2010-07-20
08:00
Recipe: Marmite and Mustard Fried Rice
I came up with this recipe when I was a student, which probably tells you most of what you need to know about it.
I had a big bag of rice. One day, I found I had no money, and nothing in to eat. In the fridge, I had a jar of Marmite and a jar of English mustard. I like mustard. I bought the Marmite with the intention of trying to like it, but I failed.
I decided I’d better come up with a recipe that used Marmite, mustard and rice. So Marmite and Mustard Fried Rice was born.
Most people have been pleasantly surprised on tasting it, though it usually comes under the heading of ‘not bad’ rather than being a gourmet delight. It’s easy and cheap, though, so it was good student fuel.
I usually use basmati rice, but long grain should be fine too.
Cook as normal. For basmati rice, I just cook one cup of rice per two cups of water – the measure you use doesn’t matter, as long as it’s 2:1 by volume. As you start boiling the rice, add Marmite and mustard. I generally use a generous spoon of each, but it depends on how much rice you’re making, and how strong you want the flavours to be. A reasonably generous amount of Marmite is important, as it helps the textures later.
Boil until the rice is done, stirring often to make sure the Marmite and mustard mix in well. Get a pan heated up as it’s finishing. Either a frying pan or a wok will do the job, with a little oil.
Chuck the rice in the frying pan/wok. Pat it down, and let one side cook well, then flip it over. You’re aiming to get quite a bit of the rice to go crispy.
Once both sides are crispy, serve it. If you’re doing a lot, and it’s quite thick, you may want to break it up to get the crispy bits mixed into it, then cook it again, so more of the rice is crispy.
Serve with the beer you’ve been able to afford because you spent so little on food.
I LOVE marmite, and I’m quite fond of English mustard when it’s applied to beef and ham sandwiches. This sounds interesting. I think it would make up the bulk of a dish which also contained bits of egg and ham and perhaps a few green peppers chopped up. An English version of a Malayan Nasi Goreng perhaps.
I might just give the original a try though, and see how I can improve it – it’s definitely ripe for improvement!
Hi Phil,
I’ve never really experimented with adding to it, but ham and egg sounds like it would work.
Gonna try it tomorrow!! Can’t wait!
@ Melanie
Let us all know how you get on with it!
Phil
This sounds fun, I’ll have to try this. I’m not fond of marmite on bread but I do like it in cooking. My combo is usually Noodles, Marmite and dried powdered ginger. Sometimes I add wok veggies and tofu to this mix, also cheap student kinda food
Never tried it with noodles, but that sounds good.
Rather than English mustard (powdered or from a jar) I would use mustard seeds, heated in the saucepan until they pop, before adding rice,water and marmite.
Pan roasting mustard seeds was a little beyond my student cuisine at that point.
I did learn to make a few baltis the following year, which was a bit more adventurous.
“I came up with this recipe when I was a student, which probably tells you most of what you need to know about it.” – a similar excuse for one of my favourite sandwiches: Marmite and grated carrot
I notice a few people have said they were going to try this, and haven’t returned.
I wish them all a speedy recovery.