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I may be late to the party, but I am just now discovering how incredibly convenient frozen vegetables are. My default has always been fresh veggies, but, according to Michael Pollan in his book In Defense of Food, “Freezing does not significantly diminish the nutritional value of produce” [like canning does] because the crops are picked and frozen at the peak of freshness. This easy fried rice recipe makes good use of a frozen veggie blend for a super convenient family meal!
Easy Fried Rice Recipe
So in some cases – if you are comparing, let’s say, fresh blueberries flown in from another continent to local organic blueberries that you froze yourself at the height of the season – the frozen berries could possibly even be the better (i.e. more nutritious and certainly less-traveled) option out of those two choices.
Making a Fried Rice Recipe With Frozen Veggies
So in an effort to save time I decided to try out a bag of frozen, pre-cut, mixed veggies to make a super quick and easy weeknight dinner. And let me tell you what – not having to wash, peel, and chop (and even select at the store) all the different fresh veggies in this meal was definitely a time saver – without sacrificing too much in the way of taste.
Can you Freeze Fried Rice?
One of the things that makes this recipe so family-friendly in terms of meal planning is just how easy it is to freeze the leftovers! To freeze fried rice: cool it in the freezer by spreading it on a baking pan over plastic wrap or baking paper. Leave for 2 hours. Next, separate it into freezer safe bags or containers. Since our recipe uses egg in this fried rice, it’s recommended to only freeze the cooked rice for about a month before you plan on using it!
I will continue buying fresh veggies for simpler meals and side dishes, but it’s nice to know that frozen is a decent option when you are in a pinch!
Super Quick and Easy Vegetable Fried Rice
Ingredients
- 1 cup brown rice (cooked according to package directions (for a quick dinner, it is highly recommended to make this in advance and store in fridge))
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (or coconut oil)
- 1/2 cup onion (diced)
- 1 teaspoon ginger (fresh, minced)
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 – 10-oz bag frozen veggies (mixed and chopped (I opted for the “Chinese-style” mix))
- 2 eggs
- salt (to taste)
- pepper (to taste (red or black))
- 1/4 cup soy sauce (reduced sodium organic recommended)
- 1/2 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
Instructions
- In a large saute pan or wok, heat the oil over medium-high heat.
- Add the onion and ginger to the pan and cook while stirring for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for another 30 seconds.
- Pour the frozen veggies into the pan (straight out of the bag – no need to defrost!) and cook while stirring for another 3 to 4 minutes.
- Using a spatula push the veggie mixture to one side of the wok. Drop in the 2 raw eggs on the other side and let them cook for 1 to 2 minutes before stirring the entire mixture together. Season with salt and (red or black) pepper to taste.
- Once the eggs are fully cooked add the soy sauce, sesame oil, and rice to wok. Mix together thoroughly, serve warm, and enjoy!
This meal is delicious! Substituted the ginger with just more garlic… mmmmm how I love garlic! Decided not to add salt as my soy sauce wasn’t low in sodium. Added some chicken to make it even more yummy. This recipe was super easy – thank you for sharing : )
Living in a state that has a very short growing season (very late May through early October at best) I have used frozen veggies for years. We grow a fairly large garden and I freeze everything from green beans and peas to bell peppers and cooked red cabbage, broccoli, carrots, and corn. I make tomato sauce and freeze that. I freeze my own blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, and blackberries. I make my own applesauce and freeze it. I hate canning because it’s a pain in the butt, so I freeze anything and everything that I can. I have always figured that what I freeze fresh can’t be any less nutritious than the stuff that’s shipped up here in the middle of winter from 1000s of miles away :)
Yum, made this for dinner tonight. Added some shredded organic chicken. Big hit, will definitely be making again.
Frozen veggies/fruits are what saves me from throwing food out. Now that it is just my husband and me. We are never sure how many meals we will be in down for and I hate shopping every other day.
