Taiwanese Rice Burrito (Fan Tuan)
You knew rice was versatile, but did you know it makes chewiest, heartiest burritos? Taiwanese rice burrito (fan tuan) is the breakfast that never fails, and you don't even need a bowl for it!
What is Fan Tuan?
Fan Tuan, in its direct translation, means “rice roll,” because you literally turn the rice into a roll by flattening and rolling it around a variety of toppings. It’s a classic, on-the-go breakfast that’s easy to eat and packed with textures and flavors. Growing up in Taiwan, I found these rice burrito vendors at almost every corner of every street, and you can customize the burrito to your liking - with purple rice, multi-grain rice, or the traditional glutinous rice plus a variety of toppings. The most common toppings you see in fan tuans are: fried crullers (you tiao,) pickled mustard, dried pork floss, green onions, bacon. Nowadays you can find more modernized versions, some with furikake-dusted rice, some with sweet fried crullers rolled in brown sugar (basically a churro,) and some with seaweed omelette rolled around the outside of the rice. With a growing presence of Asian supermarkets around the United States, you can now more easily create your own fan tuans at home by purchasing the ingredients ready-made.
Ingredients:
2 cups of cooked, sweet glutinous rice
4 oz. jar of pork floss
4 - 5 eggs, cooked into a wavy omelette
2 stalks of green onions
2 rolls of fried crullers (buy these frozen and air-fry)
A pack of Chinese pickled mustard
[Shop for all the ingredients HERE]
Instructions:
Cook the glutinous rice in your rice cooker
While the rice cooks, prepare the rest of the ingredients: pan-fry your eggs into an omelette with chopped green onions (making sure to fluff the omelette as you go so a wavy surface is created) and air-fry the fried crullers according to package instructions
Cover your working surface with a big piece of saran wrap
Allow the cooked glutinous rice to chill slightly, then scoop about 2-palms worth of rice onto the saran wrap
Flatten out the rice with rice scooper into a rectangular shape, about 1/2 an inch thick (the same way you’d flatten rice out when making sushi rolls
Layer on a hearty layer of dried pork floss, then the omelette, pickled mustards, and fried cruller
From the short end, roll the rice inwards as you pull it closer to you until it meets the other end of the rice
Twist both sides of the saran wrap like a piece of candy as you close up the two long sides of rice
Serve with some sweet soy milk or peanut rice milk
