Shrimp and Chicken Fried Rice (Thai-Style, One Pot)
You don’t need a magnifying glass to spot what’s in this shrimp and chicken fried rice like you do with the usual takeout version. This rice is loaded with veggies, protein and Thai flavors, making it a nutritious and delicious complete meal.
While Chinese restaurants often serve a mountain of rice with scant toppings, our version flips the script. And we are changing it up with a Thai twist. You can crank up the heat or make it mild – and use shortcuts or not. It’s up to you.
Sneak Peek
Here is a quick overview of what to expect.
Total time ~ 30 minutes
What you need: Cold leftover rice, shrimp, chicken, your choice of veggies, eggs, minced garlic and Thai sauce ingredients (soy, fish sauce, brown sugar, lime, sriracha, sesame oil).
Method: The recipe is made all in one pan on the stove top, in 4 steps.
If you prep the veggies and rice ahead, the dish comes together very quickly. And, yes, there are shortcuts!
Options: Use the veggies you like best. The recipe is a veggie-packed nutrient-rich version with fewer carbs (rice) but feel free to include more or less of what you prefer. You will find helpful notes, tips, and variations in the recipe card below.
Ingredients – tailored to your taste
- Rice: For best results, you need long grain cold rice for this dish such as basmati. Either use leftover rice from your fridge or cook it then lay it on a sheet pan to freeze for 10-15 minutes to cool it down. Or see shortcuts.
- Chicken: I usually used cooked chicken to make it easier (unless I am serving it to company).
- Shrimp: Any size will do. If the shrimp are large, I cut them in half or thirds. They key is not to overcook them.
- Veggies: Use whatever fresh vegetables you have in the fridge. I like lots of colors. Good choices are carrots, celery, peppers, zucchini, corn, snap peas, mushrooms, onions, boy choy, cabbage, green beans, green onion, edamame, cauliflower, fresh baby spinach.
- Thai-style sauce: Soy sauce, fish sauce, brown sugar, lime, sriracha, sesame oil (with cilantro for garnish).
See the recipe card below for substitutions, variations and shortcuts.
Step by step instructions
Tip
Rice freezes beautifully in zipper bags and takes just a few minutes to reheat in the microwave. Make a double batch and freeze half for stir fries and fried rice dishes.
Shortcuts
With all these shortcuts, dinner is ready in 15-20 minutes!
- Rice – Buy rice at your local takeout, deli counter or in pouches at the grocery store.
- Chicken – use leftover chicken, rotisserie chicken or Costco roasted chicken breast strips.
- Shrimp – buy peeled and deveined shrimp. Even quicker, buy cooked shrimp.
- Veggies – use a few frozen veggies like corn niblets and edamame beans along with one or two fresh ones. No need to defrost. Or pulse your veggies in the food processor instead of chopping them.
- Thai sauce – buy a favorite Thai sauce in a jar instead of making your own. Or simplify with just soy sauce, rice vinegar and sesame oil.
Make Ahead
You can chop your veggies, make the sauce and cook the rice a day or two ahead. The only thing I find best NOT to make ahead is the shrimp as they can get rubbery when reheating.
What to serve with shrimp and chicken fried rice
For an easy weeknight meal, I serve the well balanced dish as is with no other sides. Well, maybe some pineapple slices.
For company, I grill the chicken with a coating of mayonnaise, lemon, garlic powder, salt and pepper (or I use this grilled Mediterranean chicken). And pair the fried rice with one or two other Asian-style dishes such as:
More rice recipes
- Mediterranean rice with veggies (baked)
- Chinese fried rice with vegetables
- coconut Jasmine rice with chili crisps
- instant pot veggie rice
- pumpkin risotto recipe (instant pot)
If you like this recipe, please leave a 5 star rating 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟with a comment in the recipe card below. Thanks so much!
Shrimp and Chicken Fried Rice (Thai-Style, One Pot)
Equipment
- large skillet or wok preferably nonstick
Ingredients
Main ingredients
- 2 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided (or canola oil)
- 1/2 pound fresh shrimp or thawed frozen shrimp, peeled and deveined (cut large shrimp in half or thirds)
- sprinkle of salt, garlic powder, black pepper
- 3 green onions, chopped
- 4 cups chopped vegetables, Note 1
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh garlic ~ 2 cloves
- 3 cups cold, cooked leftover rice (white rice or brown rice) (long grain rice, Basmati rice, Jasmine rice)
- 1/2 pound cooked boneless chicken, Note 2
Thai style sauce
- 2 tablespoon dark soy sauce or light soy sauce I use low sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons lime juice (or rice wine vinegar)
- 1 tablespoon sriracha (or other hot sauce)
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil (or more to taste)
Garnish
- 2 green onions, chopped
- 1/3 cup cilantro, chopped (or parsley)
- lime wedges or a squeeze of lime juice
Instructions
- PAN FRY SHRIMP: Heat skillet to medium high heat nd add 2 teaspoons vegetable oil (use half butter if you like for extra richness). Add shrimp in a single layer to hot pan, sprinkle with garlic powder, salt and pepper, and cook 2-3 minutes just until opaque, turning once. For succulent shrimp don't overcook! Set aside in a large bowl (you will be adding the cooked veggies soon). Shortcut: skip this step and buy cooked shrimp (add to chicken and recipe in step 4 to warm through).
