Eggs and rice with soy sauce is one of the least expensive meals that I have ever fixed. In fact, it may be the cheapest meal that I have served my family.
It seems too simple, too plain. It is not a fancy meal, but it is a real life in my kitchen meal and something that we eat often.
Eggs and rice with soy sauce is a breakfast dish that I learned from my in-laws years ago. My husband’s family enjoyed this meal for a quick and easy breakfast, but during the early years of our marriage, when money was extremely tight, my husband and I would eat eggs and rice often for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
Eggs are an inexpensive filling protein. Rice is very inexpensive and a bottle of soy sauce does not cost very much at all and lasts quite a long time.
There were times that my husband and I ate eggs and rice several times a week. Sometimes I would serve it with a little sausage on the side, but that was a real treat. Most often we ate it as just eggs and rice with a little soy sauce served over top.
This is one of those meals though that did not end once our grocery budget increased. I still serve my family this meal and we really enjoy it, because not only is it inexpensive to make, it is very quick and easy.
This is one of my go to quick and easy dinners when I do not have a lot of time or when I have not had time to make it to the grocery store. And we love eggs and rice not only for breakfast, but also for lunch and for an easy breakfast for dinner meal.
Does anyone else eat eggs and rice?
Tools to make this recipe easier.
- My Favorite Rice Cooker
- Instant Pot my favorite way to cook rice quickly
- My favorite electric skillet
- 2 eggs per person cooked over easy or soft boiled (you can serve these with a hard yolk, but they really are better with a soft yolk where the yolk can run out and all over the rice.)
- cooked rice
- soy sauce (I use gluten free soy sauce)
- Asian hot sauce optional
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Serve cooked eggs over rice and pour a small amount of soy sauce over each dish.
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Serve and enjoy!
Recipe originally posted in 2012.
I’ve done eggs and rice with scrambled eggs before; never thought to do an “over easy” style egg! My favorite though is canned tuna and soy sauce over rice.
Having this for lunch today! Great idea!
I hope you enjoy it!
I think I’m going to go home and have this for lunch! Looks good!
This looks great. I love the bottle of shriracha in the background. My husband puts it on everything and I’m starting to use it on everything too. This is a great GF option too. Thanks.
Growing up in Hawaii, eggs and rice for breakfast are a staple. Good frugal tip!
We needed something quick to eat before Bible study tonight and this was perfect. It tasted awesome as well. Pretty impressive for such a simple meal. I will definitely make this again as it was husband-approved. Thanks for posting even the simple recipe ideas!
Thanks, I am so glad that you enjoyed it. Thanks for letting me know.
Thanks, I am so glad that you enjoyed it.
Oh, yes! It’s what we eat , I guess, 5-7 times a week? Breakfast or lunch, usually. We add furikake over the top, and always have pickled cabbage or kimchee, maybe ume to go with it. In the summer I have sliced, very lightly picked cucumbers. Oh, my favorite, tazukuri sprinked on top of the egg. When I was a child my mother would spoon the hot rice into our bowl, and broke a raw egg on top. We added soy sauce, and mixed it all together.
Add-ons are a side of spam or vienna sausages. I have all the pickled vegetables in tupperware in the fridge, so this is actually a very fast meal to put together.
we eat eggs and rice – but not with soy sauce. we top it with spaghetti sauce (or plain tomato sauce to be even more inexpensive), and sometimes black beans as well. the sauce is more expensive than a few drops of soy sauce, but it still makes for an inexpensive and fairly healthy option. my husband is from Spain, but he calls it Cuban Rice – don’t really know if it’s authentic cuban the way we eat it or not 🙂 authentic or not, it’s yummy! we aren’t huge soy sauce fans, but i may have to try it this way once, just to see.
I might have to try the spaghetti or tomato sauce sometime. That would be nice for a change.
We eat eggs & rice, but we fix it a bit differently (got the recipe from a friend who ate it often while living in China) . I usually bake big batches of rice and freeze it, so I thaw the rice, put a bit of olive oil in a pan, throw in an egg or two, scramble it up, add the rice and a little soy sauce or liquid aminos). Sometimes we clean out the fridge and add a green onion, spinach or mushroom as well.
That is similar to the fried rice I make and we love it that also. It is a great way to use up leftovers.
In China it is very common to eat scrambled eggs and chopped tomatoes fried together and then served over rice. This is one of my favorite Chinese meals to make because it is so cheap and easy.
You had me at the bottle of sriracha sauce in the background. We’ll be making this for dinner tomorrow for sure! 😀
Oooh…this looks really good. I would have never thought of eating eggs and rice like this, which is weird since the scrambled eggs are the best part of fried rice. 😉 Thanks so much for the recipe!
