Extra Vegetable Fried Rice
Learn how to make vegetable fried rice—it's a simple and satisfying dinner! This recipe features extra vegetables and brown rice. Vegetarian/gluten free.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on August 29, 2024
I set out to create a more interesting take on greasy take-out vegetable fried rice. Here it is in full glory, and it’s as flavorful as it is colorful. Hooray!
I used brown rice, naturally, and even threw in a handful of greens, which offer even more health bonus points. (The greens are optional.)
I also played around with a variety of vegetables, and all of them worked well as long as they were cut into very small pieces.
This is exactly what you should make when you have leftover rice and some random raw vegetables in your fridge. You’re going to love it!
The Best Vegetable Fried Rice
I designed this recipe to work well in a regular skillet (preferably cast iron), since most of us don’t have woks at home.
The only tricky part, which really isn’t so difficult, is to cook the eggs, vegetables and rice separately, and combine them all at the end.
That way, each component will be cooked just right, and the vegetables and rice will get a chance to develop those delicious golden edges.
Delicious veggie fried rice, coming up! As always, please let me know how you like this recipe in the comments. I’m always so eager for your feedback.
Craving more? Check out my Thai pineapple fried rice. If you’re looking for more versatile recipes to use up the last of your vegetables, don’t miss this roundup.
Watch How to Make Vegetable Fried Rice
Extra Vegetable Fried Rice
Learn how to make vegetable fried rice—it’s a simple and satisfying dinner! This vegetarian recipe features extra vegetables and brown rice. Recipe yields 2 large or 3 moderate servings (I think you could double it if you have a large enough skillet, but you might not get as much caramelization on the edges of the veggies and rice).
Ingredients
- 1 ½ teaspoons + 2 tablespoons avocado oil or safflower oil, divided
- 2 eggs, whisked together
- 1 small white onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
- 2 medium carrots, finely chopped (about ½ cup)
- 2 cups additional veggies, cut into very small pieces for quick cooking (see photos for size reference; options include snow peas, asparagus, broccoli, cabbage, bell pepper, and/or fresh or frozen peas—no need to thaw first)
- ¼ teaspoon salt, more to taste
- 1 tablespoon grated or finely minced fresh ginger
- 2 large cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
- 2 cups cooked brown rice (*see notes!)
- 1 cup greens (optional), such as spinach, baby kale or tatsoi
- 3 green onions, chopped
- 1 tablespoon reduced-sodium tamari or soy sauce**
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- Chili-garlic sauce or sriracha, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- This recipe comes together quickly. Before you get started, make sure that all of your ingredients are prepped and within an arm’s reach from the stove. Also have an empty bowl nearby for holding the cooked eggs and veggies. I’m suggesting that you start over medium-high heat, but if at any point you catch a whiff of oil or food burning, reduce the heat to medium.
- Warm a large cast iron or stainless steel skillet over medium-high heat until a few drops of water evaporate within a couple of seconds. Immediately add 1 ½ teaspoons of oil and swirl the pan to coat the bottom. Add the scrambled eggs and swirl the pan so they cover the bottom. Cook until they are just lightly set, flipping or stirring along the way. Transfer the eggs to a bowl and wipe out the pan with a heat-proof spatula.
- Return the pan to heat and add 1 tablespoon of oil. Add the onion and carrots and cook, stirring often, until the onions are translucent and the carrots are tender, about 3 to 5 minutes.
- Add the remaining veggies and salt. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally (don’t stir too often, or the veggies won’t have a chance to turn golden on the edges), until the veggies are cooked through and turning golden, about 3 to 5 more minutes. In the meantime, use the edge of your spatula or a spoon to break up the scrambled eggs into smaller pieces.
- Use a big spatula or spoon to transfer the contents of the pan to the bowl with the cooked eggs. Return the pan to heat and the remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Add the ginger, garlic and red pepper flakes, and cook until fragrant while stirring constantly, about 30 seconds. Add the rice and mix it all together. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the rice is hot and starting to turn golden on the edges, about 3 to 5 minutes.
- Add the greens (if using) and green onions, and stir to combine. Add the cooked veggies and eggs and stir to combine. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the tamari and sesame oil. Taste, and add a little more tamari if you’d like more soy flavor (don’t overdo it or it will drown out the other flavors) or salt, if the dish needs an extra boost of overall flavor.
