Cauliflower Fried Rice - Once Upon A Chef

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This Chinese-style cauliflower fried rice is a healthy, low-carb dish that’s hearty enough to serve as a main course.

cauliflower fried rice

Cauliflower rice — which is just cauliflower grated into rice-like bits — really does taste similar to rice, or at least it behaves similarly by soaking up all the flavor of its seasonings. In this quick and easy cauliflower fried rice recipe, I sauté grated cauliflower with aromatics, vegetables, soy sauce, and eggs, much like Chinese fried rice. It’s a healthy, low-carb dish that’s hearty enough to serve as a main course.

Cauliflower has a mild flavor that makes it an excellent blank canvas for other flavors. In addition to rice, it makes a great substitute for mashed potatoes in my cauliflower purée recipe.

“This is shockingly good!!”

What You’ll Need To Make Cauliflower Fried Rice

Rice ingredients including cauliflower, dark soy sauce, and sesame oil.

You’ll likely be able to find grated cauliflower in the produce or frozen vegetable section of your supermarket. But if not, it’s simple to make using a food processor (use the grating disc) or hand grater.

Food processor full of grated cauliflower rice.

How To Make Cauliflower Fried Rice

As with any quick stir-fry, it’s important to have all of your ingredients prepped before you start cooking.

Begin by heating a few teaspoons of oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the eggs and a pinch of salt and cook over medium heat until scrambled.

Wooden spoon stirring a skillet of scrambled eggs.

Set the eggs aside, then sauté the scallions, ginger, and garlic in oil until softened.

Skillet of garlic, scallions, and ginger.

Add the grated cauliflower, soy sauce, red pepper flakes, sugar, and salt. Cook, stirring often, for about 3 minutes.

Skillet with riced cauliflower and soy sauce.

Add the peas and carrots and continue cooking until the cauliflower “rice” is tender-crisp and the vegetables are warmed through, a few minutes.

Peas and carrots in a skillet with riced cauliflower.

Stir in the rice vinegar, sesame oil, dark green scallions, nuts (if using), and scrambled eggs.

Scrambled eggs in a skillet with riced cauliflower.

Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Serve hot and enjoy!

Cauliflower Fried Rice

By Jennifer Segal This Chinese-style cauliflower fried rice is a healthy, low-carb dish that's hearty enough to serve as a main course. Servings: 4Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 15 minutes Total Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients US CustomaryMetric

Vegetable oil
2 large eggs, beaten
Salt
1 cup chopped scallions, from 5 to 6 scallions, white and green parts separated
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger, from a 1-inch knob
1 (2-lb) head cauliflower, or 2 lbs (907 g) "ready to cook" cauliflower rice, thawed if frozen
4 to 5 tablespoons soy sauce
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup frozen peas and carrots
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
¼ cup chopped cashews or peanuts (optional)

Instructions

Grate the cauliflower in a food processor fitted with the grating disc. Alternatively, grate on the large holes of a box or hand-held grater. Set aside. (Skip this step if using "ready to cook" cauliflower rice.)
Heat 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the eggs and a pinch of salt and scramble until the eggs are cooked. Transfer to a small plate and set aside. Wipe the pan clean.
Add 3 tablespoons of vegetable oil to the pan and set over medium heat. Add the light scallions, garlic, and ginger and cook, stirring often, until softened but not browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the grated cauliflower, 4 tablespoons of the soy sauce, red pepper flakes, sugar, and ¼ teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring often, for about 3 minutes. Add the peas and carrots and continue cooking until the cauliflower "rice" is tender-crisp and the vegetables are warmed through, a few minutes. Stir in the rice vinegar, sesame oil, dark green scallions, nuts (if using) and eggs. Taste and adjust seasoning (adding the remaining tablespoon of soy sauce if necessary). Serve hot.

Notes

Check out easy guidance on how to peel, grate, and chop fresh ginger.

Nutrition Information

Per serving (4 servings)Calories: 273kcalCarbohydrates: 22gProtein: 12gFat: 17gSaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 93mgSodium: 1717mgFiber: 7gSugar: 8g Nutritional Data Disclaimer

This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.

Gluten-Free Adaptable Note

To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.

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Comments

This recipe is delicious!
- — Irasema Rangel on October 21, 2025
- Reply
You have outdone yourself with this one Jenn. Most chefs give instructions for ricing cauliflower that are time consuming and involve multiple steps. Using a grater in the food processor instead of chopping by hand, then chopping in the food processor in small batches made prep a breeze. The flavors were delicious and spot-on. Probably the best fried ‘rice’ I’ve ever had! Can’t wait to try it next time with chopped peanuts or cashews.
- — Christine Osoba on August 6, 2025
- Reply
Delicious! It is so flavorful I forgot it was low carb and made of cauliflower which is not one of my favorite vegetables.
- — Laura on July 26, 2025
- Reply
This is THE recipe that helped me lose 100 pounds in half a year. I absolutely owe this recipe my life. It is healthy, rich in natural vitamins and antioxidants, and sooo yummy! You have truly changed my life. I did some intermittent fasting, & one of the only things i ate for the day, at dinner, was this very recipe! Absolutely amazing. After using it for so many years, i would recommend adding the soy sauce very slowly & tasting as you go, as every sauce is different in sodium content. I usually add shrimp, and sometimes broccoli, you can add anything really. I use prepackaged bags of riced cauliflower from Walmart, & of course some air fried chicken. This is truly an amazing and delicious life saver, and Jennifer is definitely a saviour! *chefs kiss*
- — Bryar on May 27, 2025
- Reply
This is such a delicious version of fried rice! Did the box grater technique. Was out of rice vinegar, subbed white. Otherwise, as written. Sooo good, I loved every bite!
- — Lisa M on May 15, 2025
- Reply
Great recipe ! I added shrimp for some extra protein.
- — Paula on May 12, 2025
- Reply
Hi Jennifer! Adding the chicken went well and the dish came out really well! Thanks for the advice! I’m trying to cook more at home and eat healthier, do you have any go to recipes that are healthy and beginner friendly?
- — Anna on April 29, 2025
- Reply
- Glad to hear it came out well! Here’s a post with a variety of other healthy recipes. Some of the easiest are the char siu chicken, baked salmon, turkey meatloaf, and egg roll in a bowl. Hope you enjoy whatever you make!
  - — Jennifer Segal on April 29, 2025
  - Reply
I want to add chicken to this, but I’m new to cooking and a little scared of undercooking meat. What meat should I use and how should I cook it/what step would I integrate it into?
- — Anna on April 22, 2025
- Reply
- Hi Anna, I’d use boneless, skinless chicken breast or thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces. Cook it in a bit of oil over medium-high heat for 5 to 7 minutes, until golden and cooked through (you can cut a piece open to check). Set the chicken aside, then add it back in when you stir in the cauliflower rice and soy sauce so everything finishes cooking together. Please LMK how it comes out!
  - — Jennifer Segal on April 22, 2025
  - Reply
Love, love, LOVE this recipe. It is perfect for a heavyset fried rice fiend like me. I didn’t change a thing on it and it came out perfect!
- — Paul Malley on April 13, 2025
- Reply

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Welcome - I'm Jennifer Segal - Classically Trained Chef, Cookbook Author & Busy Mom

Once upon a time, I went to culinary school and worked in fancy restaurants. Now, I’m cooking for my family and sharing all my tested & perfected recipes with you here! Read more…