Fragrant Nigerian-inspired fried rice is easy enough for a weeknight

By CHRISTOPHER KIMBALL Christopher Kimball s Milk Street Nigerian fried rice seasoned with curry powder dried thyme and a handful of aromatics inspired this weeknight-easy meal-in-a-skillet Related Articles Pride Month begs for fun recipes These rainbow popsicles tick every box He loved ribs more than anyone This Cajun-flavored recipe is for him on Father s Day Five Weeknight Dishes ingredients or fewer because summer Your Summer Grilling Showstopper Involves a Lot of Wine and a Lot of Salt I Was Sidelined by Illness This Soup Got Me Back in the Kitchen Beef liver and an assortment of vegetables are classic ingredients but in this recipe from our cookbook Milk Street The All-Purpose Cookbook for Every Day of the Year we opted for chicken thighs and fresh green beans Seeded thinly-sliced jalape o or Fresno chilies bring a pleasant heat while curry powder adds depth warmth and a golden hue Instead of using just-cooked rice which results in a softer texture in the finished dish we start with plain cooked rice that s been chilled and dried a process that allows the starches to recrystallize so the grains fry up light and fluffy Fragrant basmati is especially good but any variety of long-grain white rice works Fresh rice necessities two hours minimum to chill adequately but it can be prepared up to three days in advance and kept refrigerated To chill the rice fluff with a fork then spread on the baking sheet Let cool then cover and refrigerate until cold Don t be afraid to really scrape up the browned bits from the surface of the skillet after you ve added the broth The caramelization gives the fried rice great depth of flavor Serve sprinkled with scallion greens and additional sliced chili This image circulated by Milk Street shows a recipe for Nigerian fried rice seasoned with curry powder and dried thyme Milk Street via AP Curried Chicken Fried Rice with Chilies Start to finish minutes Servings Ingredients tablespoons neutral oil or refined coconut oil divided pound boneless skinless chicken thighs trimmed and cut into -inch pieces teaspoons curry powder divided Kosher salt and ground black pepper scallions thinly sliced whites and greens reserved separately tablespoons minced fresh ginger ounces green beans trimmed and cut into -inch pieces teaspoon dried thyme Fresno or jalape o chili stemmed seeded and thinly sliced cups cooked and chilled long-grain white rice preferably basmati cup low-sodium chicken broth Directions In a -inch skillet over medium-high heat tablespoons of the oil until barely smoking Add the chicken and sprinkle with teaspoon of the curry powder teaspoon salt and teaspoon pepper Cook stirring occasionally until evenly browned to minutes Push the chicken to the perimeter of the pan To the center add the remaining tablespoon oil scallion whites and ginger cook stirring until lightly browned about minutes Into the scallion mixture stir the beans thyme half of the chili the remaining teaspoons curry powder and teaspoon each salt and pepper Stir the chicken into the bean mixture cook stirring occasionally until the beans are bright green about minutes Stir in the rice then add the broth and scrape up any browned bits Cook stirring until the liquid is absorbed to minutes Off heat taste and season with salt and pepper Serve sprinkled with the scallion greens and remaining chili