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Ketchup fried rice is the perfect meal for when you’re starving and want something quick and tasty! Rice, veggies, and ketchup. Ready in 15 minutes!
Growing up in an Asian home, we always had leftover rice in the fridge. Ketchup fried rice is one of the things it turned into, along with Spam musubi and about a dozen other things my family made without ever calling them recipes.
It is slightly sweet, tangy, savory, and salty all at once, and the ketchup isn’t overpowering at all. Fifteen minutes, one pan, whatever vegetables are in the drawer.
What Ketchup Fried Rice Actually Is
This is not a novelty. Ketchup-seasoned rice is a well-loved dish in Japan, where it is called chikin raisu, or chicken rice. It belongs to yoshoku, the Western-influenced style of Japanese home cooking that developed after Japan opened to foreign trade in the late 1800s. Ketchup arrived, cooks adopted it, and it became a pantry staple in its own right.
Ketchup fried rice holds a special place in my heart. I remember eating this as a child with a thin layer of egg wrapped over it. If served with an egg, it’s called omurice, which is a dish that’s quite popular in Japan and Korea. Kids love it and hungry adults love it even more! Now that I’m older, it’s more of a quick fix for when I’m starving.
What I’ve Learned Making This Since 2019
I published this recipe in 2019, and I had been making it long before that. It has not changed much, and what follows is what I actually watch for when I make it, and a few things I have learned from the people who have made it since.
Cold leftover rice is what I build this around. Cold rice is not just for clearing the fridge; it is the version I prefer. Rice that has been chilled overnight firms up and stops clinging to itself, so the grains separate the moment they hit the pan. Fresh rice holds more moisture and wants to clump, which means you are working against it the whole way through. It can be done, and plenty of good cooks make this with warm rice cooked on the firm side, but cold rice gets you there with less fuss and a better chance at a crisp bottom.
The ketchup goes in before the rice; this is the part people get wrong. I have always cooked the ketchup with the vegetables rather than squeezing it over the rice at the end. Raw ketchup carries a lot of water and a sharp vinegar edge. Cooking it in the pan first drives off that moisture, softens the acidity, and concentrates what is left into something closer to a tomato sauce. Skip it, and you get wet, sweet, bright red rice that never crisps.
What I look for: the ketchup should thicken and visibly darken from bright red to a deeper brick red. In my testing, 1 minute together with the veggies is sufficient.
Black pepper, freshly ground. I flagged this in the original post, and I still mean it. Black pepper balances the sweetness of the ketchup, and pre-ground doesn’t do the job nearly as well.
The crispy bottom. More oil, press the rice flat, leave it alone. You get toasted, chewy grains scattered through the soft ones. This was a throwaway line in the original post and it belongs in the recipe card, which is where it is now.
What readers have told me. One reader asked about making it without soy or peanuts, and tamari or coconut aminos both substitute cleanly. Anyone cooking around a serious allergy should check the packaging for shared-equipment warnings. That question came up often enough that it is now in the FAQ.
Ingredient Notes
Rice. Cold and day-old, short- or medium-grain. This is the one ingredient worth planning around. Chilled rice has firmed up and stopped sticking to itself, so it fries instead of steaming into clumps. If fresh rice is all you have, cook it on the firmer side, spread it in a thin layer on a sheet pan, and let it cool and dry out. It will be better than hot rice straight from the cooker, though still not as good as yesterday’s.
Ketchup. Any standard ketchup. Brands vary a lot in sugar, so taste before you reach for salt at the end.
Black pepper. Freshly ground, and more than feels reasonable.
Soy sauce. A teaspoon does more than the amount suggests. It sits underneath the ketchup and keeps the whole thing from tipping sweet. Worcestershire works in its place if you want more spice.
Butter. Optional. Add a teaspoon with the ketchup. It rounds out the sharpness. Keep it small, or the dish turns buttery rather than rich.
Vegetables. Onion, carrot, and corn are the classic trio. Broccoli, mushrooms, bell pepper, and zucchini all work. Cut everything small, no bigger than a pea, so nothing steams the rice.
Protein. Diced chicken thigh, leftover ham, bacon, shrimp, or Spam all work well. Cook the protein first, set it aside, and return it at the end with the peas.
How to Make Ketchup Fried Rice
Break the rice up first. Cold rice comes out of the fridge in a block. Loosen it with your fingers before you turn the stove on, because doing it in a hot pan means overworking the grains.