- Divide into bowls and serve immediately. I usually serve mine with chili-garlic sauce or sriracha on the side. Leftovers store well in the refrigerator, covered, for 3 to 4 days (if you used purple cabbage, it might stain your scrambled eggs a funny blue color, but it’s fine to eat).
Notes
*Rice notes: You’ll need to cook about 1 cup dry rice to yield enough for this recipe; be sure not to over-cook it or it will stick to the pan. I prefer short-grain brown rice since it’s a little chewy, but medium-grain or jasmine rice will work, too. Here’s how I cook brown rice. You can use freshly cooked rice if you spread it onto a large tray and let it cool for 5 to 10 minutes first (this gives it a chance to dry out a bit so it doesn’t steam itself in the pan). Day-old leftover, refrigerator rice is great, too. Just break up any clumps of rice before you add it to the pan. Credit goes to Serious Eats for the rice tips!
**Make it gluten free: Be sure to use gluten-free tamari, not regular soy sauce.
Make it vegan: Omit the eggs and the 1 ½ teaspoons oil that goes with them. For extra protein, you could mix in 1 cup edamame (thawed if necessary) or a batch of my crispy baked tofu with the cooked veggies at the end.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
This looks so fresh, colourful and delicious! Can’t wait to try it out soon! :)
I hope you do, Yukti!
love the photo of Cookie!
She’s such a clown! Always sneaking in. :)
The rice looks amazing – I will check out this recipe. The look on Cookie’s face in the photo is priceless!
She’s one determined pup!
Looks delicious. I”m excited to try it out this weekend :)
I hope you do, Maya!
Thanks! I’m still a meat-eater, but I’m incorporating more vegetarian meals into my weekly menus. I’m going to try this one tonight.
I hope you enjoy it, Suzanne!
This looks amazing!
Thanks, friend! Hope you try it. :)
Cookie’s face!! The determination!! And I am loving double the veg fried rice and your tips for making it all come out perfectly crispy and wok-like.
Thanks, Maria! I hope you get a chance to try it.
I made this tonight for my daughter and her husband. They loved it! I took one short cut and bought a bag of prechopped veggie stir fry mix to cut down on the work.
That totally works! All that chopping can take some time. I’m glad you enjoyed it, Debbie!
YUM!!! I LOVE fried rice. Especially when it’s healthy & homemade :)
Yes! Such a bonus.
Yum. Looks delish as always and I totally agree about the dress.
Thanks, Charlotte! And yep, it’s an interesting slideshow, to say the least!
Yummy, easy and the perfect way to clean out the vegetable drawer! Since I had a bag of edamame in the freezer, I steamed in microwave for 5 minutes, then added to last batch of vegetables, along with some extra garlic and ginger….delicious dinner! Took a picture cause it’s such a colorful dish, but can’t figure out how to post it.
Yes! It’s the perfect dish for cleaning out the fridge. And do you have Instagram? I can see all the photos tagged #cookieandkate on there, or, feel free to send me a pic at hello@cookieandkate.com!
:) I love this “behind the scene” photo with your dog :) ;)
And recipe is amazing, as usual :)
Thanks, KR! She’s the best assistant.
What a great recipe, Kate! Looks so delicious and fresh – perfect for spring! And I absolutely love the picture of Cookie. SO cute!! :-)
She’s quite the ham!
Thanks for the Met Gala gowns link. I haven’t had such a good laugh in ages. But some of those women looked like they could seriously do with some proper meals. Perhaps you could return the favour and send them the link to your website.
As for your delicious-looking fried rice, I’m going shopping for the ingredients tomorrow. Looks scrummy.
Let me know if you try the fried rice, Catherine! I love the British “scrummy,” you don’t get too much of that in the States. I hope it comes out great!
Why the Met Gala Link?
Delicious nevertheless
Looks delicious! What is your preferred cast iron skillet? I’ve been meaning to get one and this recipe is the perfect push to finally get one.
Hi! I love my Lodge brand 12″ cast iron skillet.
I love all the color in this dish!!! Love the photo of Cookie too! Too cute!! My girls are the same. They come running when they hear me with the peeler (they love their carrots)!