My dad made this for us all the time growing up. He is from Hawaii and it was definitely a staple in their diet. He would always serve it with Spam. *shudder*
I ate this all the time growing up. My family is Cuban is this was a quick go to meal. Sometimes we would have it with fried plantains or black beans or just the egg fried up with crispy edges salted and served over a steaming plate of white fluffy rice. Ah what nice memories!! My husband is not Cuban so I dont make this but maybe Ill give it a try your way with some soy sauce. Thanks so much!!!
Your way sounds great also. I will have to try that. Thanks for sharing how you make it.
I have never had just fried egg and rice, But my family does something we call Japanese Hamburgers. We grill up a hamburger patty and fry up and egg we put it on the rice with soy sauce and the egg on top of the burger.
we have that several times a month for dinner. its great
That sounds really good! I am going to have to try that. I think my family would love it. Thanks for the idea!
Never heard of fried eggs and rice. But I never met an egg I didn’t like. My favorite is simply to scramble and egg with green onions. Easy peasy.
One of my all time favorite lunches is a fried flour tortilla topped with black beans, a little salsa and a soft fried or poached egg. Quick, cheap AND very filling.
We love eggs served with salsa and tortillas! I agree eggs are quick, cheap, and filling. 🙂
Omg!! Just stumbles upon your site! Where have you been all my life?! I’ve never heard of this so of course as soon as I read it….. Well, I’m eating it now and omg! I’m in love! Thank you!
I am glad that you found my site and enjoyed the eggs and rice.
We do something similar… mac’n’eggs… “saute” the cooked pasta in a little butter, stir in beaten eggs, scramble until the eggs are done… you can use any “add ins” or “toppings” you want. Never heard of it before meeting my husband, but cheap and easy… not to mention a good way to use up eggs. I will definitely have to try it this way!
Growing up in the Philippines wherein rice is a staple food, rice and egg is always present on a daily basis may it be for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or midnight snack. Try mixing soy sauce and vinegar/lemon juice with the eggs.
I will have to try that! That combination sound good. Thanks for sharing the idea.
I’ve been meaning to pop back here and let you know….OH MY GOOOD GOSH this is good. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I try to keep rice cooked up in the fridge, because it’s so convenient. It’s easy to reheat and goes with everything. As a general rule we use Jasmine rice because it tastes and smells fantastic on it’s own, but when that warm gooey yoke runs down in it, it’s to die for. You’d think two such plain foods would be boring or bland, but they sure aren’t, even when I forget the rooster sauce. Thank you again for sharing, this has now become my go to me food.
At first I was skeptical of this meal..still kind of am, but I’ll definitely write this down to try soon! I like cheap, filling family meals with ingredients everyone likes..haha.
I hope you give it a try and enjoy it. It is so simple and really good.
I find this article amusing and I agree on everything that you mentioned here. My parents introduced me to this kind of meal since I was young but we are using the hard boiled eggs. This is what I prepare for my breakfast everyday and I am not just losing weight, I save money too. More power Lynn!
I have seen variations using raw egg and mixing the soy sauce. perhaps that could solve you problem with the “looks”.However, I would only recommend that for those who work out often in the same way you would use raw egg in a protein shake. I am not however an expert with dieting, fitness, or even cooking for that matter. I simply thought that I might share the information. :]
Yes we enjoy white rice and fried eggs. It is a nice change from grits. Next time we will try it with soy sauce.
We eat this all the time- I grew up with this as a meal. My mom is vietnamese and it is a common dish in our culture. My kids LOVE it- their favorite dinner! So easy, so inexpensive.
I recently tired this after seeing the recipe on a blog about Korean food. Only difference, and a might more expensive, is adding a little sesame oil and sesame seeds to the bowl along with egg, rice, and soy sauce. Even my daughter loved it and it’s nice so many are trying this simple tasty meal. Personally, I eat it regularly for lunch as it’s quick, cheap, tasty, and filly.
I have, this may sound weird, but I actually use raw egg and mix it together with the soy sauce
We don’t eat it so much anymore with DH trying to get away from grains, but this was one of our go-to meals for years. We have a slow cooker, so I’d throw some sticky rice (with an oriental store down the road it was easily the cheapest rice we could buy… and the best!) in the Zojirushi at night or in the morning. Come home, and all that was left was to make scrambled or fried eggs. Or occasionally raw over very hot rice, as taught to me by my Korean friend. Or boiled eggs that were already in the fridge. That’s the beauty of this recipe, it is so easy to do it with whatever you have, and it will always taste great!
