Quick & Easy Chicken Pineapple Fried Rice

Name: Quick & Easy Chicken Pineapple Fried Rice
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 3 cups cooked jasmine rice (cold day-old rice ideally ); 1/2 lb skinless boneless chicken thighs (or chicken breast); 1 cup frozen mixed vegetables (peas, carrots, corn and/or green beans rinsed and strained); 1 cup pineapple (diced or used diced canned pineapples); 1/2 cup onion (finely diced (or sub with shallots/green onions)); 2 cloves garlic (minced); 2 tbsp vegetable oil (or any neutral oil for cooking); 1.5 tbsp regular soy sauce; 1 tsp fish sauce (or sub with oyster sauce); 1/4 tsp salt; 1/4 tsp black pepper; 2 tsp regular soy sauce; 2 tsp sesame oil (or any neutral oil); 1 tsp cornstarch (or potato starch); 1/4 tsp baking soda (do not skip as this helps tenderize the meat)

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Fried seasoned rice with juicy chicken, mixed vegetables and sweet pineapples. This quick and easy chicken pineapple fried rice is ready in 30 minutes with leftover rice. Made with simple ingredients and great for the family!

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Ingredients & Substitutes
Expert Tips
Instructions
Storage
Pairing Suggestions
FAQ
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If you have leftover rice sitting in the fridge, then this is the perfect recipe for a busy weeknight meal ready in little time. The delicious flavor from the sweet pineapples balances out the savory chicken.

It's a family favorite that comes together with simple ingredients saving you money on takeout! Also, it's a fantastic way to use up any leftover ingredients sitting in the fridge as you can easily swap out the chicken or vegetables for ones you enjoy.

Chicken Pineapple Fried Rice is a popular Thai food and is often served at South-East Asian restaurants. It serves well as a complete meal, main dish or side dish with your favourite protein and vegetables.

There is the belief that this dish came from the Chinese people in Thailand. Thai people have their own way of enjoying pineapple fried rice and it can be cooked with various ingredients.

Pineapple is a wonderful ingredient that is used in many Thai dishes for its sweet flavor offering a sweet tropical flavor. It's a tasty fruit that is also rich in bromelain which is a natural digestive enzyme!

Ingredients & Substitutes

Please scroll down to below recipe card for exact measurements.

Leftover day-old rice: ideally Jasmine rice rice or substitute with any long grain white rice or brown rice. You can also use cold short-grain rice too. If you want fluffy rice, it's always best to use day-old cold rice because the cold air removes excess moisture, which leads to soggy fried rice.
Boneless skinless chicken thighs: or substitute with chicken breast, sliced pork, beef, shrimp or extra-firm tofu.
Fresh whole pineapple: If you're using fresh, make sure it's a ripe pineapple. The pineapple should be mostly yellow with some green marbling through it. If it's all green, it's not ripe yet. You can also check by smelling the fruit, if it's ripe it will smell sweet versus a non-ripe one.
- Or substitute with canned pineapple chunks.
- I don't recommend using frozen pineapple as it's not as sweet.
Frozen mixed vegetables: such as peas, diced carrots, corn niblets and/or green beans. Or substitute with any vegetable you enjoy such as broccoli florets, edamame, red bell pepper, zucchini or any hard vegetable that doesn't contain a lot of water and dice into small pieces.
Onion: or substitute shallots or green onions.
Fresh Garlic: or substitute with the jarred kind or season with garlic powder to taste.
Regular soy sauce: or substitute with low sodium soy sauce or light soy sauce. If you’re gluten-free, substitute with tamari sauce, coconut aminos or a gluten-free soy sauce.
Fish sauce: To give this rice dish an umami flavor or substitute with a bit of oyster sauce to taste.
Black pepper: or substitute with white pepper.
Neutral oil: like avocado oil, sunflower oil, grapeseed oil, peanut oil, vegetable oil or canola oil with a high smoke point. Avoid olive oil that has a low smoke point.