Cook the vegetables until the onion edges go translucent. That is the cue, not the clock. Carrots should lose their raw snap.
This is the part that matters. Cook the ketchup with the vegetables before adding the rice, until it thickens and the color shifts from bright red toward brick.
Rice in, heat back up. Toss until every grain is orange and the sound changes from a dull steam to an active sizzle.
Peas last. A minute, just to warm them, so they stay bright.
For a crisp bottom, stop stirring. Add a bit more oil to the pan, press the rice flat, and leave it alone. The temptation to poke at it is the main reason people never get this.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sweet, tangy, and savory, but not like ketchup on its own. Cooking the ketchup down before the rice goes in softens the sharp vinegar note and leaves something closer to a light tomato sauce with a peppery edge.
Ketchup fried rice is the rice component of omurice. Wrap or drape it in a thin egg omelet, and you have omurice, which is popular in both Japan and Korea. In Japan, the rice on its own is called chikin raisu, or chicken rice, when it is made with diced chicken.
Raw ketchup is mostly water and has a sharp acidity. Cooking it in the pan first evaporates that moisture and softens the sourness, so the rice absorbs flavor instead of liquid. It is the difference between fried rice and wet rice.
It will not be as good. Hot rice is soft and holds too much moisture, so it clumps and steams rather than frying, and it will not crisp. If you have no choice, cook it on the firm side, spread it thin on a sheet pan, and let it cool and dry out first. Cold day-old rice is worth waiting for.
Usually one of three things: the rice was freshly cooked and still wet, the vegetables were cut too large and released water, or the ketchup was not cooked down before the rice went in.
Yes. Tamari or coconut aminos both substitute for the soy sauce one-to-one. Brands vary in how they are processed, so check the packaging for shared-equipment warnings if allergies are serious.
Diced chicken thigh, ham, bacon, shrimp, and Spam all work. Cook the protein first, remove it from the pan, and add it back with the peas so it does not overcook.
Yes, and I do. A large nonstick or carbon steel skillet is better here than a screaming hot wok, because the sugar in the ketchup burns at high heat
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Ketchup Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 3 Tablespoons avocado oil
- ½ cup chopped onions
- 1 medium carrot, chopped
- 1 cup chopped broccoli
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 cups cooked rice, use cold leftover rice
- 2 Tablespoons ketchup
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- ½ cup frozen peas
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1 Tablespoon chopped scallions
- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds
Instructions
- Break up any clumps in the cold rice with a fork or your fingers before you start cooking.
- Heat 3 tablespoons of the oil in a large nonstick or carbon steel pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrot, and broccoli and cook 2 to 3 minutes, until the onion edges turn translucent.
- Add the ketchup, soy sauce, garlic, and a generous amount of black pepper, along with the butter if using. Stir together and cook for 1 minute; the ketchup should thicken and darken to a deeper brick color.
- Add the cold rice and toss for 2 minutes, until every grain is evenly coated and the rice sizzles.
- Add the frozen peas and toss for 1 minute, until warmed through and still bright green. Taste and season with salt.
- Optional crispy bottom: add a bit more oil to the pan, press the rice into a flat, even layer, and leave it undisturbed until the bottom layer sets into a crust and the sizzle changes. Watch it closely.
- Garnish with chopped scallions and sesame seeds and serve hot.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
Hi, I am allergic to soy & peanut. I am also a vegan. Could you please suggest an alternative to soy sauce?
Hi Aneesha! Have you tried tamari or liquid aminos? They’re both soy free and gluten free. As each brand differs, I suggest you check the packaging to make sure their equipment is free of peanuts and wheat.
My Mum is a fried rice lover, and her new favourite recipe is this one. She wasn’t sure how to leave a comment so she asked me to do this, and to thank you for much for this delicious recipe 🙂
Thank you Gavin! I’m so glad your mom loves this recipe! 🙂
My first time trying to make Ketchup Fried Rice, and I am a convert! This is so tasty – I really love that subtle flavour the ketchup provides. I always make extra rice the night before so I have leftovers and can make fried rice. This will be made again very soon!!
Thanks Bianca! I love making this with leftover rice too! So glad you enjoyed it!
Simple and satisfying ketchup fried rice. Tasted delicious!