Leftover rice is not only acceptable here but practically mandatory: fresh or warm rice does not fry well, but clumps together and sticks to the wok. You need cold, stale rice, which separates during cooking. If you have neither roast pork (even the Cuban Lechon Asado, page 375, will work) nor Chinese sausage, ham is a fine substitute. No meat at all is fine, too, of course; see the variations.

　　

Ingredients

makes 4 servings

　　3 tablespoons corn, grapeseed, or other neutral oil

　　2 eggs, lightly beaten

　　1/2 pound small shrimp, peeled, optional

　　1/2 pound Barbecued Pork (page 373), Chinese sausage, or other meat, chopped into bits, optional

　　1/2 cup chopped scallion

　　4 cups cooked long-grain rice (preceding recipe), chilled

　　1 tablespoon soy sauce

　　3 teaspoons dark sesame oil or toasted sesame seeds (page 596)

　　Salt and black pepper to taste

　　

Step 1

Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a wok or large skillet over medium heat, swirling the oil to coat the wok. Add the eggs and scramble, breaking the egg into small pieces, just until set. Remove and set aside.

　　

Step 2

Raise the heat to high and add the remaining oil. When hot, add the shrimp, if using, and cook until they turn pink, just a minute or so. Add the pork, if using, and brown lightly, then stir in the scallion. When fragrant, stir in the rice, eggs, and soy sauce. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the rice is heated through, 3 to 5 minutes. Sprinkle the sesame oil over the rice, season with salt and pepper, and serve.

　　

Yang Chow Fried Rice

Step 3

In step 2, after the rice is heated through, add 2 cups thinly sliced iceberg lettuce.

　　

Pineapple Fried Rice

Step 4

In step 2, substitute nam pla (Thai fish sauce; see page 500) for the soy sauce. Add 1 cup chopped fresh pineapple along with the rice.

　　

Vegetarian Fried Rice

Step 5

Omit the shrimp and pork. In step 1, before adding the eggs, cook 1 medium carrot, chopped; 1 celery stalk, peeled and chopped; and 1 onion, chopped, until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon, then add the egg and proceed, stirring in the cooked vegetables after the rice is heated through.

　　

Nasi Goreng (Fried Rice, Malaysian Style)

Step 6

In step 2, substitute chopped cooked chicken for the pork. Substitute sliced shallot for the scallion and add 3 minced garlic cloves and 2 Thai chiles (or other small chiles, or to taste), stemmed, seeded, and minced, to the skillet. Substitute nam pla (Thai fish sauce) or shrimp paste (page 500 or 9) for the soy sauce. Omit the sesame oil and proceed as directed.

　　The Best Recipes in the World by Mark Bittman. © 2005 by Mark Bittman. Published by Broadway Books. All Rights Reserved.MARK BITTMAN is the author of the blockbuster The Best Recipes in the World (Broadway, 2005) and the classic bestseller How to Cook Everything, which has sold more than one million copies. He is also the coauthor, with Jean-Georges Vongerichten, of Simple to Spectacular and Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef. Mr. Bittman is a prolific writer, makes frequent appearances on radio and television, and is the host of The Best Recipes in the World, a 13-part series on public television. He lives in New York and Connecticut.