I’d say everyone out there knows fried rice and has probably eaten it already. In Asia, every country/region has its own popular version of this dish. The recipes are usually simple – often made with leftover rice, veggies, and maybe some “protein” aka. chicken, beef, or eggs, for example. In Korea, they got this Kimchi Fried Rice and as the name reveals already, it’s made with delicious Kimchi ;) Maybe not everyone’s cup of tea, but we really like the combination! Soo delicious!

I’ve been a big fan of Kimchi for many years – both the pickled cabbage and the drag queen of the same name (Kim Chi) ;) Many of you probably know this (often) spicy cabbage as part of the Korean dish Bibimbap. It’s also often served as a side with many other dishes… or you can incorporate it directly into a dish/meal – as you can see here with the fried rice. The spicy cabbage tastes nice cold and warm.
Kimchi is made Chinese cabbage and daikon (a type of radish) most of the time – though I have seen recipes with other ingredients already. With a few additional spices and some time these ingredients turn into Kimchi through the magic of fermentation ;) After only a few days you can theoretically enjoy your Kimchi, but often the cabbage is given a longer time to develop even more flavor. Days then quickly turn into months ;) Of course, this is not really practical if you want to make a bowl of fried rice with it… let’s say… today for lunch.
Fortunately, you can get ready-made Kimchi in any Asian supermarket and often in regular supermarkets as well. This can be freshly packaged (homemade) Kimchi, which lasts only a short period of time in the fridge, or canned Kimchi – that one probably lasts until the next ice age if you store it right ;P I linked some canned Kimchi in the recipe. We use that one from time to time but I actually prefer “fresh” or better said homemade Kimchi. We often order Korean food when we are too lazy to cook and then we always get an extra portion of Kimchi with the food. There we know for sure it tastes good ;)

When making this fried rice you have the option of using fresh cooked rice or rice from a meal you made the day before. Works both. In the recipe I also use Gochujang – that’s a spicy Korean seasoning paste. You might not have that at hand… which is fine. If you buy the paste, it normally comes in larger containers and if you are not using it on a regular basis you might have to throw some because it will turn bad after a while. So as a substitute you can simply use tomato paste and some chili powder. The fried rice gets most of its flavor from the Kimchi anyway – most people will not know you did not use the real seasoning paste ;P
If you want to try some other recipes with Kimchi, you should definitely have a look at these delicious treats – more ways to incorporate delicious Kimchi into your life!
INGREDIENTS / ZUTATEN
some vegetable oil for frying
1 red onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, finely diced
1 small piece of ginger, grated
3.5 oz. (100g) shiitake or brown mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 carrot, peeled & julienned
1 small can (5.6 oz./160g) kimchi*
3 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. Gochujang* (Korean red pepper paste)
1 tbsp. sesame oil
12.3 oz. (350) cooked rice
2 medium eggs, fried
1 spring onion, in rings
some black sesame seeds
etwas Öl zum Braten
1 rote Zwiebel, fein gewürfelt
2 Knoblauchzehen, fein gewürfelt
1 kleines Stück Ingwer, gerieben
100g Shiitake oder braune Champignons, in dünnen Scheiben
1 Karotte, geschält und fein gestiftelt
1 kleine Dose (160g) Kimchi*
3 EL Sojasauce
1 EL Gochujang* (Koreanische Chilipaste)
1 EL Sesamöl
350g gekochter Reis
2 Eier (M), angebraten
1 Frühlingszwiebel, in Ringen
einige schwarze Sesamkörner

