My Minimalist Fried Rice

Today we're going to explore my take on Mark Bittman's take on Jean-George's fried rice. For those of you who don't know Bittman, he a food journalist - most notably for The Minimalist column in the New York Times.
After much testing of the recipe, I've finally perfected my own version of this very simple dish. Let's begin by exploring the original recipe.

The Minimalist: Jean-Georges's Fried Rice - nytimes.com/video from The New York Times on Vimeo.

I cringed when I watched Mark pour all that sesame seed oil and soy sauce over the rice. Way too much! There are a few simple changes you can make to the recipe that will improve the overall texture and flavor of this dish.

Here are a few tips laid out in chronological order:

• Leftover rice is best for any fried rice dish. If you've got a bit extra after a dinner, toss the extra in a ziplock and throw it in the freezer. This helps the grains to break up, particularly helpful when you're using sticky white rice.
  
• Be sure to chop the leeks short against the grain. If you cut them longer lengthwise, it will be a stringy, chewy mess.
  
• When frying up the rice, add a dash of salt and ground white pepper for flavor. Adding some salt now will cut down on the amount of soy you use later. Less moisture = happier fried rice. Don't use cracked black pepper here. Both the flavor and texture will overpower the subtle flavors in the dish.
  
• Instead of frying your egg in oil, try adding some water to the pan. the egg will still cook up the same way, and you can avoid the tough skin that forms in the egg whites that make it hard to break the egg apart.
  
• Use the sesame seed oil sparingly. Don't pour it straight out of the bottle on to the plate. This oil in particular has a very strong aroma - and that's pretty much what you're using it for. Add more and you're not intensifying the aroma, you're just drowning in calories.

A note about substitutions:
In the photo above, you can see that I substituted fresh chives in place of cooked leeks. Though I enjoy the sweet, onioney flavor of leeks it's nice to have a more savory option. You can achieve this different flavor profile by topping the final leek-free version with freshly chopped chives.