I noticed that David Chang likes to add a bit of agave nectar to his fried rice. I never thought about adding something sweet to this, so I started adding a small amount of brown sugar (maybe 1/4 to 1/2 tsp) to my fried rice, and it really seems to make it tastier. It doesn’t read as “sweet” - it just gives it a tiny bit of an additional flavor boost. Since then I’ve also tried playing around with adding a tiny amount of sugar to other things, and it’s usually pretty good.
Sugar tastes good. So does salt, maybe some fat, some acidity, and a little MSG. Just don’t overdo it, or you’ll get too much of one flavor and it won’t be palatable.
Yes, for sure. You want it all to be in balance.