A History of Chinese Fried Rice & Molasses in Massachusetts

Chinese fried rice in the U.S. extends back at least to 1898, and likely prior to that time. The Topeka State Journal (KS), January 5, 1898, noted a multiple-course dinner held in New York City Chinatown, at a restaurant on 14 Mott Street, which included “fried rice.” Maybe the first reference to fried rice in Massachusetts was in 1915. The Transcript-Telegram (MA), April 15, 1915, published a large advertisement for a Chinese & American Restaurant in Holyoke, with a listing for "Fried Rice" for 25 cents. And by 1916, people were already sending inquiries to the newspaper seeking a recipe for making Chinese fried rice.

If you've read any of the articles with a history of New England Chinese Food, you'll usually see the claim that local Chinese restaurants used molasses in their fried rice. This was allegedly because molasses was so prominent in the Boston area, and it made the fried rice darker in color, as well as sweeter. Those claims also seem to indicate molasses was something new to the Chinese. However, none of those articles presented any evidence to support their claim, which has made me question it. Thus, I did some of my own research, to try to get to the truth.

In brief, I didn't find any evidence of a local Chinese restaurant using "molasses" until 1957, and even then, it's not quite what you might think. There's an important distinction which is ignored, and I hope to illuminate the issue for my readers. 

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Probably the first actual Chinese cookbook, and not just a pamphlet, was self-published in 1911, Chinese Cookery in the Home Kitchen by Jessie Louise Nolton. It included three recipes for Fried Rice, including Fried Rice (Chinese Style), Fried Rice (Canton Style), and Fried Rice With Chicken. This might have been the first printed recipes for Chinese fried rice. 

 

The recipe for Fried Rice (Chinese Style) didn't include molasses, or even soy sauce for that fact.

The recipe for Fried Rice (Canton Style) also didn't include molasses, or even soy sauce.

Maybe the first newspaper in Massachusetts to present a recipe for Fried Rice was the Springfield Evening Union (MA), July 10, 1917. The recipe only called for 1 cup of cold boiled rice, 1 small onion, 1 egg, and a teaspoon of butter. No soy sauce or molasses. It would be nearly twenty years before a host of other recipes for Fried Rice would appear in Massachusetts newspapers.   

The Boston Herald, May 23, 1936, presented a recipe for Fried Rice, Chinese Style, from "... a famous Chinese restaurant here in town..." but it wasn't identified. No soy sauce or molasses was used in this recipe.  

The Springfield Daily Republican (MA), April 24, 1938, published a recipe for "Fried Rice (from China)" which called for boiled chicken, bamboo shoots, mushrooms, sugar, stock, and soy sauce. However, there was no molasses used in this recipe. 

 

The Lowell Sun (MA), June 11, 1938, had a recipe for Ha Chow Fan, fried rice with shrimps, which called for soy sauce but no molasses. The recipe also mentioned you could add chopped ham, diced roast pork of sliced fresh crabmeat instead of the shrimp.  

The Boston Globe (MA), March 22, 1940, printed the above recipe for Fried Rice, Chinese Style, and I'll note that "Chinese sauce" commonly refers to "soy sauce."

The Worcester Daily Telegram (MA), January 5, 1942, printed this recipe for Fried Rice and Pork, but once again, no molasses was in the recipe. 

The Worcester Daily Telegram (MA), March 5, 1942, presented this recipe for Moo Goo Chow Fon (Fried Rice with Shrimp). 

The Boston Herald, June 14, 1942, had a recipe for Chow Fon (Fried Rice with Ham), calling for soy sauce, but no molasses.

The Boston Traveler, August 6, 1942, had this recipe for Fried Rice. 

The Boston Herald, May 23, 1943, presented a recipe of Fried Rice with Shrimp. 

The Boston Traveler, June 17, 1943, printed a recipe for Chinese Fried Rice. 

The Worcester Telegram (MA), February 8, 1944, published this recipe for Fried Rice with Eggs. 

