Cauliflower Fried Rice is healthy, low carb and and so tasty kids will think it is real fried rice. Ready in 15 minutes with fresh or frozen cauliflower, this will become your new favorite stir fry.
Thai fried rice and Mexican cauliflower rice are on repeat in this house as well!
Cauliflower Rice Stir Fry
Cauliflower fried rice is so easy, it makes to our Friday dinner menu. You know how I feel about cooking on a Friday night?! Just like you. That’s why meal planning helps.
This cauliflower fried rice recipe with store-bought or homemade cauliflower rice, peas, carrots and simple seasonings won over even the kids. Boys thought it was Instant Pot chicken fried rice I made a few weeks ago. Their eyes were a saucer size when I told them it’s cauliflower. There is a trick though. Keep on reading.
And by the way, you can use fresh or frozen cauliflower rice in 15 minutes. No thawing is required. 🙂
Ingredients You Will Need
- Medium head of cauliflower or 16 oz store-bought cauliflower rice
- Frozen or fresh peas and carrots
- Eggs
- Green onion
- Seasonings like soy sauce, honey and oil
- Garlic and ginger
How to Make Cauliflower Fried Rice
Just like with any stir fry, make sure all ingredients are ready before cooking fried rice. Stir fries cook fast.
- Saute onion, garlic, ginger, carrot and peas for 4-5 minutes in a large skillet. The larger skillet, the more “fried” vs. steamed vegetables will be. And since cauliflower is not real rice, we have a lot of vegetables going on here.
- Push vegetables to the side and add eggs. Cook until eggs are scrambled.
- Add cauliflower rice and cook until warmed through. The key is not to overcook cauliflower to start releasing water. Since we can eat cauliflower raw, it needs only 2-3 minutes.
- Push cauliflower rice to the side and add honey and soy sauce. If using thick honey, hot skillet is perfect for melting it. And sorry, bottom left and right pictures should be swapped.
Tips and Variations
- Do not thaw frozen cauliflower rice. In fact, if you defrost cauliflower rice before cooking, it will be soggy and make cauliflower stir fry a watery mess. Even for cauli pizza and cauli breadsticks, I never thaw frozen rice first in order to make “the dough”.
- Buy a few bags of fresh cauliflower rice and freeze. This way you can always make yummy, quick and healthy dinner like cauliflower risotto or cauliflower rice with chicken.
- If you have picky eaters, store-bought cauliflower rice coarse texture resembles more real rice because it is made with stems only. I throw in a bag at the end when making goulash in Instant Pot and nobody ever noticed the hidden veggies yet.
- Make cauliflower chicken fried rice. Use ground chicken or finely chopped boneless chicken breast and saute first in a pan before adding other ingredients. Pork works the same way.
- For shrimp fried rice, cook dices raw shrimp first, remove onto a plate, follow the recipe and then add cooked shrimp back. If you use cooked shrimp, dice and add it at the end.
- Make rice spicy by adding a pinch of red pepper flakes or a few teaspoons of sriracha.
How to Serve and Store Cauliflower Fried Rice
First of all, sprinkle with a lot of green onion.
If you don’t add chicken like me, then baked chicken breast would be perfect to go with rice. Or if you are a fan of dark meat, I recommend these roasted chicken thighs. Try grilled salmon or more Asian crispy honey garlic salmon.
You can refrigerate leftovers of cauli fried rice for up to 2 days. It won’t get soggy as all ingredients are pretty firm.
I would not freeze and reheat it though. That’s when things get watery and soggy. Just eat this low carb meal until it’s done. So good!
More Cauliflower Recipes
- Cilantro lime cauliflower rice
- Cheesy cauliflower rice
- Faux mashed potatoes
- Cauliflower soup
- Cauliflower Shepherd’s Pie
- Browse this popular collection of cauliflower rice recipes.
Cauliflower Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 1 small onion finely chopped
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 1 tbsp ginger minced
- 1 large carrot diced
- 1 cup peas fresh or frozen
- 2 tbsp toasted sesame oil
- 4 eggs large
- 16 oz bag of cauliflower rice fresh or frozen
- 1 tbsp honey or maple syrup
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 3 onion sprigs finely chopped
Instructions
- Preheat large ceramic non-stick skillet on medium-high heat and swirl oil to coat. Add onion, garlic, ginger, carrot, peas and cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Push vegetables to the side and add eggs. Cook until scrambled, stirring constantly.
