Thai Crab Fried Rice (Khao Pad Pu)
Jasmine rice stir-fried with golden garlic and marbled egg, seasoned with fish sauce, soy and a little sugar, toasted in the wok, topped with sweet lump crab and served with cucumber, lime and chili fish sauce.
Thai fried rice is called khao phat (often written khao pad). Wikipedia describes it as typical of central Thai cooking and made with jasmine rice rather than standard long-grain rice, plated with cucumber, tomato, lime, green onion and cilantro, and served with phrik nam pla, a dipping sauce of chilies, garlic, fish sauce and lime.
This version is Pailin Chongchitnant's, the Thai-born chef behind Hot Thai Kitchen. She calls crab fried rice the most popular fried rice in Thailand and part of the "basic fried rice" family: rice, egg and one protein, simply seasoned, with no vegetables in the wok. In Thailand, she says, fried rice is a one-dish meal, except at a seafood feast, where crab fried rice is served as the rice for everyone. Swap the crab for shrimp, chicken or pork and you have the rest of the family.
Why it works the kitchen science
Letting the rice sit
A few 10 to 15 second pauses in a hot wok toast and lightly brown the grains, which Pailin compares to the difference between plain and toasted bread.
Seasoning at the table
The rice itself is lightly seasoned, so lime and prik nam pla let each eater add sour, salt and heat to taste.
Step by step
- Step 1
For the prik nam pla, put the chili and garlic in a small bowl, add just enough fish sauce to cover and squeeze in the lime juice.
- Step 2
Put the oil and garlic in a wok over medium heat and stir 1 to 2 minutes, until the smallest bits of garlic turn golden.
- Step 3
Add the eggs, scramble lightly, then let them set about halfway, about 30 seconds, before breaking them up so the yolks and whites stay marbled.
- Step 4
Turn the heat to high. Add the rice, soy sauce, fish sauce, sugar and white pepper and toss about 1 minute, pressing out lumps and pouring the seasoning straight onto any clumps.
- Step 5
Once every grain is coated, leave the rice alone 10 to 15 seconds so it toasts and browns a little, then toss. Repeat the toast 1 or 2 more times; the rice should start to pop. It should be steaming hot (165°F).
- Step 6
Add most of the crab and toss gently 30 seconds to 1 minute, just to warm it. Turn off the heat and toss in most of the green onion or cilantro.
- Step 7
Plate, top with the rest of the crab and herbs, and serve with cucumber, a lime wedge to squeeze over and the prik nam pla.
Thai Crab Fried Rice (Khao Pad Pu)
Serves 2 · 2 plates · 23 min total
Fried rice
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 5 to 6 garlic cloves, chopped
- 2 large eggs
- 2 1/2 cups (375 g) cooked jasmine rice, packed gently
- 1 tbsp soy sauce, preferably Thai
- 2 tsp fish sauce
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/4 tsp ground white pepper
- 4.6 oz (130 g) fresh lump crab meat (not canned)
- 1 green onion and/or a few sprigs cilantro, chopped
To serve
- Cucumber slices
- Lime wedges
Prik nam pla (chili fish sauce)
- 1 Thai chili, thinly sliced
- 1 garlic clove, thinly sliced (optional)
- About 1 tbsp fish sauce
- About 1 tsp lime juice
Method
- For the prik nam pla, put the chili and garlic in a small bowl, add just enough fish sauce to cover and squeeze in the lime juice.
- Put the oil and garlic in a wok over medium heat and stir 1 to 2 minutes, until the smallest bits of garlic turn golden.
- Add the eggs, scramble lightly, then let them set about halfway, about 30 seconds, before breaking them up so the yolks and whites stay marbled.
- Turn the heat to high. Add the rice, soy sauce, fish sauce, sugar and white pepper and toss about 1 minute, pressing out lumps and pouring the seasoning straight onto any clumps.
- Once every grain is coated, leave the rice alone 10 to 15 seconds so it toasts and browns a little, then toss. Repeat the toast 1 or 2 more times; the rice should start to pop. It should be steaming hot (165°F).
- Add most of the crab and toss gently 30 seconds to 1 minute, just to warm it. Turn off the heat and toss in most of the green onion or cilantro.
- Plate, top with the rest of the crab and herbs, and serve with cucumber, a lime wedge to squeeze over and the prik nam pla.
Adapted from Pailin Chongchitnant, "Thai Crab Fried Rice (Khao Pad Pu)", Hot Thai Kitchen (2 servings). We follow its amounts (3 tbsp oil, 5 to 6 garlic cloves, 2 eggs, 375 g cooked jasmine rice, 1 tbsp soy sauce, 2 tsp fish sauce, 1 tsp sugar, 130 g crab), its 10 to 15 second toasts and its 30 seconds to 1 minute with the crab. The page gives no time for the garlic, egg or first toss; those times and the 165°F check are ours. hot-thai-kitchen.com. Ingredient list follows the source; the method is in our own words.
All sources (2)
Tips
- Pailin says day-old rice is not required. Wash the rice until the water runs clear and cook it with less water (she uses 1 to 1 for jasmine rice); spread hot rice out to dry while you prep.
- On a home stove, cook no more than 2 to 3 servings in one batch; a crowded wok steams instead of fries.
- Use fresh crab from a seafood counter; Pailin asks you not to use canned crab.
- For shrimp, chicken or pork, cook the protein first in the same wok, set it aside, cook the rice in the flavored oil and add the protein back at the end.
The rules people argue about
What the sources agree on, what they don't, and what is just a good story.
- Fried rice needs day-old rice. Disputed: Pailin Chongchitnant calls it a myth and says Thai restaurants use hot rice straight from the cooker; The Woks of Life says fried rice is easier with day-old rice; Laylita and Kathy YL Chan of Onolicious Hawaii say fresh rice turns soggy. Serious Eats found freshly cooked rice spread out to dry worked as well as rice refrigerated 12 hours.
- Crab fried rice is Thailand's most popular fried rice. Folklore: Pailin's view; we found no survey.
- Thai fried rice uses jasmine rice. Documented: Wikipedia.
- Lime is not optional. Documented as Hot Thai Kitchen's rule and Wikipedia's description of how the dish is served.
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