Fried rice is the most recognized dish in the world, present in mostly all the cultures around the world varying only in the ingredients used for its preparation, from different kinds of vegetables to seafood. The origins of the fried rice can be traced back to the Sui dynasty in China, in the city of Yangzhou, in the province of Jiangsu where the Chinese taboo against wastage of food and the cultural preference for warm food led to the invention of fried rice, made from leftover rice and stir fried along with vegetables and different sauces. Though stir frying as a cooking technique did not gain much prominence till the Ming dynasty. Today, there are many variants of fried rice in China such as the yin and yang fried rice that is served with two different sauces, red and white sauce in the shape of the yin and yang symbol, Hokkien fried rice which is served with sauce on top of the fried rice and salted fish fried rice which is served with salted fish. Fried rice containing salted fish as the main ingredient became popular in Hong Kong after World War II, when many tea houses served western cuisine alongside the traditional cuisine.

From China, the fried rice spread to other parts of the world due to trade and immigration. The Chinese started coming for trade and settling down in different islands in the archipelago of Indonesia, in the 10th century. They started using the local ingredients that were available and from this interaction a new variety of soy sauce was born, the sweet soy sauce which uses palm sugar that gives it a distinct sweet taste. When the first Dutch settlers arrived in Indonesia they preferred different varieties of fried rice and thus many different varieties of fried rice came into existence. Today, there are many different varieties of fried rice in Indonesia, varying in the ingredients used which cater to the local preferences. Nasi Goreng means fried rice in Indonesian and it is served with a variety of ingredients such as goat meat , tamarind, chili paste etc.

There are many variations of fried rice in Thailand that cater to the local taste such as green curry fried rice which is fried rice stir fried with green curry. The immense popularity of fried rice can be traced back to the early 20th century in Thailand when due to its convenience vendors in train stations in the provinces started selling fried rice packed in banana leaves and newspaper along with a metal spoon to the passengers. Another variation of fried rice that is popular in Thailand is the American fried rice that consists of American ingredients such as sausages, croutons and ketchup fried along with rice. It’s invention is credited to the manager of a restaurant that catered to Don Mueang airport, the manager Khun Ying Sureepan was left in a dilemma when the American breakfast that she had prepared earlier was returned due to cancellation of the flight. Not wanting to waste the food, she stir fried the ingredients with rice creating a new dish named American fried rice. However, some believe that a chef serving the U.S troops stationed in the province of Korat, named Go Jek invented the dish.

The Chahan fried rice is the Japanese version of the fried rice which is credited to the Chinese immigrants that worked on the port of Kobe in the 1860s. Another variant of fried rice that gained popularity in Japan is the Omurice that is consists of fried rice wrapped in omelette. It’s originators are disputed , as two restaurants lay claim to the dish. Rengatei restaurant in the Ginza district of Tokyo claims that they invented the dish during the Meiji era when they started serving western style cuisine. Hokkyokusei restaurant of Osaka also claims to have invented the dish. The popularity of omurice spread when after World War II the accessibility of western ingredients such as ketchup made it easier to be prepared in homes.

The stir fried dish was introduced to the U.S when Chinese immigrants started coming to the U.S during the 19th century in search of jobs and mostly worked as laborers on ports or in mines. The immigrants were mostly from the province of Guangdong which has a cuisine that consists of a variety of stir fried vegetables and meat served alongside rice. These immigrants opened up restaurants to serve the other immigrants that missed their local cuisine and substituted many ingredients that were not available in the continent. The cuisine slowly gained popularity among the white population especially the musicians and soon became widespread in the U.S .

Similarly, the Chinese immigrants that arrived in South America in the 19th century brought their cuisine with them. The variation of fried rice that is popular in Cuba is known as the arroz frito and is credited to the Chinese immigrants that first arrived in the country in the 1850s. However, the Chinese left the country after the Cuban revolution in 1959. The first Chinese immigrants arrived in Peru in 1849, this interaction between the Peruvian and Chinese cultures led to the development of the fusion cuisine known as Chifa. The first Chifa restaurant in Peru opened in 1920. Chaufa is the Peruvian version of the fried rice, that consists of usual ingredients such as eggs and soy sauce along with local ingredients such as ripe plantains, chorizo sausages and cecina, that gives it a distinct taste.

The history of fried rice is not just a history of a dish that originated in one part of the world and was adopted by other cultures, who enhanced it with their local ingredients and adopted certain Chinese practices such as the cooking method of stir frying and soy sauce but also gives a glimpse into the Chinese immigration and trade that had an impact on different cultures and in turn led to the sharing of knowledge between the Chinese culture and other cultures which was also beneficial for the growth of the Chinese culture as well.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fried_rice

https://factsofindonesia.com/indonesian-fried-rice

http://thairesidents.com/lifestyle/american-fried-rice-invented-thailand/

https://www.10best.com/interests/food-culture/why-salted-fish-fried-rice-has-a-cult-following-in-hong-kong/

https://food52.com/blog/24110-best-fried-rice-recipe