Yes! Selective hearing at its best. ;) She can’t hear when I’m telling her to get off the couch, but she can hear that veggie peeler!
We had this for dinner last night. I used the veggies we had on hand and didn’t have to go to the grocery for any additional ingredients which made it nice for a weeknight meal. It does come together really fast so the tip of having everything prepared was perfect. The flavor was amazing. I used your crispy baked tofu in place of the eggs and served with Sambal Oelek on the side. This one is a keeper, Kate!
Yum! I’ll have to try this with the tofu. Thanks, Carol Ann!
Unbelievably delicious!
Thank you, Amanda!
Another AH-mazing recipe. Made it tonight. I knew it would be a winner and it sure was. Both my husband and I went back for more. Taking leftovers for lunch tomorrow and looking forward to it!
Hooray! I’m so glad this was such a hit, Sandra.
Cooked eggs, rice, and vegetables separately for this recipe and your tip worked for me. Tastes really good.
Awesome! Glad to hear this, Lucy.
Very colorful and yummy recipe!
Thanks, Priya!
WOW made this last night for movie night and my husband had to pause the movie 4 times to tell me how delicious it was. Your technique worked perfectly, prepping everything in small pieces, the egg method, removing the veggies, and cooking the rice last. No more dragon fried rice at our local Thai place this is way better.
Ha! That made me smile. Movie-pausing-good is such a good descriptor. I’m so glad you loved it!
Hey there Kate! Long time reader who FINALLY got her butt in gear and made one of your recipes. I started with the Vegetable fried rice and loved it. Easy peasy.
I did make some changes based on what I had in the house and the two FODMAP things I can’t tolerate: onions and garlic, sigh.
So I whipped up some tri-color quinoa instead of rice. I used broccoli, portabella mushroom, zucchini, egg and green onions. I also tossed in some sliced almonds which I toasted first. I made the “sauce” with tamari, toasted sesame oil and some home grown red chiles. No garlic and it was still super tasty. (Although I miss garlic, I’m doing my best to live without)
Thanks for the inspiration. Sorry I ate it all without pictures – most of my veggies were pretty dark so it wasn’t pretty enough for a photo. But you can bet I’ll be making more from your May list and will post those pictures!
Your version sounds delicious, Peggie! I’m so glad this worked out so well. Best of luck with adapting to your diet changes–that’s never easy.
This dish was so full of flavor! We still eat some seafood so we added 1/2 pound of fresh shrimp instead of the eggs. I will definitely make this again. Thanks for another great recipe, Kate. Can’t wait to get my cookbook!!! Only 10 more days…:)
Sounds great, Myra! I can’t wait for you to see the book. Thanks for reading!
I just made this for my husband and I for lunch! Amazing!
Yay, glad to hear it! Thanks, Anne!
Hi Kate, I just made this, following the recipe exactly and adding a batch of crispy tofu. It was a little labor intensive, but tasted great, and now I have leftovers for two reasonably healthy lunches this week. I would have never attempted fried rice at home without your thoughtful and easy to follow instructions. Thanks!
Wendy, I am so glad this one proved worth the effort! It’s fun to change up the veggies in this one, so I hope you make another batch soon! :)
This sounds so yummy. I have to give it a try.
I hope you do, Susan!
Um, I used to be able to function on 5 hours a sleep like a champ. That is so not the case anymore! Love how packed with veggies this is it’s totally a fried ice I would eat in a second! I love making quinoa fried rice too!
Right? Those days are long gone for me. I’m so glad you loved the fried rice, Kelli! I’ve had a few readers sub in quinoa, and it sounds like it turned out delicious.
In “Extra Vegetable Fried Rice”- the “Extra” really suited. After reading full article, i must say if anyone refer to be named as Extra Protein Fried Rice would be justified as well. Thanks for this great recipe.
Yum! My 9 year old picked this as her meal for the week and it was a hit in our house! I added cashews for a little extra protein and crunch. Definitely a keeper! Friday will be the sweet potato tostadas;-)
I love that she gets to pick out a meal every week! So glad you all enjoyed it and hope you love the tostadas, too.
This is a fantastic way to use up leftover veggies and veggie “scraps”! In the 2 cups mixed veggies, I used wilting snap peas , peeled & chopped broccoli stems, flowering broccoli florets, and added fresh spinach as the green. I resisted the temptation (like you said) to add more soy, and you were right! The whole dish really amped of the flavor of each veggie. You’d never know most of them were a day from the compost bin (ha ha). I can’t wait to make this again!
