This vegan and gluten-free Quinoa “Fried Rice” tastes like takeout but is made with whole grains, veggies, and an easy sauce. Serve it with edamame or grilled salmon if desired!
This quinoa fried rice has no rice. And no fried.
It’s kind of like flourless cookies. And grain-free oatmeal. And cauliflower rice. It defies the very definition of the food itself; yet we’re all a little into it?
Lately I crave things that can be enjoyed both hot and cold. Things that are delicious until proven guilty. Things like this riceless friedless quinoa fried rice. If you’ve made my Easy Vegetable Teriyaki Stir Fry before, you know I love a good one meal wonder.
Now let’s talk grains. Unless you have the frozen pre-cooked kind, rice takes a helluva long time to cook. Like 45 minutes too many. Quinoa, while difficult to pronounce, is not difficult to cook.
It takes a mere fifteen minutes to serve up the fluffy, protein-packed goodness that is this pseudograin. Yep, quinoa is actually a seed!! We’re all just pretending to be things we’re not, here.
To keep it easy, I seasoned up this whole grain n’ veggie mixture with a simple mixture of sriracha and reduced-sodium soy sauce. Feel free to add some sesame oil if you want to raise the flavor roof. For all the gluten-free folks reading, feel free to use tamari instead!
P.S. Anytime I list minced ginger in a recipe, I’m secretly using this bottled minced ginger from The Ginger People. You can get it online or at Whole Foods. It’s a godsend. Because who wants to actually mince fresh ginger? #aintnotimefordat
There are so many places that this dish could go. Add edamame for more plant-powered protein. Add scrambled eggs for an authentic twist. Add more greens to make it more of a salad.
Try this Thai Quinoa Fried Rice for a super yummy peanut butter version. This Instant Pot Pad Thai Stir is another winner!
Oh the places quinoa will go!!
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This vegan and gluten-free Quinoa Fried Rice tastes like takeout but is made with whole grains, veggies, and an easy sauce. Serve it with edamame or grilled salmon if desired!
Ingredients
- 2 cups quinoa + 3 cups water
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 2 large onions, diced
- 2 1/2 cups thinly sliced carrots
- 2 red bell peppers, diced
- 1 cup edamame (optional)
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp minced ginger (optional)
- 1 bunch kale, de-stemmed and finely chopped
- 3/4 cup roasted salted cashews (optional)
- 1/3 cup reduced sodium soy sauce (sub tamari for gluten-free)
- 3 tbsp sriracha
Instructions
- Place quinoa and water in a medium pot. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to low and simmer covered for 15-20 minutes, or until the liquid is absorbed.
- Meanwhile, chop all the vegetables. When the quinoa is cooked, dump into a large bowl. Wipe down pot. Add oil to pot and heat over medium heat. Add onions and carrots and sauté for about 10 minutes, stirring often.
- Add peppers, edamame, garlic, and ginger and sauté for another 5 minutes. Add kale and sauté just until wilted (a few minutes). Add cashews.
- Dump cooked vegetables into bowl with cooked quinoa. Add soy sauce and sriracha and stir well to combine. Serve warm.
Erin @ The Almond Eater says
Ahh i love this and I love that you mentioned eating it hot or cold! I forget that sometimes.
Alexis says
Hot or cold = amazing.
Maryea {happy healthy mama} says
I love this! It’s so colorful with all the veggies in there! Gorgeous photos, too. :)
Alexis says
Thanks love! Veggies make everything so much prettier, don’t they?
Dietitian Jess says
I basically never make rice because it takes forever, quinoa to the rescue! I’m digging this with the addition of an egg- yum!
Alexis says
Right?! You should totally add an egg and never look back!!
She Rocks Fitness says
Love me some quinoa…I always make a batch in my rice cooker for the week ahead. It is so easy to make and so versatile…I need to come up with some quinoa breakfast recipes to switch it up a bit. Happy Monday friend! XOXO
Alexis says
SOOO smart to make it in the rice cooker. How do I not have one of those?!
Beverley Cheng says
Yum! this looks a whole lot healthier than the shrimp fried rice I had at my favorite Chinese restaurant yesterday. Wahhh. Definitely gotta try your version soon!
Alexis says
Hahah I hope it’s healthier AND yummier!
Marisa @ Uproot from Oregon says
I purposefully run the rice cooker for leftover brown rice for healthy ‘fried’ rice. Love the idea of quinoa! I would be the one to add the scrambled egg because I love sticky clumpy rice. Mmmm!
Alexis says
Mmmmm adding a fried egg would be an egg-cellent decision ;)
Hannah @ CleanEatingVeggieGirl says
Pinned, shared, and currently salivating over right now! ;) YES for fried rice day!
Alexis says
Get excited!!!
Julia says
Faux fried rice is duh beez kneez, suga! I love this quinoa idea! And, stop: The Ginger People makes bottled minced ginger?!! I need this 10 years ago! Happy Mondeeee!
Alexis says
Faux fried rice…I love it. The bottled ginger is going to ROCK YOUR WORLD!!!
Amanda @ .running with spoons. says
LOVE! I’ve been stuck on rice lately, but I really need to start doing the quinoa thing again because it’s so, SO good. And cold leftovers are seriously the love of my life. I actually prefer eating most things cold than I do hot!
Alexis says
We’re totally in the same boat! Like I think I’m grown too lazy to throw things in the microwave. Unacceptable!
Shannon says
I have never cooked quinoa before, mainly because it looks and sounds intimidating. That needs to be fixed ASAP. This looks yummy!
Alexis says
It’s SO easy! Go for it!
Kelly @ Eat the Gains says
This sounds delicious! Getting a rice cooker was a game changer for making rice. It takes like 15 minutes now!
Alexis says
That’s amazing. I really need to invest in one!
Beth says
Holy crap. Making this tomorrow!!! Such simple ingredients and it looks so good…
Btw, the intro to this post is amazinggggg. You are such a clever writer.
Alexis says
Awww thanks, Beth! Enjoy :)
Arman @ thebigmansworld says
Um…….yes. Can you please pre chill this for me pre Columbus?
Alexis says
DUHHHH. We can have a picnic in the park.
Coty and [email protected] says
I’m way excited about this recipe! Fried rice is my guilty pleasure, so I’m pumped to have a healthier version!
Alexis says
Awesome! I hope you love it!
Erin says
I made this for dinner tonight but I put it over a bed of spinach and omg it was amazing!!! Thanks for the Recipe!
Alexis says
Awesome! I love it over spinach :)
Maureen says
I like this. A healthy dish indeed! What makes it even better is it can be serve either hot or cold. A very wonderful “fried” rice dish.
Alexis says
Thanks! I love it hot with scrambled eggs :)
Camille says
Just wanted to let you know that I’m obsessed with your site. I feel like I’m going to be trying a new recipe (or 2 or 4) a day until I’ve tried them all…curry chickpea salad…CHECK! Quinoa Fried Rice and Loaded Veggie Avocado Tuna Salad, here we come!
Becca says
Snagged this from Alchemy today and googled the recipe after my first bite. In love and will be making a huge batch for lunches. Thank you!
★★★★★
Donna says
I cook brown rice in our pressure cooker, so I always have rice in the fridge and freezer, ready for ‘fried rice’, but I also like the idea of using quinoa for a nice change. Thank you.