I have yet to meet a person that doesn’t like fried rice. For many people across many different cultures, rice is a staple food that is used across all meals. Being from Indonesian, Carribean and Chinese heritage myself, I can relate. I mean personally, asian take out was my go-to way wayyy back (literally a decade ago) when I was in highschool and fried rice was one of my favourites. Later when I started university and began cooking more at home I realized that making it could be just as simple a process as eating it. Now that I have finally reached “intermediate adulthood” (as I like to call it) I thought it was finally time to put a healthier spin on this much loved dish.
This recipe replaces rice with cauliflower. For those of you that hated cauliflower as a child, don’t fret! I promise you this will take cauliflower to a whole other level.
Cauliflower is an ideal alternative for a few reasons including:
- low calories
- high fiber content
- contains the compound, “glucoraphanin” that protects the stomach and intestines
Chinese food doesn’t have to laiden with grease, MSG or tons of sodium to be delicious. Give this a try and maybe you’ll see what I mean.
Cauliflower Shrimp Fried Rice
EQUIPMENT: Food Processor, deep non-stick pan, lid, spatula, fry pan, small bowl
INGREDIENTS
- 2 heads cauliflower, medium size, stems and leaves removed, rough chop to bite sized pieces
- 3 tbsp (45 mL) canola oil, divided
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 red or white onion, small dice
- 2 eggs, large
- 350g – 400g frozen shrimp, thawed, deshelled, deveined
- ¼ cup (60 mL) soy sauce, light
- ½ tbsp (7.5 mL) shrimp paste
- 1 tbsp (15 mL) sesame oil
- ½ bunch green onion, cut on a bias (reserve half for garnish)
- 1 tbsp (15 mL) sriracha (optional)
DIRECTIONS
1) In batches, using a food processor, pulse bite-sized cauliflower pieces until it begins to resembles rice grains.
2) Over medium high heat, warm up 1 tbsp of canola oil in a deep non-stick pan. Add in garlic and onion and cook until translucent and fragrant, 1-2 minutes. Add in cauliflower rice and cook covered with a lid for 5 minutes. With a spatula stir to ensure all the “rice” is getting cooked evenly, cook an additional 5 minutes covered.
3) Meanwhile. In a small bowl, crack two eggs and stir to combine. In a fry pan over medium high heat, warm 1 tbsp of canola oil. When the oil is hot, add in the eggs and stir with a spatula until the eggs are no longer runny and have cooked through. Add eggs to the cauliflower rice in the other pan and stir to combine.
4) After the eggs have been transferred, rinse and dry your fry pan to cook your shrimp. Heat 1 tbsp of oil over medium high heat. Add in your prepared shrimp, cook for 2-3 minutes (depending on the size of your shrimp) each side until pink and cooked through. Add shrimp to the cauliflower rice in the other pan and stir.
5) To the cauliflower rice add in light soy sauce, shrimp paste, sesame oil, green onion and if desired, sriracha. Stir to evenly combine.
6) To serve, add more green onion on top for garnish.
7) Enjoy.
TIP:
Best enjoyed freshly made since the cauliflower smell may intensify if kept for leftovers.
Nutritional information from:
Seaver, B. (2014). National Geographic Foods for Health: Choose and use the very best foods for your family and our planet. Washington, DC: National Geographic Society.
The Mindful Nomnivore 