Why it works: Chicken and rice are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 4,769 recipes. Both carry (e,e)-2,4-decadienal, which smells fatty, deep fried. The science ↓
Chicken-fried Brown Rice
Ingredients
Directions
Cook the chicken and vegetables
Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium heat.
Add 1 tablespoon oil.
Add chicken, red pepper and green onion; cook 5 minutes until chicken is cooked through.
Remove to a plate.
Fry the rice and finish
Heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in the skillet.
Add rice; cook 1 minute.
Stir in soy sauce, vinegar and peas; cook 1 minute.
Stir in chicken and vegetable mixture, cover, and cook 1 cup brown rice in 2½ cups water for 45 minutes.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 9 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Rice | 1 cup cooked (158g) white | 206 |
| Chicken | 100g cooked | 165 |
| Olive Oil | 1 tbsp (14g) | 119 |
| Pea | 1/2 cup (72g) | 62 |
| Green Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Wine | 2 tbsp cooking wine (30ml) | 25 |
| Soy Sauce | 1 tbsp (15ml) | 9 |
| Chili | 1 tsp (2.7g) | 8 |
| Vinegar | 1 tbsp (15ml) distilled | 3 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
-
Chicken + ricetop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,769 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,e)-2,4-decadienal (fatty, deep fried).
-
Chicken + oniontop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,814 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).
-
Onion + ricetop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together10,433 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
-
Rice + peastop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,434 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).
-
Pepper + oniontop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together68,474 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Boneless skinned chicken breast
- Provides the main protein, which firms and turns opaque as it cooks through.
- Cooked brown rice
- Forms the bulk of the dish and absorbs the soy and vinegar flavours as it fries.
- Light soy sauce
- Adds salty, savoury depth that seasons the rice and vegetables.
- Rice wine vinegar
- Adds a light acidity that brightens the savoury flavours.
- Sweet red pepper
- Adds natural sweetness and a crisp-tender texture.
- Vegetable oil
- Conducts heat for frying and helps the rice and chicken brown lightly.
The step that matters
Cooking the chicken through. Chicken must reach a safe internal temperature before it is removed from the pan. Thin strips in a medium-heat pan can look done before the centre is cooked, so the strips should be checked for doneness at the end of the 5 minutes.
Swap the peas
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (chicken, pepper, onion, rice, sauce, rice wine, vinegar):
- Sesamefits better
- Beansfits better
- Peanutfits better
- Peasthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against chicken, pepper, onion, rice, sauce, rice wine, vinegar. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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