How To Reheat Fried Rice – The 5 Best Ways

Fried rice is one of those dishes that everyone loves, and that can be made in a variety of different ways.

If you’ve ever ended up with too much fried rice and wondered what to do with it, you’ll be happy to know you can reheat it.

What is the best way to reheat fried rice?

The best way to reheat fried rice is to use a wok and fry it again, because this will give you the right texture and flavor, but you could also use a saucepan or an air fryer.

If you’re looking for a quick method, you could use a microwave, and if you’re looking for the easiest way, you can always use an oven.

The Best Ways To Reheat Fried Rice

You might think that reheating fried rice is a no-brainer, but actually, there are a few things you should consider and a few tricks to help you get the absolute best results.

First of all, you need to know how to store fried rice correctly.

How long does leftover fried rice last in the fridge and in the freezer? The answer depends on how you store it.

As with any other food, you should refrigerate fried rice within two hours of cooking.

To maximize the life shelf of your rice, use airtight containers.

When properly stored, leftover fried rice will last up to 5-7 days in the refrigerator, and up to 6 months in the freezer.

When you decide to heat up fried rice, check to see if it’s gone bad: if leftover rice develops and off odor, flavor, or appearance, it’s better to discard it.

Another great tip is to sprinkle a small amount of water on top of the rice right before storing it into the refrigerator, to avoid eventually ending up with dry rice.

If you want to reheat pork fried rice, or if you’re looking to reheat chicken fried rice, you’ll also have to pay attention to the meat, as both pork and chicken tend to become dry in the fridge.

In this case, the best way to reheat this kind of fried rice is to use an oven and to cover the rice with a dish to regulate the moisture.

This will also help you if you want to reheat shrimp fried rice, as shrimp can be hard to reheat properly.

There are a few different methods to reheat fried rice and there is no real best or worst method.

It all depends on the time you have at hand and what’s in your kitchen. If you follow our guide, you can make it work regardless of what you have at hand and get great results with your reheated fried rice.

How to reheat fried rice in a microwave

One of the most used ways to reheat fried rice is to reheat it in the microwave: this is a super quick and easy method, but it does have the tendency to dry out rice.

Luckily, there are a few tips you can use to avoid that.

The first thing you can do when reheating fried rice in the microwave is to add back some liquid to the rice, either a tablespoon or two of water or broth (chicken or vegetable).

This way, you will help rice retain its moisture and enhance its flavor.

You should also cover your fried rice bowl, to keep all the moisture inside: you can use another plate or a larger bowl inverted over the top of your bowl.

Just keep in mind that you want some air to escape, so keep it loose!

Here are the steps to reheat fried rice in a microwave:

1. Choose a microwave-safe bowl.
2. Take your rice and add some liquid.
3. Cover the bowl.
4. Reheat for 2 minutes.
5. Stir the rice.
6. Reheat for another 4 minutes.
7. Always reheat fried rice for more than 5 minutes in total, for safety reasons.
8. Allow to cool and serve.

How to reheat fried rice in a saucepan

Retaining moisture is very important when reheating fried rice, and in order to do that, another great method would be to reheat fried rice in a saucepan.

Add a little bit of oil or butter to the saucepan so that your fried rice won’t stick to the bottom of the pan.

In this case, butter serves a double purpose because it makes your fried rice richer, but it’s not necessary, and using oil is just as good.

Another really cool tip is to add water once you’ve started reheating your fried rice: you should add half a cup of water and then cover the saucepan with a lid so that steam can begin forming and moisture can be added back to fried rice.

Here are the steps to reheat fried rice in a saucepan:

1. Choose a saucepan.
2. Pour some oil or melt some butter over medium heat.
3. Add the fried rice.
4. Break up larger chunks of fried rice.
5. Pour the water in.
6. Close the lid.
7. Leave to steam for 10-12 minutes
8. Give it a quick stir.
9. Check on the temperature and serve when evenly reheated.

How to reheat fried rice in an air fryer

If you’re looking for a quick method to reheat fried rice but you don’t own a microwave, or you simply don’t think that’s going to work for you, you can always reheat your fried rice in the air fryer. The air fryer is usually the best appliance to use with fried foods.

