Thai Jasmine Rice with Egg and Lime Sauce Recipe
This simple dish of jasmine rice and egg is a Thai-style “leftovers breakfast”. Day-old rice, a quick fried egg and an aromatic lime and soy sauce dressing make a surprisingly tasty meal – ideal for breakfast, dinner or a quick lunch for one or two people.
In Thailand, bowls of rice with egg and a simple sauce are a quick breakfast or late-night street-stall meal. The tangy lime dressing works like a table condiment that everyone uses to adjust the flavour to their own taste.
The dish shows how to build a bowl with lots of textures from just rice and egg: fluffy rice, creamy yolk, crisp egg edges and fresh herbs. The lime–soy sauce adds a Thai character without needing to buy curry pastes or fish sauce.
Why this version works
- Day-old rice is drier, so after frying it stays fluffy instead of turning sticky.
- Frying the egg separately lets you nail your favourite yolk doneness.
- Serving the sauce on the plate lets everyone season their portion to their own taste.
Chef's tips
When you fry the rice, don’t cover the pan with too thick a layer – a wide pan works better, giving the grains more contact with the bottom. A common mistake is stirring too rarely; part of the rice then burns while the rest stays moist. Look for the moment when the grains are matte, slightly dried and “rustle” as you move them with a spatula.
How to serve
Serve in individual bowls so everyone can pierce the yolk just before eating and mix it into the rice. Put the rest of the sauce on the table, along with fresh chilli and extra chives, so each person can season their portion to taste – perfect for a late post-party breakfast or a quick evening meal.
Watch out for
- Don’t add warm, freshly cooked rice to the pan – it will start to stick and clump.
- Fry the garlic very briefly; once it browns deeply, it turns bitter.
- Don’t cover the pan with the rice; the steam needs to escape or the grains will soften instead of drying out slightly.
Substitutions
- You can replace jasmine rice with long-grain basmati or parboiled rice.
- You can swap soy sauce for tamari if you need a gluten-free version.
- If you don’t like coriander, it can easily be replaced with flat-leaf parsley.
Ingredients
- rice jaśminowy ugotowany - 300 g
- eggs - 2 piece
- garlic - 1 clove
- chives or spring onion - 2 tablespoon
- soy sauce sojowy - 2 tablespoon
- lime juice - 1.5 tablespoon
- sugar trzcinowy lub biały - 1 teaspoon
- oil roślinny - 2 tablespoon
- chili pepper (optional) - 0.25 piece
- fresh coriander or parsley - 1 tablespoon
Preparation
- If you don’t have rice from the previous day, cook it according to the package instructions. Spread it in a thin layer on a plate or tray and let it cool completely until the grains are loose, matte and no longer stick when you touch them.
- In a small bowl, mix the soy sauce, lime juice, sugar and finely chopped chilli, if using. Stir until the sugar dissolves and the sauce is smooth, glossy and clearly tangy-salty with a hint of sweetness.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large, wide pan over medium heat. Add the finely chopped garlic and fry for 20–30 seconds, until it turns lightly golden and smells intense, but stays pale golden rather than brown.
- Add the cooked rice to the pan. Break up any clumps with a spatula and fry for 4–5 minutes, stirring often and spreading the grains over the whole surface, until the rice is hot, slightly dried out and starts to gently “creak” as you move it around the pan.
- Towards the end of frying, add half of the chopped chives and give it a quick stir. The rice should remain fluffy, with clearly separated grains, without tight clumps or wet patches.
- Meanwhile, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil in a second pan over medium heat. Crack in the eggs and fry for 3–4 minutes, until the whites are fully set, the edges are lightly crispy and the yolks are still soft and wobble when you move the pan.
- Transfer the fried rice to two deep bowls or plates, pressing it down lightly to form a small “mound”. Carefully place one fried egg on top of each portion, trying not to break the yolk.
- Drizzle each portion with the prepared lime–soy sauce, starting from the edges of the bowl and finishing near the yolk. Sprinkle with the remaining chives and the chopped coriander or parsley, and serve immediately, while the egg is hot and the yolk still runny.
Storage
No storage information available for this dish.
I usually make this rice late at night, when there’s only a bit of rice and a few eggs left in the fridge – 10 minutes and dinner is ready. I eat it straight from the bowl at the kitchen counter, still in my jacket, before I’ve really had time to “come back home”.
