Whole Food, Plant-Based Recipe Southern ‟Fried” Rice

Recipe courtesy of Chef Brandy Cochrane, PPMNY Culinary Educator

You can add as many veggies as you like to this dish. This is just a base recipe. Small diced red pepper, chopped mushrooms, shredded cabbage, and broccoli florets also work well. If you decide to use fresh vegetables, add them in before the frozen ones so that they cook down a bit, and then add the frozen vegetables.

Ingredients

  • 4 cups cooked rice (day-old works best)

  • 1 yellow onion, diced
  • 4 tsp minced garlic
  • 2 tsp fresh grated ginger
  • 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
  • 4 T low-sodium soy sauce, tamari, or coconut aminos
  • 1 bag of frozen mixed vegetables
  • 2 or 3 green onions, sliced

Instructions

1. Cook the rice and refrigerate it the day before you make this recipe, or use leftover rice.
2. Heat a large nonstick wok or sauté skillet. Add the onion and stir-fry until they begin to soften and brown. If they stick to the pan, add a little water to deglaze the pan, but not before the onions caramelize.
3. Add the garlic, 1 chopped green onion, crushed pepper flakes, and ginger. Cook for about two minutes.
4. Add the soy sauce and frozen vegetables to the pan, and cook until they begin to thaw.
5. Add the rice and cook until everything is heated through. I like to let the rice cook a little bit in the pan, without stirring it, to get the “fried” effect without oil.
6. Top with remaining green onions, additional pepper flakes, and sesame seeds, if desired.

Chef's Notes

Photo credit: Lauren Carol Hughes