It does take a little bit longer than using the microwave, but this method gives you pretty amazing results! If you have a smart microwave with an air fryer, you can use that as well.

The best part is that you don’t even have to add any liquid, since the air fryer will protect the moisture naturally: you’ll have perfect reheated fried rice without too many steps!

Here are the steps to reheat fried rice in an air fryer:

1. Put fried rice into your air fryer.
2. Set on high heat.
3. Cook for 8-10 minutes.
4. Check the temperature.
5. If you’re not sure, cook for an extra 2-3 minutes.
6. Let cool and serve.

How to reheat fried rice in the oven

Reheating fried rice in the oven is the easiest option of all, but it definitely takes more time than other quick methods, such as using a microwave or an air fryer.

The oven method requires that you add some water to the rice just as the other methods, in order to avoid ending up with dry fried rice.

Use broth if you want to enhance the flavor of the rice, otherwise, water is also fine.

The amount of liquid you need depends on how much leftover fried rice you have at hand: make sure it’s enough to add moisture, but not too much, or you’ll risk turning your fried rice into a soup.

If you want to achieve a slightly crisped outer layer when you reheat fried rice in the oven, cover your oven-safe dish.

Covering the rice with a lid will help the moisture stay inside, while still giving enough crisp to the rice.

Here are the steps to reheat fried rice in the oven:

1. Preheat your oven to 425°F degrees.
2. Place the fried rice in an oven-safe dish.
3. Add a few tablespoons of water or broth.
4. Cover the dish with a lid.
5. Bake for 15 minutes.
6. Remove the lid.
7. Cook for another 5 minutes.
8. Serve and enjoy.

How to reheat fried rice in a wok

Reheating leftover fried rice in a wok is the absolute best method you could choose: unlike other fried foods, the fact that fried rice has already been fried at high temperatures with oil doesn’t have an impact when you’re trying to fry it again.

On the contrary, frying the rice again it’s going to bring back the original texture and flavor that you want to achieve when you reheat Chinese rice.

Keep in mind that you should always add some moisture back into your fried rice, and the easiest thing to do so is to add just 1-2 tablespoons of water or broth.

When you reheat fried rice in a wok you can also use additional ingredients like eggs, meat, or other vegetables of your choice.

Here are the steps to reheat fried rice in a wok:

1. Warm-up a bit of oil on medium to medium-high heat.
2. Add the rice to your wok.
3. (Optional) Add extra ingredients.
4. Break any large clumps.
5. Pour a bit of water over.
6. Cover with a lid.
7. Wait for the steam to stop.
8. Remove from heat, stir and serve.

Can you reheat fried rice?

The best thing about fried rice is that not only you can reheat it successfully in many different ways, but you can also cook it again without ruining it if you have a wok pan.

Reheating fried rice isn’t exactly complicated whether it’s plain rice of something like a P.F Chang’s fried rice recipe, and regardless of which method you choose, as long as you add back some moisture, it will turn out great!

Remember to refrigerate fried rice within two hours of cooking and to use airtight containers to maximize the life shelf of your fried rice. Fried rice can last up to 5-7 days in the refrigerator, and up to 6 months in the freezer.

Before reheating it, remember to check and see if fried rice has gone bad! If it has an odd smell or flavor, or if you see some kind of mold, discard it immediately!

The best way to reheat fried rice is to fry it again in a wok: this will help you avoid ending up with chewy or tough fried rice, and you can also add more ingredients as you go.

If you want a super easy method, you can reheat fried rice in the oven: this isn’t the fastest way, but you can’t really go wrong with it.

If you’re looking to reheat fried rice quickly and efficiently, you can go for an air fryer.

If you don’t own an air fryer but you still want to reheat fried rice in the quickest way possible, the microwave is your best friend. Just remember to add some liquid and stir the rice frequently!

Another option is to reheat fried rice on the stovetop: use a saucepan and remember to add some more liquid and just a little bit of oil.

Each of these methods works pretty well, provided that you follow the few tricks we gave you, so you can simply choose the one that suits better you and your needs.

If you follow our step-by-step guide, you can be sure to reheat fried rice properly, and you’ll end up with amazingly good leftovers even in the following days!