Leftover rice gets new life in this Nigerian-inspired curry skillet dish

The skillet dish is seasoned with curry powder, dried thyme and a handful of herbs.
Milk Street, Associated Press

Freshly cooked rice is deliciously tender and fragrant, but it’s not the best choice for fried rice because of its soft, moist texture. In this Nigerian-inspired skillet curry, we use plain, chilled rice so the grains “fry” slightly and become fluffy.

The recipe, from our latest cookbook, Milk Street 365: The All-Purpose Cookbook for Every Day of the Year , seasons the rice with curry powder, dried thyme and a handful of herbs. Beef liver and an assortment of vegetables are classic ingredients, but we opted for chicken thighs and green beans.

We start by seasoning chicken thighs with salt, pepper, and curry powder, then sauté them in hot oil until evenly browned. The chicken is then pushed to the side and an aromatic blend of scallion whites and fresh ginger is added, along with green beans, jalapeño peppers, thyme, and more curry powder.

Once the green beans are nice and green, add the cooked and cooled rice and deglaze the pan with chicken broth. Don’t be afraid to scrape up any browned bits from the surface of the pan after adding the broth. The caramelization gives the rice great depth. Fragrant basmati rice is especially good, but any type of long-grain white rice will do.

• For more recipes, visit Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street at 177milkstreet.com/ap

Fried rice with chicken curry and chillies

3 tablespoons neutral oil or refined coconut oil, divided

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces

2 teaspoons curry powder, divided

Kosher salt and ground black pepper

4 green onions, thinly sliced, white and green reserved separately

2 tablespoons chopped fresh ginger

4 ounces green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 Fresno or jalapeño pepper, stemmed, seeded and thinly sliced

4 cups cooked and chilled long-grain white rice, preferably basmati

1 cup low-sodium chicken broth

In a 12-inch (30-cm) skillet over medium-high heat, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil until it begins to smoke. Add the chicken and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon of the curry powder, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and 1/4 teaspoon of the pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until evenly browned, 4 to 6 minutes.

Push chicken to edge of skillet. In center, add remaining 1 tablespoon oil, scallion whites, and ginger; cook, stirring, until lightly browned, about 1½ minutes. Stir beans, thyme, half the chile, remaining 1½ teaspoons curry powder, and ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper into scallion mixture. Stir chicken into bean mixture; cook, stirring occasionally, until beans are bright green, about 2 minutes. Stir in rice, then add broth, scraping up any browned bits. Cook, stirring, until liquid is absorbed, 3 to 5 minutes.

Off the heat, taste and season with salt and pepper. Serve garnished with green onion fronds and remaining chile.

For 4 people

– Milk Street