan. All you need is one skillet, so clean up is super fast, too.
Ingredients for Pork Fried Rice
Here’s what you’ll need to make this easy fried rice with ground pork. Scroll to the printable recipe card for the complete ingredient amounts.
- Ground Pork – You can replace the ground pork with cooked sliced pork loin roast or my Instant Pot pork loin if you’d like. Fried rice is just a great way to use up leftover rice and extra ingredients in the fridge.
- Soy Sauce – Use low-sodium soy sauce or tamari if needed.
- Cornstarch – In Chinese cooking, combining the meat with cornstarch is a technique called velveting. If you’ve ever wondered why the pork, chicken, and beef taste so much more tender in your favorite restaurant stir-fries, chances are it’s because of velveting!
- Oil – Your choice of vegetable oil or another neutral-flavored cooking oil.
- Eggs – Lightly beaten so they’re ready to cook.
- Garlic, Spring Onion, and Ginger – Classic aromatics. Finely mince the garlic and ginger, or grate them over a microplane. Thinly slice the green onions, separating the white parts from the greens.
- Frozen Vegetables – I use a bag of mixed carrots and peas, but you can use a medley with sweet corn or green beans added. It’s up to you. Thaw the veggies before you use them in the recipe.
- Cooked Rice – The best rice for fried rice recipes is day-old, cold jasmine rice.
- Hoisin Sauce – This is a thick, sweet-savory Asian condiment. It reminds me of a spicier, more complex version of Japanese teriyaki sauce.
- Sesame Oil – I use toasted sesame oil, but plain will also work. It’s hard to substitute sesame flavor in Asian recipes. You could try using peanut butter or tahini instead.
- Rice Vinegar – White vinegar or wine vinegar can be substituted if needed.
Why Do You Use Day-Old Rice for Fried Rice?
The reason you want to use leftover rice for fried rice is that dried-out rice is more likely to crisp when it’s fried. Freshly cooked rice still holds a lot of moisture, and it can become mushy when it’s cooked twice.
If you don’t have leftover rice, cook a batch of white rice or make Instant Pot jasmine rice. Spread the rice out on a baking sheet and let it cool down completely. Better yet, chill it in the fridge for a couple of hours.
Can I Substitute the Pork?
Yes. You can swap the ground pork with ground chicken or beef. I also have recipes for steak fried rice and shrimp fried rice if you’d like to make this dish with another protein. Try kimchi fried rice for a spicy vegetarian version.
Tips for the Best Fried Rice
- Use cold rice. Warm, freshly cooked rice can make the fried rice soggy.
- Crisp up the pork. Brown the pork until it’s a little crispy. Like deliciously cooked bacon, it will have more flavor this way.
- Let the rice fry. Spread the rice in the hot pan, and let it sit and crisp for a minute or two before stirring.
- Amp up the heat. Add a pinch of chili flakes or a dash of sriracha for a spicier dish. Since chili tends to get hotter the longer it cooks, I recommend adding it toward the end with the other condiments. Adjust the amount to taste.
Serving Suggestions
Serve this pork fried rice as a meal, or have it as a side with more homemade takeout dishes:
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Prepare the pork. Combine the ground pork with soy sauce and cornstarch, and set aside for 5 minutes.
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Cook the eggs. Meanwhile, heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the whisked eggs to the skillet and let the eggs cook into a thin omelette; do not scramble them. Remove the eggs from the skillet and set them aside.
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Cook the pork. In the same skillet you cooked the eggs, heat 2 teaspoons of cooking oil over medium-high heat. Add the pork to the skillet and cook until no longer pink, breaking up the lumps with a wooden spoon. Continue to cook the pork until browned and crispy, about 4-5 minutes. Remove it from the skillet and set aside.
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Build the flavor base. Return the skillet to the burner and heat the remaining oil. Add the garlic, spring onions (white part only), and ginger. Cook for 30 seconds, or until fragrant.
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Add the veggies. Add the carrots and peas, and cook for 1-2 minutes.
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Add the rice. Spread the rice into the skillet in a single layer and cook for 1-2 minutes without stirring, then stir.
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Assemble. Add the soy sauce, hoisin sauce, sesame oil, and rice vinegar. Return the pork and eggs to the skillet. Stir well to combine, then cook for 1–2 minutes, or until heated through. Season to taste with salt and pepper and gently toss once more.
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Serve. Serve warm, topped with green onions.
- Use day-old rice. However, if you are using freshly cooked rice, spread it out on a baking sheet in a single layer so it cools completely and dries out.
- When cooking the pork, make sure it gets a bit crispy. This gives a better flavor.
- When heating the rice, let it sit in the skillet for 1-2 minutes before stirring. This will make it crispier.
- For a spicy kick, add chili flakes to your pork fried rice.
Calories: 382kcal | Carbohydrates: 44g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 102mg | Sodium: 723mg | Potassium: 313mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 2521IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 54mg | Iron: 2mg
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
How to Make Pork Fried Rice
- Cook the eggs. First, heat oil in a skillet and cook the eggs over medium-high heat, but don’t scramble them. Just pour the beaten eggs into the pan and cook until they’ve set.
- Marinate the pork. While the eggs are cooking, mix the ground pork with cornstarch and soy sauce. Set that aside to marinate for 5 minutes.
- Cook the pork. Once the eggs are done, remove them from the pan and use the same skillet to cook the pork. Brown the ground pork for 4-5 minutes, until it’s broken up, a little crispy, and no longer pink. Then, set the pork aside.
- Sauté the aromatics. Next, use the same pan to sauté the garlic, along with the white parts of the spring onions and the ginger. Add the thawed veggies and let those heat through for 1-2 minutes.
- Fry the rice. Now, spread the rice into the skillet. Allow it to cook undisturbed for 1-2 minutes so it crisps a little, then stir.
- Put it all together. Lastly, add more soy sauce to the skillet, plus the hoisin sauce, sesame oil, and rice vinegar. Add the pork back to the pan, break up the eggs, and add those in as well. Season to taste with salt and pepper and stir until your fried rice is combined and heated through. Sprinkle the green parts of the spring onions over when serving, and enjoy!
Storage and Reheating
- Refrigerate. Refrigerate any leftover pork fried rice within 1-2 hours of cooking. Once cooled, store it in an airtight container for 2-3 days.
- Reheat. You can reheat the fried rice in the microwave or in a skillet on the stovetop, stirring often so it heats evenly. If you find the rice has gotten a bit dry, add a little extra soy sauce or hoisin sauce when reheating.