- STIR FRY VEGGIES: In the same skillet, heat 1 tbsp oil on medium-high heat. Add chopped veggies. Stir fry for 6-8 minutes just until tender. The time will depend on how small you cut the veggies. Add garlic and saute for 30 seconds.
- COOK EGGS: Move veggies to one side of of the pan. Crack two eggs on other side and stir until cooked breaking into small pieces as they cook for 1-2 minutes. Mix together with veggies. Spoon veggies and scrambled eggs into the bowl with the shrimp.
- FRY RICE and COOKED CHICKEN: Heat remaining oil in pan (about 1 tablespoon). Sometimes I also add a bit of butter for extra flavor. Add cold rice and cooked chopped chicken. Stir around for 3 minutes, breaking up the rice clumps, until softened and warmed through.
- MAKE SAUCE: While rice is warming, combine all sauce ingredients in a small bowl or measuring cup. Set aside.
- ASSEMBLE: Add cooked shrimp, eggs and veggies back into the skillet with the rice and chicken. Add the sauce and stir 2 minutes until all ingredients are combined and warmed through. Taste and adjust seasonings. I often add a sqeeze of lime and a touch of salt. Or more sriracha. Add chopped cilantro and green onions for garnish. Serve straight from the skillet or in a serving bowl.
Recipe Notes
- Vegetable options: Good choices are bell peppers, mushrooms, onions, celery, carrots, boy choy, cabbage, bean sprouts, peas, corn, green beans, edamame, snap peas, cauliflower, spinach. Shortcut: instead of chopping the veggies, pulse them in a food processor to about 1/4-1/2 inch (~1 cm). You might need to do this in two batches. You can also use a couple of frozen veggies with the fresh (no need to defrost) – such as corn and edamame.
- Chicken options – I generally used cooked chicken for weeknights – leftovers, rotisseried chicken or the roasted chicken breast strips from Costco. For company, I grill boneless chicken thighs with a coating of mayo, lemon, garlic powder, salt and pepper.  Â
- More shortcuts
- Rice – use leftover rice from your last takeout (rice freezes perfectly) or buy cooked rice from a restaurant or in frozen pouches fround in most grocery stores.
- Thai sauce – buy a favorite Thai sauce in a jar instead of making your own. Or simplify with just soy sauce, rice vinegar and sesame oil. You will need about 1/4 cup (59 ml).
- Garlic – use frozen cubes of garlic or minced/chopped garlic in a jar.Â
- Variations: Feel free to adjust the proportions – more veggies, less rice, more rice, omit the shrimp, more sesame oil, no eggs, more eggs, etc. You can swap in tofu or meat for the chicken and shrimp – or more soy or oyster sauce instead of fish sauce. The trick is tasting and adjusting to your tastes and preferences.
- Make ahead:Â
- Advance prep: I do this a lot. Earlier in the day or even a day or two ahead, chop all your veggies and store them in the fridge in a sealed container or bag. Cook the rice ahead. Combine the sauce ingredients ahead.
- Day or two ahead: Make the full recipe, keep it in the fridge, then warm it the next day on the stovetop or microwave. Add a few tablespoons of water or broth so the rice doesn’t dry out. Just know that shrimp doesn’t reheat that well – it becomes a bit tough.Â
- Freeze it: Place the finished dish in a casserole dish or zipper bag. Freeze for up to 3 months. Reheat (with a few tablespoon of water), covered in the 350F oven for about 30 minutes. Or in the microwave for 5-7 minutes, stirring once or twice in between. Again, remember that shrimp doesn’t reheat well – it becomes tougher and loses juiciness.
- Leftovers will keep in the fridge for 3-4 days in an airtight container. Warm in the microwave, covered, with a few drops of water.Â
Great recipe, the whole family enjoyed:)
Great to hear! Thanks so much for leaving a comment 🙂