Are you searching for how to cook tuna kimchi fried rice?
Then you have come to the right place. This Korean tuna fried rice is so easy to make, you need less than 15 minutes to make a delicious and hearty meal.
I love Korean food, especially chicken kimchi fried rice. You can watch the video on how I cook the recipe. What I love about kimchi is how well it goes with a lot of dishes. Did you know that kimchi has beneficial benefits for the human body too?
Kimchi is packed with nutrients and low in calories. It contains probiotics that can help to promote a good microbiome thriving inside our guts. This may help to strengthen the immunity system, reduce inflammation, slow aging, and weight loss.
I have been trying to find time to cook tuna kimchi fried rice. Once I tried it has such a nice savory, umami taste that just melts and creates a wonderful flavor! And this quickly become one of my favorite tuna fried rice recipes.
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Tips on Making Tuna Kimchi Fried Rice
Kimchi – The best kimchi to be used in this recipe is aged kimchi. Aged kimchi is kimchi that has been fermented for a long time. For this tuna kimchi fried rice choose aged kimchi that is more than 2 weeks old.
Rice – I am using basmati/ parboiled rice in this recipe due to it has a low level of the glycemic index. A low glycemic index is good in controlling blood sugar levels in our body and can help us to feel fuller for a longer time compared to short-grained rice such as Japanese rice. You can choose to use overnight-cooked rice or ready-cooked rice. Either one is fine.
Non-stick skillet – Using the standard steel pans can cause the ingredients to tend to stick and burn compared to a non-stick skillet. Besides, you will need to use less oil if choose to cook using a non-stick skillet.
Garnish – The most popular garnish for kimchi fried rice is a sunny-side-up fried egg. You can also add seaweed, sesame seeds, and chopped green onion. If you don’t have seaweed or sesame seeds, you can also use furikake (Japanese rice seasoning flakes).
Ingredients for Tuna Kimchi Fried Rice
To make this Korean tuna fried rice you only need a few ingredients as below:
Oil – You can choose between olive oil or sesame oil. Personally for health benefits, I’ll recommend that you use olive oil as it is rich in omega-3.
Kimchi – Choose aged kimchi that is more than 2 weeks old as it has a tangier, and more flavorful taste compared to using new kimchi. The best flavor of kimchi is one that is well-fermented, very sour, and ripe. When cooked, it mellows out and takes on a deep intense flavor.
Tuna – For this fried rice, I am using canned tuna in water. You can choose other types of canned tuna, but I choose canned tuna in water due to its nutrient and low calories compared to other choices.
Gochujang – If you like spicy tuna fried rice, you add in gochujang. This is a Korean hot pepper paste. You can choose the spicy level according to your preferences just remember to read the food label.
Optional:
Fish Sauce – can help to enhance the flavor. I recommend tasting after cooking, if the taste is a bit off you can add a sprinkle of fish sauce. Be careful, because the fish sauce can come out rather quickly!
Sriracha – If you like more spice, can drizzle sriracha accordingly.
Roasted Seaweed – You can add in seaweed for crunchiness and salt.
Furikake – If you don’t have roasted seaweed can opt for furikake. It’s a Japanese rice seasoning. I love furikake.
Sugar – It can help to balance the sour taste of kimchi. I suggest you taste before adding as for me without sugar it is still delicious.
Tuna Kimchi Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1.5 cup cooked overnight rice
- 3 cloves mince garlic
- 2 green onion, chopped
- 1 canned tuna in water
- 2 tsp gochujang
- 1 egg, scrambled
- 1 cup kimchi
- 5 baby carrot, thinly sliced
Instructions
- In a large skillet or wok, heat olive oil over high heat until it becomes hot. Add garlic and carrots. Wait until the carrot becomes brownish and soft then put in kimchi. Stir fry until kimchi becomes soft for 1-2 minutes.
- Add in tuna. Then incorporate the rice and continue to stir fry. Add in gochujang, and continue stirring everything over medium heat until the rice takes on a lovely color of bright orange, approximately for about 1- 2 minutes.
- Optional: You can add salt, black pepper, and fish sauce after you put in the rice.
Tuna Kimchi Fried Rice Recipes Tips And Notes
1. You can add whatever vegetables you have in the fridge to this recipe. Brocolli, peas, corn, carrot, kale, or any other leafy green vegetables that you have can complement this dish. For those hard vegetables like broccoli and carrot, I’ll cook them before adding kimchi while for others it is nice to cook them together with kimchi.
2. Aged kimchi will give a more sour and flavorful taste. It tastes better when using aged kimchi rather than a new one. New kimchi tastes rather bland. Be cautious about using juice from kimchi, as more can cause the rice to be soggy.
3. For extra flavor, drizzle sesame oil over cooked Korean tune fried rice.
4. Meal prep: Once cooled, keep the fried rice inside a tight container. You can keep it for about 4 days. Before reheating, I will splash a bit of water as rice can be a bit dried. You can reheat using the microwave or on the stovetop.
5. If you keep the tuna fried rice in a freezer wait until it has cooled and put it inside an airtight container. You can keep up until a month or two. Let it thaw inside the refrigerator before reheating it in the microwave or on the stovetop. I prefer to eat my fried rice fresh or keep it for a few days only.
FAQs
1. Is Kimchi and Rice Healthy?
Kimchi fried rice is a healthy dish. It is a well-balanced meal comprised of carbohydrates, protein, and healthy fat. Choose rice with a low glycemic index and you can choose a lot of varieties with protein like chicken breast, bacon, or tuna. Kimchi also has probiotics that are friendly to our guts.
2. What Does Kimchi Taste Like?
Kimchi is a fermented traditional Korean dish. The most prominent flavor is typically sour, spicy, and umami. Depending on using what kind of vegetables, the length of fermentation, and how much sugar and salt were put in can change the taste.
3. Is Kimchi Fried Rice Supposed To Be Soggy?
No. It isn’t supposed to be soggy. Be careful on using juice from kimchi, do not overdo it. You can slowly add on and stir the rice, if you feel you need to add on the kimchi juice then do it. Otherwise, don’t put too much kimchi juice as soggy fried rice does not have a nice texture and doesn’t taste nice.
4. When Should You Not Eat Kimchi?
Never eat kimchi that smells off and visibly has mold. If prepared properly and refrigerated, you can keep kimchi for up to 6 months or until 1 year.
You should give this tuna fried rice recipe a try. It is easy to make, not time-consuming, and healthy too. If you are trying to lose weight, it is a well-balanced nutritious meal, low in calories and you feel satiety.
Leave me a comment once you tried this tuna kimchi fried rice recipe. I would appreciate it if you could help me share this recipe with your family and friends. Looking forward to hearing from you soon.
