The perfect fried rice, with vegan ‘egg’ mixture!
Every Chinese food post should at least have 1 basic fried rice recipe included. It is a staple food in China, especially in the South of China. So I have adjusted this popular dish to create the best vegan fried rice for all fried rice lovers. As well the non-vegan ones will love this.
Estimated reading time: 3 minutes
🥘 Main ingredients
- long grain rice, pre-cooked and cooled down
- onion
- carrots
- spring onions
- garden peas
- garlic
- green pepper
- sesame oil
- soy sauce
For the vegan scrambled ‘eggs’;
- chickpea flour
- baking powder
- aquafaba
Fried rice can be found all over S-E Asia. But it origins can only be traced back to China. It was developed during the Sui Dynasty.
The dish is as divers as your imagination goes. It is a typical home dish made from all the leftovers. So there is not one original fried rice variation. But having said that, in our westernized Chinese cuisine the basic recipe would be similar as you find in this post.
💭 Top tip, for a good fried rice
The key of making a good fried rice dish is the preparation of the ingredients, and the heat of your wok (or pan).
You should have all ingredients ready to go before you start heating the wok. Once the wok is hot you add cold oil, and add the ingredients that will need longest to cook. Only once your ingredients start becoming tender, you can add the garlic. If you do this to soon the garlic will burn, and your dish will become bitter.
Sometimes I add a little extra oil if required before adding the rice. Keep on moving the wok so it doesn’t stick. Add the soy and sesame just before serving. Spring onions and herbs should be added at the end. As like the vegan ‘egg’ mixture.
🥘 Vegan ‘egg’ mixture
Personally I prefer this vegan scrambled ‘egg’ mixture over the use of scrambled tofu. But of course if you are a tofu fan, go for the tofu.
When you make this chickpea flour ‘egg’ mixture following my recipe, you will notice that during the process it becomes like a sort of a sticky, gooey mass. That’s okay. After you leave it to cool down, you can easily break up this mixture with a spatula, and it will become the perfect fake scrambled eggs. Just use a good non-stick pan. And stir the mixture so it cooks evenly.
This vegan fried rice recipe is part of my series; ‘Travels of taste‘. We use our taste buds to travel the world and discover the use of our senses and imaginations to meet other cultures through food. Check out my full China ‘travels of taste’ post; >>> China, It’s all about FOOD!
📋 Recipe
Serve straight away. Fried rice is best when it is just freshly made.
Ingredients
- 120 g 1/2 cup long grain rice, pre-cooked and cooled down
- 1/2 onion chopped
- 3 carrots evenly diced in small pieces
- 2 spring onions chopped
- 150 g 1 cup peas, fresh if possible
- 3 cloves of garlic finely chopped
- 1/2 green pepper chopped
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
For the vegan scrambled ‘eggs’;
- 50 g 1/2 cup + 1 tsp chickpea flour, sieved
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 125 ml 1/2 cup water
- 2 tbsp aquafaba
- salt
- pepper
Instructions
- Pre-cook the rice preferably one day ahead and put in the fridge, if not possible, don’t worry you can get a good fried rice with a shorter time frame. Just make sure the boiled rice is cooled down and as dry as possible.
- Prepare all the ingredients, start with the ‘egg’ mixture. Mix the sieved the chickpea flour (gram flour) with the baking powder, and slowly (while stirring) add the water.
- Leave the batter to rest for 30 minutes
- Meanwhile chop all the vegetables, and if using fresh garden peas, blanch them for 1 – 2 minutes in boiling water.
- Whisk the 2 tbsp of aguafaba up with some salt and pepper until it is stiffened. Carefully fold the aguafaba into the batter mixture. Heat a frying pan add some olive oil, and stir in the batter. Cook the batter on moderate heat for approx. 5 – 10 minutes. Stir for even cooking, and no sticking. This mixture will become a sticky gooey mass, but don’t worry.
- Leave the ‘egg’ mixture to cool down. Once cooled it will dry out a bit and you can separate the mixture with a spatula, resembling a scrambled egg texture. Set aside.
- Heat a wok (or pan) Add some oil and the onions and carrots. Stir fry for a few minutes
- Add the garlic, stir continuously so the garlic does not burn.
- If needed add some more oil, and start adding the rice.
- Move and swirl your wok, so nothing sticks to the bottom.
- Add the peas and the spring onions.
- Pour in the soy and the sesame oil, mix well.
- Lastly add the vegan scrambled ‘eggs’, serve straight away.
Notes
Nutrition