Your version sounds so good, Gina! Thank you for your comment. Really glad you enjoyed the fried rice!
Just made this. It is so delicious and beautiful! Thank you.
Thanks, Gail!
This recipe was OUTSTANDING! I added Thai Basil flavored tofu and it made the dish even better (although it really is amazing without this addition). Thank you Kate!
Yum! Thai basil tofu sounds delicious, Jill. Thanks for reading!
Easy, tasty and looked appetizing too. I’ll be routinely cooking extra rice in the future to have enough left over to do this dish again.
Awesome! Thanks, Catherine.
YUM! Made this last night but in a wok.
I’m wondering how you clean your cast iron skillet, and how often you season it? Do you have a go-to source of information for Cast Iron care? I have one but too scared to use it for eggs or other messy things
:-)
Hi Asako! I don’t season mine often (ok, almost never). I clean it with hot water and a dish scrubber that has a sharp edge. I also got a special chain-like cast iron scrubber on Amazon that works well, but it has a knack for falling into the disposal. I always dry off immediately and rub it with oil if I think of it. And then I let it get very warm on the stove before I add any ingredients—that’s key for preventing the food from sticking to it.
Do you think this recipe would work with farro instead of rice? I’m trying to cut back on rice.
I think so, yes!
My friends and I made this a few nights ago. It was simply amazing! I’m making it again today, but was wondering if cauliflower rice would be an easy substitute for the brown rice?
Hi Marie! Yes, I think so, just haven’t tried myself to be sure!
I eat this all the time. No eggs. Extra ginger. Excellent for lunch the next day. I love, love, love this.
I’m so glad, Pam!
So far I’ve made fried rice using your recipe and method above twice: once with white jasmine and once using Seeds of Change brand precooked brown rice with quinoa blend. Both came out delicious! It’s an excellent way to clean out my salad drawer for the last bits of veggies. I used coconut oil and increased the sesame a bit because i loved that nutty flavor. Thanks for sharing this recipe – it’s the only fried rice one I could find that had adequate veggies IMO.
I served as a side for broiled salmon and teriyaki chicken breasts and passed sriracha sauce. Hit with the kids and adults alike!
Great! I’m so glad you love this. It’s one of my favorite whatever’s-in-the-pantry recipes!
Second recipe of yours I made this week and it did not disappoint! The whole family including my 6 year old cleaned their bowls!
It’s meh, it’s basically a stir fry
Yes, that’s exactly what it is.
I made this tonight and it was delish…definitely would make again. Already sent it to my daughter since I know she’d like too. For nonvegetarians adding in some sautéed shrimp would be excellent.
Thanks, Christine! I hope your daughter likes it, too.
I just made this tonight–so delicious. This is the 3rd recipe of yours I’ve made and all have been wonderful. I’ve been vegetarian for a year now and will all your recipes, I have no reason to ever go back! Thank you! :)
Awesome! I’m so glad you found my blog, Molly.
I love this rice, recipe is so delicious. I look forward to trying more. Thank you
Patty
Thanks, Patty!
Kate, we loved the colors and flavors of this. No sriracha needed. I used re and green bell peppers, orange carrot, purple cabbage and yellow squash (plus the additional greens). Wow, what a beautiful dish!
Yes, this one is a rainbow in a bowl! Thanks, Susie.
So delicious! I added bell pepper, purple cabbage and edamame beans! Will definitely be making this again.
Yum! That sounds delicious.
I made this with cauliflower rice instead of traditional rice and it was excellent!
I love this blog and all of the recipes in it! I made this extra vegetable fried rice for dinner and we had no leftovers–this meal could easily be one of my favorite vegetarian dinner recipes. I am so excited to see what other recipes you come out with!
Thanks, Colby! I’m so glad you found my blog.
Thanks so much for this recipe. I made it tonight and it was absolutely delicious!
Hooray! Thanks, Kateri. I love hearing that.
This recipe was amazing. I doubled the veges to lower the calories per serving.. My husband loved it!
Thank you!
YES throw in *all* the veggies! I’m glad everyone loved it, Cathleen.