The Boston Herald, July 12, 1944, had the above recipe for Chinese Fried Rice. 

The Worcester Telegram (MA), May 8, 1948, published this recipe for Chinese Fried Rice.

The Boston Sunday Herald, June 18, 1950, had a recipe for Chinese Lobster Sub Gum Fried Rice. 

The first half of the 1950s continued to see Fried Rice recipes, all without using molasses. Why was this so if local Chinese restaurants were allegedly using molasses in their fried rice? Was the use of molasses more of later addition, and not originally part of the first fried rice dishes? 

In 1957, the issue acquired some clarification, and the original claims about the use of molasses in fried rice probably need some revision. 

The Boston Traveler (MA), May 16, 1957, had an article about the famous Cathay House, located in Boston's Chinatown, which was owned by Anita and Gordon Chue. I previously wrote an article about Anita Chue, a fascinating Chinese woman who made a great impact in the local area. It was noted that this was the first time that the Chues were giving out any of their recipes. They presented their Cathay House Fried Rice, which was said “But for Traveler readers, Anita has simplified their wonderful Fried Rice…”

As you can see, the recipe included the use of "1 tablespoon Chinese molasses." Anita also added, “The Chinese molasses may be purchased at any grocery in Chinatown. Don’t substitute molasses from your pantry shelf, Anita cautions. It makes the rice too sweet. Just omit it.” Cathay House was opened in 1945, so their use of Chinese molasses in the fried rice could have started as early as their opening, or it might have started sometime afterwards. 

Chinese molasses! That, and not regular molasses, may be the secret to New England Chinese Fried rice. Once you learn more about Chinese molasses, it also makes logical sense. The addition of Chinese molasses in fried rice in the local area might have originated in the late 1940s or 1950s. 

We need to understand that China was producing molasses-like products for about two thousand years. So, when Chinese immigrants arrived in the Boston area, they were already familiar with molasses. They were already used to using "Chinese molasses", also called "bead molasses," in their cooking. This is a lighter type of molasses, which is less sweet, and was often used for adding a deeper brown color to dishes such as chow mein and chop suey. It possessed more of a savory taste, with hints of smokiness. The typical Boston molasses was too sweet and heavy for the Chinese cooks.  

Chinese molasses was being imported into the U.S. as least as far back as 1850. The Daily Alta California (CA), August 11, 1850, had a brief ad selling 2000 gallons of “Chinese Molasses.” The Daily Pacific News (CA), March 13, 1851, also had a brief advertisement selling “Chinese Molasses,” which it said was a “superior article.” The American Union (WV), October 23, 1857, published a letter from Ohio, discussing Chinese molasses which was now being produced in Ohio, and it retailed for 75 cents per gallon.

The Boston Globe, January 28, 1927, published this advertisement for Fuji Bead Molasses, stating it was "Fine for gravies--and for browning." The Fuji Trading Co. was established around 1910 in Chicago, and sold a variety of Asian food products. So we can see that bead molasses was available in Boston at least as far back as the 1920s.

The Boston Globe, January 31, 1930, had an ad for the Fuji Chop Suey Sauce, and it provided a recipe which also called for their bead molasses. 

The Herald News (MA), March 19, 1931, had an ad for Steiger's Market, which sold  imported bead molasses.

The Boston Evening Globe, February 16, 1934, had another ad for the Fuji Bead Molasses, noting it added flavor and color to Chop Suey. 

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Many other recipes, printed in Boston area newspapers, for Chinese fried rice in the 1960s and on still didn't include the use of molasses, although people started believing molasses was used by restaurants. However, it seems unlikely that the heavy molasses produced in the Boston area would be used in fried rice, when the Chinese had a lengthy history of the use of the lighter Chinese molasses. The bead molasses had the benefit of being less sweet, adding a savory and smoky aspect, and providing a darker brown color to the rice. It was also readily available to Chinese restaurants. So, rather than use heavy molasses in your own home Chinese recipes, seek out Chinese molasses instead.