Leftover Steak Fried Rice

Repurposing leftovers is a smart shortcut to a delicious dinner on a busy night. And here’s one of the best leftover steak recipes out there.We are all about making dinner easy and delicious and repurposing leftovers is a smart shortcut to a quick and delicious dinner. And this fried rice recipe calls for simple ingredients and turns leftover steak and rice into a flavorful dinner in minutes!

Plus, it’s a perfect dish to make the day before you go grocery shopping to clear your fridge out of any leftover steak, various vegetables and rice. And did I mention how easy it is to make it? It’s hands down one of the best leftover steak recipes out there. 

Turn your leftover steak and rice into quick and easy, yet flavorful dinner in minutes.

I know, for many leftover steak is a foreign concept. It was for me until I started cooking an extra steak on our steak nights.  This simple change opened up a whole new world of recipes to try out. 

Leftover steak can be used in so many recipes like a steak salad, steak stir fry or my recipe for a delicious leftover steak pad thai. Just make an extra steak on your steak night and reserve it for these great recipes. They make stretching one or two steaks to feed your whole family quick and easy. 

WHAT TYPE OF STEAK CAN I USE IN THIS RECIPE?

You can use any type of leftover cooked steak that you have lying around. Pan-fried steak, grilled steak, sliced steak will all work well. For a good fried rice, the rice is far more important than the type of steak used. 

WHAT IF I DON’T HAVE LEFTOVERS FOR THIS RECIPE? 

You can easily make this fried rice recipe if you don’t have leftovers to use. Steak can be grilled or pan-fried right before starting the stir-fry. 

If you don’t have leftover rice, you can cook it according to the package instructions the morning of making this recipe. Once the rice has finished cooking, spread it out on a baking tray and allow to steam off. You can also have a fan go over the rice to cool it down faster. After 1 – 2 hours it will be ready for use in this recipe. However, I highly recommend cold leftover rice whenever possible!

If you prefer your fried rice to have lots of texture and not too mushy, then you can also rinse the rice before cooking it. This helps remove some of the excess starch on the rice grains and they won’t clump together when frying. 

WHAT VEGETABLES CAN I USE IN THIS RECIPE?

This fried rice is easy to customize with whatever vegetables you have on hand and is a great way to clear out your fridge. Feel free to customize this recipe with whatever you have in the fridge and what your family feels like eating that day.

The base of this fried rice and steak is so simple that you can’t really mess it up. Red pepper, green onions and other classic stir fry ingredients are great to try out for extra bursts of flavor.

WHAT TYPE OF RICE IS BEST FOR FRIED RICE?

I mostly use long grain white rice, like jasmine, for my fried rice recipes. Basmati rice and brown rice are also good options that give great texture to this leftover steak recipe. 

There’re some types of rice to avoid though. Short grain rice can be  sticky and it’s hard to turn it into the perfect fluffy fried rice. 

You can use short grain sushi rice for a Japanese style fried rice. Two things to note are that it will clump up more while you are frying it and the end result will be more soft and chewy. If you like your fried rice that way then give it a try! 

Some short grain rice varieties are not suitable for fried rice recipe like rice meant for risottos or paella dishes. Best to steer clear of them for this recipe. 

WHAT MAKES IT THE BEST FRIED RICE?

2 things are most important for making any fried rice dish and they are to use cold leftover rice as well as sesame oil. 

Cold, dry leftover rice is key to a fluffy fried rice with the perfect texture. If you use rice that is warm and just cooked, it’ll be too soft. And your fried rice will turn out soggy and mashed together, definitely the opposite of what you want. 

You want a fried rice that you can still feel the texture of the individual rice grains but they don’t feel mushy. That’s why cold leftover rice is the key here.

Sesame oil is another secret to the major flavor! It’s a powerful, nutty oil that adds that essential fried rice flavor to this dish. Prepare to be reminded of the best fried rice Chinese takeouts with the authentic taste the sesame oil brings. There’s really nothing else that adds the same flavor as this oil. And remember, a little bit goes a loooong way!

More Favorites from Busy Cooks

Stay connected and join Busy Cooks community:
FACEBOOK | PINTEREST | INSTAGRAM