Thai Fried Rice (Vegan)

Vegan Thai fried rice – So delicious with authentic flavors just like what you get in Thai restaurants without the meat 🙂 I recreated this recipe with vivid memories of the fried rice from the streets of Thailand, absolutely delicious, flavorful and moreish!

While this is a vegan recipe that I have made with just vegetables, feel free to add your favorite meat or seafood to suit your taste.

Looking for more Thai fare? Checkout our easy vegan pad thai, thai green curry, panag curry, red curry.

Easy Thai Fried Rice

Fried rice is so much a part of Asian cuisine. Every Asian country has a version of fried rice.

Rice, choice of vegetables or meat and mix of various sauces all sauteed in super high flame. So so delicious, hearty and ready in minutes, no wonder it is one of the most loved and popular Asian street food!

I love making fried rice at home and often prepare Chinese fried rice, paneer fried rice, schezwan fried rice and this thai fried rice when I have all the ingredients handy.

Yes, making this Thai fried rice recipe needs a certain bit of planning. Though the recipe is fairly simple, we may not have all the ingredients handy.

Next we need rice that is cooked and completely cooled. I suggest you cook the rice at least 4-5 hours before and cool thoroughly.

To get the authentic taste and flavor of real Thai fried rice, I suggest you add all the sauces mentioned here without altering the quantity. The sauces are really needed for that umami here.

With cooked and cooled rice, this fried rice gets ready in 30 minutes flat and that includes the time for chopping veggies. If you have chopped vegetables also handy, you can put dinner on table in 20 minutes 🙂

Here I have made this rice only with vegetables but to make it more hearty and substantial you can add tofu cubes. I have made tis thai fried rice with tofu many times and it is delicious. Look out for my instructions below to include tofu or other protein in this recipe.

This is a super flavorful and delicious rice with loads of roasted cashews and sesame seeds for crunch. You can serve this on its own with a side of hot sauce or sometimes I pair this with flavorful tofu basil too.

This Thai Fried Rice Is

full of authentic flavor & umami

So delicious & addictive

vegan & can be made gluten free

Full of vegetables

full of interesting crunchy toppings like cashews.

Quick easy weeknight dinner in 15 minutes (with cooked rice).

Now before getting to the recipe of thai fried rice, here are few tips, pointers and frequently asked questions answered to make the recipe more clear.

Thai Fried Rice – Frequently Asked Questions.

Which Rice Is Best For Thai Fried Rice? Authentic fried rice you get from Thai restaurants contains Thai jasmine rice. It has a wonderful unique aroma that is hard to match with any other rice variety. If it is not available you can use any long grain white rice like basmati.

Secret of making fluffy fried rice? – Cooked and cooled rice is the key to make perfect fried rice. In any fried rice recipe, you gotta saute the rice in high flame with veggies or meat. If you are using hot rice, it tends to stick with each other and also the grains break easily.

Cold rice has dried grains and they hold shape well when sauteed in high flame. Usually it is recommended to use a day old rice for best results. However I suggest you at least cook the rice 4-5 hours before and cool thoroughly.

What is the difference between Thai fried rice and Chinese fried rice?

Fried rice is the common name for the dish where rice is sauteed with meat or veggies and sauces. What differentiates Thai and Chinese fried rice is mostly the sauce and few add-ins.

Chinese fried rice is mostly made with soy sauce and thai fried rice is made with oyster or fish sauce. Having said that, most of the Thai restaurants use soy sauce instead of fish sauce especially in vegetarian versions. Here also I have used a dash of soy sauce for flavor.

Next difference is thai fried is made with thai jasmine rice and chinese fried rice is made long grain white rice.

Can I Make This Rice Gluten Free? yes easily! Just use gluten free tamari instead of soy sauce.

Recipe Notes & Tips

Sauces- To get the real flavor and taste of fried rice, especially for vegetarian or vegan variations, sauces are important addition. Here I have used a mix of light soy sauce and vegetarian oyster sauce.

The quantities mentioned here yield mildly flavored rice only. If you reduce it further it will affect the taste and flavor, however you can increase the sauces to make more flavorful and dark colored rice.

Also to get that umami more you can add a dash of liquid aminos. ( I did not add)

Oil– Use toasted sesame oil if possible for best flavor. If sesame oil is unavailable, use any neutral flavored oil. Olive oil does not cut well with this recipe.

Also please do not skimp on oil while making this thai fried rice for best flavor.

Vegetables– You can add any of your favorite vegetables suited for fried rice in this recipe too. Here I have used shredded cabbage, carrot, beans and colored peppers. You can also add green peas, snow peas in this recipe.

Slice the vegetables in same size for uniform fast cooking. We have to saute the veggies in high heat for a brief time, so keep all the ingredients ready before you begin cooking.

Protein– Along with veggies you can add any protein here. Think tofu, mushrooms etc. If using mushrooms saute along with vegetables.

For tofu, use pressed and cubed extra firm tofu and saute along with vegetables.

Optional Add-ins– Thinly sliced bird’s eye chili or chili flakes for more spice. I used chili fakes.

Herbs– Herbs are a interesting addition to this recipe. I love to add loads of Thai basil and cilantro here. If Thai basil is not available you can use regular basil in small quantities.

Toppings– In generous quantities please 🙂 Roasted crunchy cashews and sesame seeds add so much to this recipe, they taste just wonderful along with flavorful veggies and rice. Of course lemon wedges are a must.

How To Make Thai Fried Rice

Prep work

Cook and cool rice using your preferred method. 1 cup raw rice yields about 2.5 to 3 cups of cooked rice and that is 3 regular servings. So cook accordingly. Cool the rice thoroughly.

Peel and slice the carrots and beans into thin sticks, shred the cabbage and thinly slice the bell peppers.

Dry roast cashews and sesame seeds until well toasted and crispy.

Making Thai fried rice

Heat 3 tablespoons oil in a large wok or skillet over high flame.

Add mined ginger garlic, sliced onions or shallots and white part of scallions. Saute in high flame for a minute.

Now add the veggies one by one and keep sauteing in high flame for 2-3 minutes.

Add soy sauce, vegetarian oyster sauce, salt, brown sugar, chili flakes, salt to taste and freshly cracked black peppercorns.

Saute well in high flame for 2-3 more minutes to release the flavor of sauces.

Next add the cooked rice and saute for a minute or two to coat everything well. Add 1 teaspoon oil if required.

Add torn basil leaves, toasted cashews, sesame seeds and chopped cilantro leaves. Mix well.

Serve immedietly.

I hope you will try this thai fried rice recipe and enjoy as much as we did. Please give a star rating ★ in the recipe card below. Follow us on Pinterest , Instagram, Facebook   for more recipes and ideas