Veggie Fried Rice - Vegan MoFo #14

OMG! I am seriously in food-love with making my own fried rice now. It's completely crazy how easy it is. My pal, Lidia, of Air Eater taught me that you need to cook your veggies and your rice separately. How I didn't know this is a shame!

You can't necessarily make this on-the-fly unless you already have cooked rice just hanging out in your fridge, so it does take a little planning. I threw the rice into the rice cooker this morning and then popped it into the fridge before heading out to get stuff done. When I got home, I grabbed my coconut oil and got to work.

I had (and still have) some fresh veggies leftover in my fridge from the veggie platter I made for my pal's bridal shower. As I hate wasting good food, I decided last night that I needed to make some sort of veggie dish. Then, this morning I saw Lidia's post about making fried rice and I knew it was the answer. You could probably make this out of just about any veggies, but I had carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, onion and some frozen peas. Just make sure you cut them all small, and about the same size, so they cook evenly.

Makes enough to serve at least 4 bowls, depending on the size of your bowl.

What I used:

• 2 1/2 cups cooked brown basmati rice
• 4 TB coconut oil, separated in half between the rice and the veggies
• 1 1/2 - 2 tsp sesame oil
• soy sauce or tamari or Braggs aminos to your tastes
• 1 1/2 - 2 cups diced carrot (I didn't exactly measure)
• 1/2 cup broccoli florets (it was all I had left)
• 1 cup cauliflower florets
• 1/3 cup chopped red onion
• 2/3 cup frozen peas

What I did:

1. Heat 2 TB coconut oil in a deep skillet (that has a lid) over medium heat. Add in the carrot and cauliflower, stirring. Let cook about 3 minutes. Then add in the broccoli and onion. Stir occasionally, and cook about 3 minutes. Add the peas, then turn heat to medium-low and put the lid on. Meanwhile, start the next step.
2. Heat the other 2 TB coconut oil in another skillet over medium heat. I used nonstick. Add in the rice and use a wooden spoon to break up any chunks. Stir frequently so all the rice is lightly coated in oil and then add in the sesame oil. Stir again. I think I cooked mine about 5 minutes. I stirred it often so that no chunks formed and the rice was all cooked through. 
3. By now, the veggies should be fork-tender, so go ahead and gently fold them into the rice. Add a little soy sauce and stir well. Taste and add any other salts or spices you'd like.

See?! You can totally make this. And you should stop by Lidia's blog or her twitter (@lidialf) and thank her for sharing her knowledge with me! I truly have such amazing vegan internet pals!