- Add cauliflower rice (don't thaw frozen one), stir and cook until warmed through.
- Push cauliflower rice to the side and add honey and soy sauce, stir well. Sprinkle with green onion and serve.
Store: Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Took me 30 minutes to cook the carrots. I made the dish again. This time I started with olive oil, garlic,green onions, sweet onions, I added carrots, peas, eggs ,broccoli,1 tsp honey, 2 tbsp soy sauce ,cauliflower was last. It was delicious.
🙂
This can’t be good for me cause it taste amazing. Wow! Thanks
But it is good for you!
I am too bad at cooking. I followed the steps Holistically and it came out to be wow! Thank you so much
You are very welcome!
AH-MAZING! We have really been missing fried rice since going low-carb and honestly I wish we would have tried this before we made the change! It is better than regular fried rice! We switched out soy sauce for Aminos. Thank you for such a great recipe!
So great to hear this Jordan!
I made this but used coconut aminos instead of the soy sauce and honey — perfectly sweet substitution that works on Whole 30 plan. Thanks for a great, quickie of a recipe!
That’s great. Thanks for sharing Mo!
Best cauliflower rice ever! Thanks so much. We loved it! My husband thought it was closest thing to actual fried rice he has ever had.
Yay! That’s great Elise!
I am moving toward a healthier cleaner eating lifestyle so I was excited to find and try this recipe. The only thing I added was broccoli and I use coconut aminos instead of soy sauce due to high blood pressure. It tasted great and was quick and easy!! A new addition to my recipe book.
So great to hear! Hope you found my website helpful in your cleaner eating lifestyle 🙂
Delicious, I used fresh cauliflower. Will definitely make again.
Wow another wonderful and quick recipe.
I’d never seen cauliflower rice here in Barcelona so I made my own from a fresh cauliflower. However, a quick Internet search shows me I can buy it frozen 100m from my place but it’s more than double the price!
I’m interested to see if my youngest son realizes it not real rice.
So easy to make your own. I am curious, did your son realize it wasn’t “rice”?
OMG – I had no idea what to cook and this hit the spot. Thank ya!
Yay!
Love this recipe. It was easy to make, definitely will make it again! Thank you.
This recipe is very easy and delicious! I have made it twice already! ?
Very delicious! I used fresh cauliflower. Great recipe.
Not a huge fan of cauliflower…..but this was pretty good
This was marvelous. Had too much ginger for me, so next time hubby makes it, i’ll have him cut it in 1/2. Otherwise this was very tasty, whipped up in a jiffy, and SOOOO healthy!! Leftovers for lunch tomorrow!! Yippee!
Glad you enjoyed it and things like ginger can always be adjusted to taste 🙂
I made it tonight for dinner using shrimp and it was really very good. The only item I didn’t have on hand was fresh ginger but I substituted ground ginger which worked out fine.
I defrosted the shrimp and dredged them in Old Bay seasoning but also added some cayenne pepper to taste. It was not over powering but added an extra layer of flavoring. Everything came together very easily m
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Peggy! Thank you for the wonderful review!
I accidentally bumped into your website and I am loving it. Your recipes are very simple.
Glad you find my site and are enjoying the recipes Ennia!
Simple recipe. My family enjoyed it, Thank you very much,
You are very welcome Dora!
This was absolute perfection! Thanks for sharing!
My 6 yr old and I love this, she’s always disappointed when it’s gone.
Awe, that’s awesome Shelly!
Hi my name is Mady and I am a twelve year old girl. My mom and I make your recipes all the time and today for lunch I made your riced cauliflower fried rice! It was absolutely amazing and my whole family loved it! I even tricked my 14 year old brother because I didn’t tell him it was cauliflower and he absolutely adored it! Keep up the outstanding work!
Marci! Thank you so much for sharing this with me! I am so happy to hear you are cooking in the kitchen with your mom and loving my recipes. Keep on cooking!
Yummy
Amazing recipes , simple to follow and delicious to taste .
Thank you Olena for the effort you are putting for all of us to have a great meal on the table and make all our life’s easier
Thank you for your positive feedback and kind words Elizabeta!
Loved this recipe!! Delicious.
This was my first attempt to use cauliflower rice! I can’t believe a recipe this good is not written on the package.
Haha. Yay! Awesome to hear. Thank you for your wonderful review, Margaret!
Fantastic & delicious alternative to carb, the family love it
Yay. Glad you liked it.
