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This Veggie-Packed Vegan Fried Rice is a wholesome plant-based twist on the classic egg fried rice. With just a few ingredients and your favorite fresh or frozen vegetables, you can enjoy a flavorful, nutritious dish that’s stir-fried to perfection in just over 30 minutes!
Making nourishing vegan meals is one of my favorite ways to share vegan food with family and friends, especially when they’re as delicious as this Veggie-Packed Vegan Fried Rice. It’s perfectly seasoned, studded with a rainbow of fresh veggies, and easily one of my favorite weeknight meals to make when I have an array of veggies to use up.
If you love fried rice as much as I do, make sure to try my Easy Vegetable Fried Brown Rice and Healthy Sweet Potato Fried Rice next!
Table of contents
Why You’ll Love This Veggie-Packed Vegan Fried Rice
- It’s great for meal prep. This veggie fried rice will keep for up to 5 days in the fridge. Make a big batch on Sunday night and enjoy all week long for a delicious and nutritious lunch on-the-go.
- Gluten-free and oil-free options. In addition to being a great dish to enjoy on a plant-based diet, this vegan fried rice can also be easily made gluten-free and oil-free.
- A great clean out the fridge recipe. Use up any leftover rice and veggies you have that need to get eaten. It’s a very forgiving recipe and can be adjusted to suit your produce drawer.
The Ingredients and Substitutions
- Rice: Any rice variety of choice will work. Traditional Chinese fried rice is typically made with long-grain white rice such as Jasmine rice or Basmati rice.
- Aromatics: Shallot, garlic, and ginger are the simple aromatics used to create a flavorful foundation for the fried rice. Fresh aromatics are best, but dried garlic powder or ground ginger can work in a pinch.
- Vegetables: I like to use a great mix of veggies for a ton of flavor, texture, and nutrition, but you can use any veggies you’d like. To make the recipe as is, you’ll need carrots, mushrooms, sweet potato, red bell pepper, kale or spinach, and red cabbage. Other vegetables that work well include green peas, shiitake mushrooms, snow peas, broccoli florets, water chestnuts, or green beans.
- Sweetener: A bit of sweetener is used to balance the savory and spiciness in the ginger. Any sugar will work – try agave, white sugar, or any sweetener of choice.
- Soy sauce: Adds saltiness and umami flavor. If you are sensitive to sodium, use a low sodium soy sauce and add additional salt to taste.
- Fresh herbs (optional): Cilantro, basil, parsley, or mint add a fresh, herbaceous flavor that enhances the final dish and adds a refreshing element. Green onions or scallions would be another great choice.
- Toasted nuts or seeds (optional): Try chopped cashews, almonds, peanuts, or sesame seeds for a final crunch and boost of flavor.
- Oil: Any cooking oil of choice will work, but I like to use toasted sesame oil for a nutty, rich flavor. It compliments the rest of the flavors in the dish well. If you are oil-free, omit the oil and sauté the veggies in water or broth to prevent sticking.
How to Make Veggie-Packed Vegan Fried Rice
- 1) Begin by cooking the rice. Add the rice to a pot, cover with water, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, lower to a simmer and allow the rice to cook undisturbed for 20-25 minutes until the rice is cooked through and the water has been absorbed completely.
- 2) While the rice cooks, slice and chop all of the fresh veggies and set them aside until the rice is almost done.
- 3) Heat 1 tablespoon of sesame oil in a large pan or wok over medium-high heat and add the onion, garlic, and ginger. Stir fry the aromatics for 2-3 minutes, or until the onion begins to soften and the garlic is fragrant. Then, add the carrots, mushrooms, and sweet potato. Stir fry for an additional 4-5 minutes, or until the sweet potato begins to soften.
- 4) Add sweetener of choice, a pinch of salt, black pepper, and soy sauce. Stir to combine.
- 5) Add the kale and cabbage, then let the mixture simmer over medium heat until the kale and cabbage has wilted, about 3-4 minutes. Transfer the veggies to a large bowl and season to taste as needed.
- 6) In the same pan or wok, heat another tablespoon of sesame oil over medium-high heat. Add the cooked rice along with 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, sweetener, salt, and black pepper. Stir-fry until the rice becomes a bit crispy.
- 7) Add the mixed veggies back into the pan or work with the rice and toss well. Garnish with fresh herbs, nuts, and seeds, if using then season to taste as needed. Enjoy!
Recipe FAQs
Tamari is the next best option for soy sauce. It is gluten-free and a great 1:1 swap. Or, coconut aminos are another good option. Coconut aminos are sweeter tasting and much lower in sodium so additional sea salt to taste may be desired.
Fried rice is actually delicious without eggs at all. This vegan fried rice is made without an egg substitute and I don’t think you’ll miss it. If you prefer a more traditional tasting “egg” fried rice, try this Vegetable Fried Brown Rice made with tofu scramble.
Coconut oil will work as it has a high smoke point, but unless you like the flavor of coconut, refined coconut oil would be best. Unrefined coconut oil will leave your final dish with a faint aroma of sweet coconut.
Yes, fresh vegetables or frozen vegetables will work well. Frozen vegetables can be more affordable and accessible, particularly in the off-season. Use what is most accessible to you.
