Japanese Chicken Rice is a fried rice with chicken and diced vegetables, seasoned with tomato ketchup. It is a popular rice dish among young children, perhaps because of the vivid colour and the dome-shaped presentation. The green peas in the centre also make the dish visually attractive. See the video.
Cook Time includes cooking the chicken skin to get chicken oil out of it, which takes a few minutes.
Don't forget to see the section 'MEAL IDEAS' below the recipe card! It gives you a list of dishes that I have already posted and this recipe that can make up a complete meal. I hope it is of help to you.
- 300g/0.7lb cooked rice (hot or warm, microwave if day old/frozen)
- 150g/5.3oz chicken thigh fillet cut into about 1.5cm/⅝" cubes (note 1)
- 50g/1.8oz onion finely diced
- 30g/1.1oz mushrooms (button or swiss brown), thinly sliced
- 25g/0.9oz carrot diced into 3-5mm/⅛-3⁄16" cubes
- 1 tbsp oil (preferably the oil from chicken skin, note 2)
- ½ tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 3 tbsp tomato ketchup
- ½ tsp tomato paste
- 10g/0.4oz butter cut into cubes
- ½ tsp salt
- A dozen green peas (boiled, note 3)
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Heat a frying pan over low heat. Spread a chicken skin on the pan and cook for a few minutes, turning it over a couple of times.
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When about 1 tablespoon of oil comes out, remove the skin. If you can't get enough oil out of the skin, add oil to make up to 1 tablespoon.
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Put chicken oil (or oil) in a frying pan and heat over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until the onion becomes translucent.
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Add the chicken pieces to the pan and sauté for a couple of minutes until the chicken pieces change colour and start browning.
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Add carrots, sauté for a short while, then add mushrooms. Sauté until the mushrooms become wet and wilted. Reduce the heat to medium low.
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Add tomato ketchup, tomato paste, and Worcestershire sauce to the pan and mix well, ensuring that the chicken and vegetable pieces are evenly coated in the sauce.
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Add salt and mix, then add butter. Mix well until the butter is melted.
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Add rice to the pan and mix. Use a cutting motion to break the lumps of rice up so that each rice grain is coated in the red sauce and there are no white patches on the rice.
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Turn the heat off.
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Put a half of the Chicken Rice into a mould or a standard rice bowl. Press down on the surface of the rice gently but firmly.
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Flip the mould/bowl upside down onto a serving plate. Put 6 green peas on the top if using, pressing down gently so they stay on top.
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Repeat for the second serving.
1. You can use chicken breast if you prefer, but the cooked chicken pieces will be a bit dry.
2. If your chicken fillet came with skin on, use the skin to make chicken oil (see the optional step in the instructions). It adds more flavour to the fried rice.
3. I used frozen peas.
4. I used a stainless-steel rice mould called 'melon shape mould' or 'omurice mould', which is like the shape of a football or a melon that is cut in half. You can buy omurice mould from eBay and Amazon.
As an alternative, you can use a rice bowl and make a half sphere shape. You don’t need to use a mould to serve Japanese Chicken Rice, either.
5. Nutrition per serving.
serving: 319g calories: 487kcal fat: 23g (29%) saturated fat: 6.1g (31%) trans fat: 0.3g polyunsaturated fat: 3.9g monounsaturated fat: 11g cholesterol: 82mg (27%) sodium: 985mg (43%) carbohydrates: 54g (20%) dietary fibre: 1.7g (6%) sugar: 7.8g protein: 18g vitamin D: 0mcg (1%) calcium: 39mg (3%) iron: 2.6mg (14%) potassium: 418mg (9%)