Vegan Fried Rice

Vegan fried rice recipe! A keeper recipe that makes super tasty better than takeouts vegan fried rice with tofu and loads of veggies.

This recipe will be your favorite once you try for its easy, ready in 30 minutes, completely plant based and perfect to satiate those sudden Chinese takeout cravings!

More Asian recipes to try- vegan pad thai, thai fried rice, kung pao tofu, braised tofu, gobi manchurian, vegan pho.

Best Vegan Fried Rice

So can you eat fried rice daily? Day in and day out? I can 🙂

I Just love super spicy rice with loads of crunchy veggies and yummy sauce. With this kind of addiction, it only makes sense to have a keeper recipe in hand rather than depending on takeouts, Am I right?

That’s what I exactly did, ever since I started cooking on a regular basis, I developed that perfect vegan fried rice recipe that I make whenever I want.

Now its about time I shared the recipe with you all. I have been getting requests for tofu fried rice too and here you go.

This fried rice recipe is a real keeper and I am sure you are going to love it. I mean just looks at the color, all those stir fry vegetables, tofu and perfectly cooked rice. Is it not tempting?

This recipe makes rice that exactly tastes like takeouts or Chinese restaurants without being too greasy and masked with chili sauce.

However you do need a very good quality soy sauce, vinegar for this. I have also added my homemade chili garlic sauce and a dash of homemade peanut butter for that hint of sweetness.

Next there are vegetables in this, I mean like loads of it. My ratio of vegetables to rice in fried rice is always 2.5 :1.

For every 1 cup of raw rice, I add 2.5 cups of chopped vegetables. Once cooked you have such a hearty rice dish with chockablock of vegetables which we love.

If you want to make this recipe more hearty and also include some protein in your meal, there is tofu. Just add some pan fried tofu cubes and make tofu fried rice.

This rice dish tastes so good on its own with a generous garnish of green onions or scallion greens. You can also serve this as side dish with veg manchurian, spring rolls, veg momos, pot stickers or just with a side of hot sauce or chili vinegar.

This Vegan Fried Rice Is

Delicious & flavorful

Full of plant based goodness

Simple recipe & quick to make

better than takeouts

perfect for weeknights

Hearty an flavorful.

So are you all set to make this deliciousness? Its easier than you think. The only task is to prep the vegetables and press the tofu 20 minutes before you begin with the recipe.

You need very few ingredients to make this recipe and if you do not have the sauces handy I have also mentioned some alternates.

What You Need For Vegan Fried Rice?

Rice– While long grained white rice is usually used in restaurants for making fried rice, there is no reason you should not use short grain or jasmine rice for this recipe.

In fact every variety of rice has a unique flavor so you can try and experiment to know which you like the best. Here I have used basmati rice. You can also use brown rice in this recipe.

As with any fried rice recipe, a day old rice or at least rice that has been cooked and cooled thoroughly is ideal for this recipe too. Refer notes section to learn how to cook rice for vegan fried rice.

Sauces– The sauce for this rice dish is a delicious mix of

• soy sauce – Use tamari for gluten free
• toasted sesame oil
• chili sauce or chili garlic sauce- use chili flakes as alternate
• brown sugar- use regular sugar or maple
• Vinegar- lemon juice can be used as alternate.
• peanut butter

Vegetables– You can use any of your favorite vegetables in this recipe. I have used cabbage, carrots, corn and beans here. You can also use

• broccoli
• snow peas
• bamboo shoots ( used in traditional Chinese fried rice)
• mushrooms
• celery
• baby-corn

Tofu– Use firm or extra firm tofu in this recipe for best results. I like to use pan fried tofu in tofu fried rice recipe. You can pan fry plain tofu or toss in a bit of corn flour-salt-pepper for crispy tofu.

You can also marinate the fried tofu in sauce for more flavor. I don’t usually do that though. Do add tofu when you want to add some plant based protein in this dish.

Other Ingredients– Salt, freshly cracked black peppercorns, toasted sesame oil etc

Some Tips To Make Perfect Fried Rice

Cooking rice– It all starts with perfectly cooked rice. For fried rice with perfect texture, always use cooked and cooled rice. Cooled rice grains are non sticky and holds shape when in high heat stir fry recipes.

You can either use left over cooked rice or cook and cool the rice at least two hours before making this recipe. If you want to use up some leftover cooked rice, you know how to use it now 🙂

If you are making rice specifically for this recipe, try to cook it with a slight bite so that when you stir fry the

Chopping vegetables- Chop the vegetables thinly in uniform size. You can use a julienne peeler or mandoline slicer to chop the vegetables.

Another option to chop the vegetables very finely. It is important to chop them thinly as we are going to stir fry them in high heat for very few minutes.

Mix and match the sauces– Instead of going by the sauces and the quantities given in this recipe, feel free to mix and match to suit your taste.

You can add more chili sauce or hot sauce like siracha to make it extra spicy. You can also use sweet and sour sauce or hot and sweet sauce for a different taste.

Also use a very good quality vinegar for that flavor punch. You can rice wine or rice vinegar for best flavor.

Preparing tofu– If you are using tofu in this recipe, follow these steps.

Use a tofu press or a heavy object and press the tofu block for 15 minutes. This steps helps in getting rid of the excess water and moisture from the tofu and it holds the shape well.

Rinse the pressed tofu once and chop into small cubes.

Saute the ingredients in high heat– To get that signature smoky flavor and retain the crunch of vegetables in this fried rice, saute all the ingredients in high heat.

Keep all the ingredients ready by the stove top and add quickly.

Use a large wok or skillet- A heavy skillet or wok preferably in cast iron is highly recommended for Chinese recipes. It is super helpful in retaining heat and uniform cooking in high heat.

Variations With The Recipe

Gluten free fried rice– Use gluten free tamari instead of soy sauce to make this rice gluten free.

Vegetarian fried rice– If you want to use paneer instead of tofu, you totally can. The recipe will be then vegetarian instead of vegan.

Instead of rice you can use any cooked millet, quinoa or even cauliflower rice in this recipe.

How To Make Vegan Fried Rice

Preparing Rice

Pick and rinse the rice grains two to three time to get rid of excess starch. Soak the rice grains in water for 30 minutes and set aside. You can use long grain or short grain rice.

After 30 minutes, drain the rice and spread on a plate for 5 minutes.

Now cook the rice with 2 cups or 2.5 cups of water using your preferred method. Let the rice cool thoroughly.

If you have cooked rice already, proceed with the below given steps for making fried rice.

Preparing Tofu

Press the tofu block for 15 minutes- 20 minutes using a tofu press or a heavy object. Cut into cubes.

heat a pan with a teaspoon oil. Place the tofu cubes.

Pan fry in medium heat until the edges turn crispy and golden. Set aside.

Making Fried Rice

Heat 2 tablespoons sesame oil in a large wok. Once the oil is hot add minced ginger garlic, chili flakes. Saute in high heat for a minute.

Add chopped onions and saute for a minute.

Next add the finely chopped vegetables.

Mix and saute. Quickly add soy sauce, vinegar, hot sauce or chili flakes brown sugar and toasted sesame oil.

Mix well and saute in for 4-5 minutes.

Add sugar, salt and mix well.

Next add the pan fried tofu cubes. Mix.

Add cooked and cooled rice.

Saute in high heat for 2-3 minutes. Add chopped green onions and mix well.

Serve vegan tofu fried rice immedietly.