Top Recipe Tips
- Use leftover rice. This recipe gives you the option and instructions to cook rice from scratch, but if you have leftover cold rice, using it to make vegan fried rice is an excellent way to speed up the prep time!
- Use a wok if you have one. Woks have a high heat capacity and the sloped sides that allow you to easily toss the ingredients together and make the rice and veggies crispy.
- Don’t be afraid to switch up the veggies. The best thing about this veggie-packed vegan fried rice is it can really be made with any and all of your favorite veggies. Add as many or as few as you’d like!
Serving Suggestions
Since this fried rice is so packed with veggies, it’s a great main dish to enjoy on it’s own for lunch, dinner, even breakfast if you prefer something savory! If you’d like to add plant protein to make it an even more filling meal, serve with crispy baked tofu, tempeh, or add a can of drained and rinsed chickpeas into the fried rice.
If you’re looking for a few side dishes to pair with this fried rice, here are a few of our favorites:
- Tofu Vegetable Crispy Wontons
- Baby Bok Choy with Soy Sauce and Garlic
- Spicy Cucumber Salad
- Oven-Baked Sesame Fries
- Tofu Spring Rolls with Mango and Avocado
Storage Instructions
Leftover veggie fried rice will keep for up to 5 days in the fridge or in the freezer for up to 3 months. For best results, store leftovers in an airtight container or freezer bag, if freezing.
Reheat in a microwave-safe bowl in 30 second intervals until warmed through or toss in a wok or large pan until warm.
More Vegan Dinner Recipes
- Sweet Potato Quinoa Bowl
- Garlic Sesame Soba Noodles
- Easy Yellow Dal Recipe
- Best Veggie Vegan Risotto
- Vegan Lemon-Garlic Mediterranean Quinoa
- Easy Tofu Vegetable Coconut Curry
Photos by Alfonso Revilla
Veggie-Packed Vegan Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups of rice (any variety will do, but long grain varieties are nice)
- 2 ½ cups of water, or more as needed
- 1 onion, or large shallot, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1 inch ginger, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 cup of thinly sliced carrots
- 1 cup of thinly sliced mushrooms
- 1 cup of sweet potato, cut into thin strips
- ¼-½ teaspoon of salt (or to taste)
- 1 tablespoon of agave, sugar or sweetener of choice
- 2 tablespoons of soy sauce, tamari, or coconut aminos
- 1 cup of thinly sliced red bell pepper
- 1 cup of chopped kale or spinach
- 1 cup of thinly sliced red cabbage
- ½ cup of fresh herbs of choice; cilantro, basil, parsley, mint (optional)
- ¼ cup of toasted nuts or seeds of choice; chopped cashews, almonds, peanuts, sesame seeds, etc (optional)
- 2-3 tablespoons of sesame oil
- Black pepper or cayenne pepper to taste
Instructions
- Begin by cooking your rice. Just stir, add water, cover, bring to a boil, and lower to a simmer. Let cook undisturbed for 10-15 min until rice is cooked through and water has been absorbed completely.
- While rice is cooking, slice and chop all veggies and set aside. When rice is almost done, begin cooking veggies in the largest pan you have, a wok is perfect if you have one.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of sesame oil over medium-high heat and add onion, garlic, and ginger. Stir fry for 2-3 minutes until the onion begins to soften and the garlic is fragrant (stir frequently so the garlic doesn't burn). Add carrots, mushrooms, and sweet potato. Stir fry for an additional 4-5 minutes until the sweet potato begins to soften.
- Add ½ tablespoon of sweetener, a pinch of salt, a pinch of pepper, and 1 tablespoon of soy sauce (or substitute) and stir to combine. Add kale and cabbage and let simmer over medium heat until kale and cabbage have wilted about 3-4 minutes. Transfer veggies to a large bowl and season to taste.
- When rice is done, use the same pan/wok and heat 1 tablespoon of sesame oil over medium-high heat. Add rice and stir fry with 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, ½ tablespoon sweetener, a pinch of salt and pepper. Keep stirring and stir-frying until rice begins to dry out a bit, if they get a little crispy, even better.
- Add veggies back into the pan with rice and toss well, add fresh herbs if using, and top with nuts/seeds before serving if desired. Season to taste as needed. Enjoy!
Notes
- Use leftover rice. This recipe gives you the option and instructions to cook rice from scratch, but if you have leftover cold rice, using it to make vegan fried rice is an excellent way to speed up the prep time!
- Use a wok if you have one. Woks have a high heat capacity and the sloped sides that allow you to easily toss the ingredients together and make the rice and veggies crispy.
- Don’t be afraid to switch up the veggies. The best thing about this veggie-packed vegan fried rice is it can really be made with any and all of your favorite veggies. Add as many or as few as you’d like!
Love this fried rice recipe!
So glad you enjoyed it!
Love how simple this fried rice is!
This was delicious! Had to add a little more tamari while I was eating but after that it was perfect. Just wanted to mention that you’ve put bell pepper in the ingredients but I don’t see it in the instructions, I added it with the carrot, sweet potato and mushrooms.