DIRECTIONS / ZUBEREITUNG
2. Peel and dice the onion and garlic finely. Peel the ginger and grate. Clean the mushrooms and cut them into thin slices. Peel the carrot, cut into 2.4 inches (6cm) long pieces, cut them into thin slices, and these slices into very thin sticks (julienne strips). Remove the kimchi from the can, save the liquid for later and cut the kimchi into bite-size pieces.
3. Heat up some vegetable oil in a large frying pan. Add the onion and sauté until soft and glossy. Add the diced garlic and grated ginger and sauté as well for a minute or two. Add the sliced mushrooms, the julienned carrot, and kimchi. Let cook over medium-high heat until the mushrooms and carrots are soft – about 3-4 minutes.
4. Add the soy sauce, red pepper paste, sesame oil, and the liquid from the kimchi can and mix well to combine. Add the cooked rice and mix it with everything. Cook/Fry for another 3-4 Minutes.
5. Heat up a second pan, add some oil and fry two eggs sunny side up.
6. Divide the fried rice between two bowls, add the fried eggs on top and sprinkle with some spring onion rings and black sesame seeds. Serve immediately.
2. Zwiebel und Knoblauch schälen und fein würfeln. Den Ingwer schälen und fein reiben. Die Champignons putzen und in dünne Scheiben schneiden. Die Karotte schälen, in etwa 6cm lange Stücke schneiden, diese dann in dünne Scheiben schneiden und diese Scheiben in sehr dünne Stifte schneiden (Julienne). Das Kimchi aus der Dose nehmen und abtropfen lassen – die Flüssigkeit für später auffangen. Das Kimchi in mundgerechte Stücke schneiden.
3. Etwas Öl in einer großen Pfanne erhitzen. Die Zwiebel dazugeben und anschwitzen lassen. Den Knoblauch und geriebenen Ingwer dazugeben und ebenfalls kurz mit anschwitzen lassen. Pilze, Karottenstifte und das Kimchi hinzugeben. Bei mittlerer Hitzezufuhr mit anbraten, bis die Pilze und Karotten weich geworden sind – etwa 3-4 Minuten.
4. Sojasauce, Paprikapaste, Sesamöl und die Flüssigkeit aus der Kimchi-Dose hinzufügen und alles gut verrühren. Den gekochten Reis dazugeben und alles vermengen. Alles zusammen für 3-4 Minuten weiter anbraten.
5. Eine zweite Pfanne erhitzen, etwas Öl hineingeben und die beiden Eier anbraten.
6. Den gebratenen Reis auf zwei Schalen aufteilen, die Spiegeleier darauf geben und mit einigen Frühlingszwiebelringen und schwarzem Sesam bestreuen. Sofort servieren.

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Here is a version of the recipe you can print easily.
Print
Easy Kimchi Fried Rice
- Prep Time: 00:10
- Cook Time: 00:15
- Total Time: 00:25
- Yield: 2 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Cuisine: Korea
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
A simple and easy dish you can prepare quite quickly: Easy Kimchi Fried Rice with an Egg Sunny Side Up. One of my favorite quick meals.
Ingredients
some vegetable oil for frying
1 red onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, finely diced
1 small piece of ginger, grated
3.5 oz. (100g) shiitake or brown mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 carrot, peeled & julienned
1 small can (5.6 oz./160g) kimchi*
3 tbsp. soy sauce
1 tbsp. Gochujang* (Korean red pepper paste)
1 tbsp. sesame oil
12.3 oz. (350) cooked rice
2 medium eggs, fried
1 spring onion, in rings
some black sesame seeds
Instructions
1. Cook your rice according to the instructions on the package. You can use freshly cooked rice or one-day-old cooked rice – you need about 12.3 oz. (350g) of cooked rice.
2. Peel and dice the onion and garlic finely. Peel the ginger and grate. Clean the mushrooms and cut them into thin slices. Peel the carrot, cut into 2.4 inches (6cm) long pieces, cut them into thin slices, and these slices into very thin sticks (julienne strips). Remove the kimchi from the can, save the liquid for later and cut the kimchi into bite-size pieces.
3. Heat up some vegetable oil in a large frying pan. Add the onion and sauté until soft and glossy. Add the diced garlic and grated ginger and sauté as well for a minute or two. Add the sliced mushrooms, the julienned carrot, and kimchi. Let cook over medium-high heat until the mushrooms and carrots are soft – about 3-4 minutes.
4. Add the soy sauce, red pepper paste, sesame oil, and the liquid from the kimchi can and mix well to combine. Add the cooked rice and mix it with everything. Cook/Fry for another 3-4 Minutes.
5. Heat up a second pan, add some oil and fry two eggs sunny side up.
6. Divide the fried rice between two bowls, add the fried eggs on top and sprinkle with some spring onion rings and black sesame seeds. Serve immediately.
Notes
Enjoy cooking!
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