Oh, and we once tried poached egg when I was feeling fancy, it was good too. Usually though, if I was going to poach eggs, we would have ramen, with the egg poached in the soup. Another super frugal meal, though imo, not as tasty as eggs and rice.
We grew up and still do it rice and fried eggs with a banana the Brazilian way. It is delicious!
it reminding me my childhood fav dish, my grand mum use to do that all the times when i was little, but actually you can make a fired rice with all over left with eggs, also yummy….. or you should try ketchup fire rice, it is not bad
I grew up with this wonderful dish! It I was something I ate through my childhood and still eat now, even though I’m in college! We always made the eggs over easy! It was fun to break the yoke and have it all over my rice with soy sauce! It’s what we did in a half-Asian household!
I am from Texas and have eaten scrambled eggs on top of hot cream of rice cereal for years. I guess I’m not as weird as I thought. 🙂 Thank you for expanding my horizons.! I also make “pizza” rice. As far as I can see ANYTHING can go on rice.
Pizza rice sounds good!
This is my fav! Super quick and convenient. For more green, I’d sprinkle ready to eat roasted seaweed!
I’m late to the party, but I love rice and eggs and soyu! Learned of it years ago when I lived on the island of Guam… it was a staple there. So easy and so good. In fact I might have some right now! Thanks for triggering a trip down memory lane.
You are welcome. I have a busy day today, so I think we having them for dinner tonight. It is one of my favorite quick and easy inexpensive meals.
Woooooow, I didn’t think there were this many others who ate this. I started eating this 10 years ago, when I was 16 and studying for exams, since it was quick and cheap.
I was thinking about making this again earlier today, so imagine my surprise when I stumbled over this recipe, while I was searching for something else. I’m hoping to substitute the white rice with something darker, since I’m now older and it’s harder to find time for exercising XD
I love hearing that others love this too! And I have done it over other varieties of rice and even quinoa and it is really good.
Oh..Man…I eat eggs and rice all the time, Lynn.It’s inexpensive and protien with the eggs..you can’t beat it. I like a little teriyaki and soy sauce on mine.
I actually had this once when I was about seven or eight years old. I had slept over my best friend’s house whose family was Puerto-Rican and her mother asked me how I liked my eggs for breakfast. I said over-easy and it was served to me over white rice minus the soy sauce. I had this for breakfast this morning and it is always surprising how a simple dish tastes sooo good!
This makes me realize that I’m not so strange lol. I LOVE eggs and rice with soy sauce. My dad, who was raised in Hawaii and passed away when I was 12, used to eat this and made it for my brother and I frequently. I still eat it over 20 years later. I had no idea it’s actually a recipe!
yes I eat that all the time. I’ve been here in the Philippines for the last ten years and all most every morning I eat that. I do however put banana.catsup on my rice. Sometimes I fry the rice with garlic & onion in butter. If I ever go back home in America, I will continue to eat it. I love it.
My college roommate, who was came from a Vietnamese family, ate this all the time, and I developed a taste for it. So good and cheap, and so filling! Sometimes I crave it, and it’s a great craving to give into. 🙂 Glad I’m not crazy!
We eat a dish called scrambled rice. I stir fry leftover rice with a splash or two of soy sauce and then scramble eggs into the rice. It is super cheap and delicious.
This is a typical Filipino breakfast. I used to tell my husband that for me, egg is “rice ingredient” (whether it’s boiled, steamed or fried rice), and depending on the fried meat accompanying it, the dip would be either soy sauce with a squeeze of Philippine Lemon (calamansi) or vinegar with some crushed garlic. If you ever get to visit the Philippines, you’ll be able to adapt easily if this is something you’re used to having. 😉
When I first saw this I was hesitant to try but when I told my son about it he was all in. It was great, we really enjoyed it. I haven’t made for awhile and am going to add to our menu this week along with your oven baked taco’s.
I am so glad that you and your son enjoyed the eggs and rice! My kids have been eating it for years and love it. And oven tacos are another favorite. Kids seem to love my oven tacos. Have a great day!
I LOVE eggs and rice. My mom used to make it when I was younger and we didn’t have a lot money either. It’s the best when the egg is runny! I’ve never added soy sauce though. Hmmm…
Anyway, is your husband Hawaiian, by chance? My cousin married a Hawaiian and they do a lot of rice for breakfast. I love learning about the cultures!
So many people think that eggs and rice is odd so I LOVE hearing from readers who it as well! My husband is not from Hawaii, but his parents went to Hawaii quite a bit, both job related and for vacations. I am pretty sure that is where they first had eggs and rice. I think Hawaii and Asian cultures eat a lot of rice for breakfast. Americans don’t think of it as a breakfast food, but it is a great simple and inexpensive breakfast or breakfast for dinner.