I Tried Roy Choi's Underwear Rice Bowl, and It's the Ultimate Comfort Food

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Published on June 20, 2025

Growing up, my uncle introduced me to a staple breakfast he lovingly called "Egg, Ketchup, Rice." It's a combo of Filipino-style garlic fried rice (made without soy sauce, just garlic, oil, and rice), scrambled eggs, and a generous squeeze of ketchup. It's a simple, comforting dish that I still enjoy today. After a chat with celeb chef Roy Choi talking about all things comfort food, he mentioned the Underwear Rice Bowl as a recipe from his new book, The Choi of Cooking, that's perfect for junk food cravings without going to a drive-through. Since it started with rice and eggs, like my favorite childhood breakfast, I knew I had to see how it compared.

What Is an Underwear Rice Bowl?

You know how you get home from work or a long day and you really need a satisfying yet healthy meal but have zero desire to cook? That's what this recipe is for Roy. It's a simple combo of rice, eggs, kimchi, and seasonings that comes together in minutes—making it a no-brainer for those nights you really want to just catch up on your TV shows, "My dad taught me this one; he'd make it when my mom had to leave for the day and left us to our own devices," Roy says in his book. "To this day, this bowl transports me to a safe space every time I eat it."

How to Make an Underwear Rice Bowl

Roy's recipe makes one big bowl; here's a snapshot view of making your own.

1. Start with a bowl of steaming hot rice. It can be freshly cooked or leftover rice warmed up, but the key here is that it has to be really hot. Stir in a little butter to get it nice and coated.
2. Crack a couple of eggs into the hot rice and stir again. The idea here is that the rice is hot enough to cook the raw eggs, but you can pop it into the microwave to fully cook if needed.
3. Drizzle on some sesame oil and soy sauce. Garnish with sesame seeds and/or furikake.
4. Add some kimchi (or butter kimchi from Roy's book). Sit back, relax, and enjoy your meal.

Tips for Making Underwear Rice Bowls

If you've got rice and eggs, you've got the foundation for a great Underwear Rice Bowl. From there, you could tweak things based on what you've got in the fridge. Here are some tips I got from Roy as well as a way to "amp it up and give you micronutrients of more elements to this meal that satisfies a craving."

• Add pieces of green beans or leftover veggies to the rice. Reheat first or do it right in the bowl with the rice.
• Add chili threads, a splash of vinegar, lime zest, and/or Thai basil.
• Blanch some greens like spinach, bok choy, or cabbage by dropping them in boiling water until tender, then plunging them in ice water to stop the cooking before adding them to the bowl.
• If you don't want to drop the raw eggs into the hot rice, you could fry up an egg or two to your preferred doneness and serve on top.

The Verdict on Roy Choi's Underwear Rice Bowl Recipe

This really is the perfect "clean out the fridge" recipe that curbs a craving for something cozy without resorting to takeout. In contrast to the Egg, Ketchup, Rice I grew up eating, I love the nutty note of the sesame oil and the addition of kimchi for a bit of tangy heat. I still miss my ketchup, so I may be adding a bit of that, but that's the beauty of this recipe—you can do whatever you want with what you've got.