Chicken Marinade

Regular soy sauce
Cornstarch: to tenderize and velvet the meat to make it juicy and tender. The starch helps to lock in the moisture from the oil and is commonly used in Chinese cooking. Or substitute with potato starch.
Sesame oil: to flavor and moisten the chicken. Or substitute with neutral oil if you're allergic to sesame.
Baking soda: the key ingredient to velvet the meat making it super tender as it raises the acidity preventing protein bonds. Do not skip this! Don't worry you won't taste it as we're using a small amount.

Note: Most Asian grocery stores will carry most of the Asian specific ingredients.

Can I use same day cooked rice?

You may use same day warm cooked rice but it will create clumpy fried rice due to the excess moisture.

To fix this: Spread out the hot rice in a thin layer on a large baking sheet. Place it in the freezer for 45-60 minutes fully exposed. Then break up the rice with a rice paddle or clean hands moistened with neutral oil to prevent it from sticking.

Expert Tips

Use cold day-old rice for fluffy fried rice! The excess moisture causes for soggy fried rice that clumps together.
Break up the leftover rice with a rice paddle or clean hands to expose the separate grains! This allows for the grains to toast in the pan and become evenly seasoned.
If you're making fresh rice for this recipe, use a few tablespoons less water to steam the rice. Make sure to also dry it out by referring to the instructions above.
Use medium-high heat for the best fried rice. This temperature toasts the rice and prevents moisture from building in the pan.
Prepare the ingredients in advance as the cooking process is fast!

Instructions

Below are step-by-step instructions on how to make chicken pineapple fried rice:

Break up cold day-old rice with a rice paddle or clean hands. Set aside.
Slice chicken thighs on a bias and transfer sliced chicken to a medium bowl. Season chicken with marinade ingredients as listed, mix well and set aside to marinate for 10-15 minutes.
Heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in a large pan on medium-high heat. Fry sliced chicken until cooked through. Remove chicken and set aside.
Next sauté garlic and onions until fragrant.
Add mixed vegetables and diced pineapples and cook for 3-4 minutes, evaporating any liquids in the pan. Push everything to the side of the pan.
Add remaining vegetable oil. Toss in cooked rice into the empty space followed by regular soy sauce, fish sauce, salt and black pepper and toss everything together.
Toss back in cooked chicken. Serve hot and enjoy!

Storage

Leftovers will last up to 4 days stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. To reheat: microwave for 2-3 minutes until hot or reheat in a pan on medium heat.
Freezer friendly? This fried rice can be stored in smaller portions in freezer friendly bags after cooling it completely. It can be frozen up to 3 months or until you see freezer burn. To reheat, defrost it and reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop in a pan.

Pairing Suggestions

Chicken pineapple fried rice serves well with:

starters like egg rolls, crab rangoons, egg drop soup, hot and sour soup
chow mein, lo mein, soup noodles
cooked vegetables like bok choy, spicy garlic bok choy, choy sum, gai lan, garlic green beans or stir fried snow pea leaves.
protein dishes like Mongolian Chicken, Ginger Chicken, Orange Chicken, Mongolian Beef, Honey Walnut Shrimp, Bang Bang Shrimp, Gochujang Chicken, Soy Garlic Tofu, Chinese Braised Tofu and more!

FAQ

Can I make chicken pineapple fried rice in advance?

Chicken pineapple fried rice can be made in advance and stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. To enjoy, reheat it in the microwave or in a pan on the stovetop on medium heat.

Is it best to use fresh rice or leftover cold rice?

This is a long debated question as some cooks will tell you to use day old rice and some that work at the restaurant will say to use fresh rice. But I find that day old rice works best to create fluffy rice with separated grains. If you use fresh rice, it will likely clump together and stick to your wok, if you're not using super high heat so I would suggest either smoking the hot wok until it becomes non stick or use a non-stick skillet.

Why is my fried rice soggy?

Soggy fried rice is due to various factors and they can include not:
- using a high enough heat when stir frying
- using freshly cooked hot rice
- not breaking up the cooked rice prior to cooking or in the pan
- not letting the rice toast enough

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