Super easy recipe. I have made several times. Great as a side dish.
Thank you!!!
Delicious! Even my teenager loves it!
Thank you for your wonderful review, Megan. That’s the best when teenagers love smth lol. I own one right now too.
I look at cauliflower rice every me I’m in produce department. Just didn’t know what to do with it. Thank you for this recipe, we enjoy all the foods listed so the finished dish will be well received.
I so enjoy following your e-mail messages/recipes. I’m not that good a searching the web.
Awe. Happy to help. I have more recipes with cauliflower rice coming!
In my country, rice is part of our Daily menú. With this recipe i can made “rice” more healthy!
Thanks
Yup. I agree. So happy to help.
I just tried this after a failed attempt the previous night. Because I didn’t read the tips and variations before trying to make it, I did thaw the cauliflower rice (steamable bag) and just used a different frozen bag of cauliflower when I saw (finally) saw the tip. Alas, the frozen was a horrible wet sloppy mess. So, I restrategized. I took the thawed cauliflower rice and strained it in a fine mesh strainer (cheesecloth would also work). I re-prepped veggies and put everything in containers in the fridge. Voila. The cauliflower had dried out more and I was ready to go! This time, it was fantastic. Plan on making it again and subbing the soy sauce for liquid aminos. Thanks for the recipe!
Interesting. I do not overcook frozen one and it comes out perfect every time. But glad you made it work.:)
This really does taste like fried rice. I used fried kielbasa and only 2 eggs. My family will not go near cauliflower but I bet they won’t know! Thank you!!!!
You are very welcome, Crystal!
I thought it was delicious! I even had my husband try it and he’s super picky and he liked it! I made the recipe according to how it was written, I will add just a tiny bit more spice next time but other then that 2 thumbs up! Thank You!
That is so amazing to hear! Glad you enjoyed my recipe! And even your husband haha
My family and I loved this! I substituted frozen broccoli for the peas since I am not a fan of peas. I served it with sesame chicken on top. Definitely tasted very close to fried rice.
So happy to hear, Mary!
My family loved this. They like it better than rice.
Awesome!!! Happy to hear, Maggie.
Oh wow, looks yummy. Will definitely try it
Will be waiting.:)
Excellent variation on fried rice! Well done, Olena!
Yay! So happy to hear!
Yummy !!
Fantastic! Glad you enjoyed the recipe, Robin!
Freaking bomb ?? so yummy
I made this last night and we loved it! Even my husband had good things to say about it, even though he’s not into ‘all that healthy stuff’. I added shrimp & mushrooms and served with sides of sweet potatoes & steamed asparagus. A delicious and filling dinner. I’ll be making this again.
🙂 Yes, this one exceeded my expectations as well! Enjoy!
Quick Question: Are there significant health benefits to the cauliflower as opposed to using brown rice?
The only difference cauliflower is lower in calories and carbs. So, you would have to eat more cauliflower to feel fuller but will consume less carbs. Both are whole foods that are good for you! It’s just a lighter alternative for those who are watching their weight.:) Brown rice is very good too!
Your cauliflower rice looks so fluffy, colorful…I guess I would say “authentic” but without all the fat and additives from the Asian buffet. Speaking of Asian Buffet, I visited one last week, and after consciously eating so healthy since the New Year, I felt HORRIBLE after my buffet dinner. It’s not that I ate so much, it’s that EVERYTHING tasted the same — which was sugar-saturated and oily. I could almost feel the organic nutrients I have been absorbing taking up the fight with against MSG, cheap chicken w/additives, and low quality beef. I will not be visiting again anytime soon, I felt so physically bad.
Anyway back to your glorious dish….Made this last night. I can’t quite convince myself to buy pre-riced cauliflower when I can get 2 large heads for $4 right now and make my own. Because I used my own riced cauliflower, it didn’t come out as “fluffy” as yours looks, but the taste…OMG! It was delicious!! The ginger and garlic brighten the flavor of this dish so nicely. I added chicken to mine for a one pot meal. If I had opened a Fortune Cookie at the end of dinner, it would have said, “Quick, Tasty Meal Nourishes the Body and Leaves Time for the Soul.” Another winner dinner!! Thanks
Yeah, eating out after you eat healthy at home doesn’t taste as good. You can taste all the crap.
Glad you enjoyed. You can also add shrimp. I think with store-bought rice they process the stems after selling the florets separately, that’s why it’s less mushy and bigger “grain”.