This yummy bacon fried rice is a great dinner for so many reasons. It's frugal to make, using leftover white rice, and packed with veggies too! The whole family will love this fried rice recipe!
I adapted my Hot Dog Fried Rice to use bacon instead, and it's truly delicious! You can make it with a few strips of bacon or a small bag of bacon bits, depending on what you have on hand.
With so many veggies in every bite, this is a recipe you can feel good about serving up to the kiddos too. It's a homemade version of a favorite American Chinese food, and it costs less than $5 to make!
If you have a lot of white rice on hand, make sure to check out my Quick Horchata Recipe (With Leftover Rice).
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🍯 Why This Recipe Works
- It is cheap. If you're looking for a super frugal meal, then look no further. This recipe can feed your family for about 50 cents per serving (that's less than $5 for dinner!)
- It's simple. Made with cooked white rice and a few other ingredients, this dish comes together quickly and easily. Perfect for a weeknight dinner.
- It's quick to make. In under 30 minutes from start to finish, you can have a large batch of fried rice ready to eat. Plenty of servings to give everyone second helpings or leftovers for lunch the next day.
🥘 Ingredients
Ingredient Notes:
Toasted sesame oil- This gives it a more authentic taste than using plain olive oil, but olive oil can be used instead.
White rice- You will need rice that has already been cooked and cooled. This is because fresh rice is too sticky. If you don't have leftover rice on hand, you can cook rice, spread it out onto a baking sheet, and freeze it for several minutes to dry it out faster.
Eggs- Adding in some eggs will give us more protein and color. It really helps to make the fried rice feel fuller too.
Frozen mixed veggies- You can use a mixed bag of just about any veggies. I usually opt for frozen peas, peas and carrots, or a full mix of veggies with green beans and corn, depending on what I have on hand.
Soy sauce- You will want to use some soy sauce for added color and depth of flavor. I recommend low sodium soy sauce.
For specific ingredients and measurements, please see the recipe card below.
🧾 Substitutions
Cooked rice. For best results, make rice the night before and store it in the fridge in a closed container until ready to use. You can swap out the white rice for brown rice if desired.
Bacon. Instead of using fresh bacon strips, you can use bacon bits or bacon pieces (the salad toppings). To do this, omit the first two bacon cooking steps and simply heat the oil and onions in the pan. Proceed as directed, adding the bacon in when directed.
🔪 Instructions
Step 1: Add your bacon to a large wok or skillet over medium to medium-high heat.
Step 2: Cook until crispy and then remove bacon from the pan and chop into small pieces. Drain grease.
Step 3: Add the onions and oil to the pan. If you leave some bacon grease, you'll get a stronger bacon flavor.
Step 4: Cook until the onions are caramelized looking or translucent.
Step 5: Add your minced garlic to the pan of onions.
Step 6: Stir well to combine and let cook for about 30 seconds or until fragrant.
Step 7: Add in the white rice.
Step 8: Stir together to combine, breaking up any large clumps of rice as you go.
Step 9: Add in the mixed frozen veggies.
Step 10: Stir well to combine. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until the veggies are no longer cold to the touch.
Step 11: Add your eggs to a bowl.
Step 12: Beat lightly with a fork to break the yolks.
Step 13: Push the rice to the sides of the pan and add the beaten egg to the warm skillet.
Step 14: Cook the eggs while stirring until scrambled. Try not to add too much rice to the egg mixture as that changes the texture of the dish.
Step 15: Stir to combine the eggs with the rice, then add green onions, soy sauce, and bacon pieces.
Step 16: Mix well to evenly distribute.
Step 17: Cook for an additional minute or until warmed through.
Serve with sliced green onions on top if desired. Enjoy!
🍴 Recipe Tips
If desired, you can leave some of the bacon grease in the pan for a stronger bacon flavor. You can also add in additional bacon if you want to use more strips of bacon.
Bacon is a lot easier to chop into small pieces after it has been cooked, which is why we cook the bacon before cutting it up.
Adding in some minced ginger can elevate the dish even more, so if you have some ginger, feel free to add it in. On that note, feel free to add in more soy sauce if desired.
🍳 Reheating
You can place your fried rice in a microwave-safe bowl and heat for about 1-2 minutes, stirring about halfway through. I like to add a small pad of butter on top of the rice to help rehydrate it as it cooks, but this is optional.
👩🏻🍳 Storage
You can keep your leftover fried rice in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 or 4 days.
💭 FAQs
If you use fresh rice instead of day-old rice, you may have a softer or "soggy" texture as a result. Other culprits could be that you mixed the eggs into the rice instead of scrambling them in the center of the pan, or you left too much bacon grease in the pan.
Eggs add more protein and a richer flavor too. They help to bring a savory depth to your meal, making it more appetizing and delicious.
The main parts of a fried rice recipe are cooked rice, soy sauce, and mixed veggies. You can add in eggs, seasonings, meats, or other ingredients to suit your own tastebuds.
❤️ More Delicious Dinner Recipes
If you tried this bacon fried rice, please leave a ⭐️ star rating and share your feedback in the 📝 comments section below. I would truly appreciate it!
📖 Recipe
Bacon Fried Rice
Equipment
- Large Wok or skillet
Ingredients
- 3 Strips Bacon (or small bag of bacon bits) ($1.08)
- 2 Tablespoons Toasted sesame oil ($0.20)
- 1 cup Onion, finely chopped ($0.70)
- 2 cloves Garlic, minced ($0.10)
- 2 ½ cups Cooked white rice ($0.76)
- 2 large Eggs, lightly beaten ($0.16)
- 1 bag (12oz) Frozen mixed veggies ($0.99)
- 2 Tablespoons Soy sauce ($0.20)
- 2 Tablespoons Green onion, thinly sliced ($0.02)
Instructions
- Add your bacon to a large wok or skillet over medium to medium-high heat.
- Cook until crispy and then remove bacon from the pan and chop into small pieces. Drain grease.
- Add the onions and oil to the pan. If you leave some bacon grease, you'll get a stronger bacon flavor.
- Cook until the onions are caramelized looking or translucent.
- Add your minced garlic to the pan of onions.
- Stir well to combine and let cook for about 30 seconds or until fragrant.
- Add in the white rice.
- Stir together to combine, breaking up any large clumps of rice as you go.
- Add in the mixed frozen veggies.
- Stir well to combine. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until the veggies are no longer cold to the touch.
- Add your eggs to a bowl.
- Beat lightly with a fork to break the yolks.
- Push the rice to the sides of the pan and add the beaten egg to the warm skillet.
- Cook the eggs while stirring until scrambled. Try not to add too much rice to the egg mixture as that changes the texture of the dish.
- Stir to combine the eggs with the rice, then add green onions, soy sauce, and bacon pieces.
- Mix well to evenly distribute.
- Cook for an additional minute or until warmed through.
- Serve with sliced green onions on top if desired. Enjoy!
Notes
- Use white or brown rice.
- Swap fresh bacon with bacon bits or pieces.
- Leave some bacon grease for extra flavor.
- Chop bacon after cooking.
- Add minced ginger or extra soy sauce for more flavor.
- Reheat in a microwave-safe bowl for 1-2 minutes, stirring halfway. Optionally, add a small pat of butter for moisture.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.
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