Lisa, I love frozen veggies/fruit too! So many benefits of convenience and nutritious too! Sometimes it’s helpful to do a little processing too, like for fresh spices! That’s a HUGE money saver, to use some when you buy it, and then freeze the rest to have (almost) “fresh” for next time! Here are Four Fun Freezer Foods! http://fresh-you.blogspot.com/2012/04/four-fun-freezer-foods.html Enjoy :)
We love fried rice around here. It is so easy and quick and my kids will eat almost any veggie I put in because they are shoveling it into their mouths so fast they don’t have time to pick through it and decide they don’t like something in it!
Made this last night as a carb side dish to go with lettuce wraps. . Yummy, quick and easy! I used leftover steamed veggies (chopped small) – asparagus ends and some carrots and broccoli stems – because I wanted to use them up!
I scrambled the egg. But the recipe doesn’t say that.
I love fried rice and often prepare brown rice a day ahead specifically to use for fried rice. One thing I recommend is letting the brown rice and soy sauce “toast” a little in the wok or pan. It gives a great nutty taste to the rice!!
I always keep frozen fruits and veggies on hand for quick (and lazy) meals! Smoothies and casseroles are my go-to!
Now, I’m craving fried rice. Thanks. :)
I made this last night and it turned out sooo good!!! i am new to eating real food and trying to learn how to cook so i appreciate all the recipes. i had never used ginger before! i felt like a tv cooking show! lol. i couldnt find seasame seed oil at my local grocer (not surprised) so that is the only ingredient that was left out. when i was looking for soy sauce it was hard for me to find low sodium and while reading the nutrition labels i thought i was going to swell up just from reading them. i found one that was over 1,200mg!!! i have been doing my best to eat real food and avoid processed food since my new years resolution and i am loosing weight and feeling great! i also dont eat 9 tums a day anymore.
Been making a similiar recipe for awhile..such a timesaver on busy weeknights. I also add leftover shredded chicken sometimes…its great way to clean out the fridge too!
Any chance of this recipe freezing well? I ask because I love making lots of different meals in advance and pulling them out of the freezer whenever I’m ready to.
I have frozen cooked brown rice before and it turned out great. I wouldn’t think any of the other ingredients would be a problem if you froze it. I’d definitely try it!
Frozen vegetables are often cheaper, and being on a tight budget means that I often use them. I really don’t find them to be that much different from fresh in most recipes :) And I love friend rice! I like to put some crushed red pepper flake in mine for some heat, too.
Even with cutting up veggies, fried rice is a quick, easy and delicious meal, and great for using up odds and ends of veggies that are in the fridge. I recently made fried rice with tinned sardines, egg, leafy greens, onion and zucchini, with fish sauce and chilli flakes for flavouring. It was delicious :)
Every time I go to the farmers market I bring home an armload of local season vegetables. I chop them that day and blanch them, toss them on a baking tray, place in the freezer and 6 hours later vacuum seal them and place in the freezer. I have peppers and string beans I will use before the next crop appears at the market.
This recipe was super delicious!! I even cooked chicken breasts and cut them up and threw them in with it. I find the recipes on here not complicated or asking for odd or bizarre ingredients and are very family budgeted. We loved it and are putting it in with some of your other recipes that we’ve tried and loved.
I am sooo excited about this recipe! I just fed it to my 7 littles……and my 4 year old, whom we adopted 3 months ago and who is on the autism spectrum, ate a couple of bites! She has major “food issues”, and I have had an almost impossible time getting her to eat any form of protein. She picked at the rice and ate the little bits of egg out, and I am practically jumping around the kitchen in joy because of it:) THANK YOU!
I make fried rice as our “fast food” about every 10 days. When I cook brown rice I always cook triple what we need, so I have cold rice in the fridge.
For a super fast fried rice, start heating your skillet on mediu, while you get all your ingredients out first: oil (olive, sesame, or peanut), eggs, chopped onion, minced garlic, frozen peas and carrots, leftover brown rice, tamari/soy sauce, toasted sesame seeds (optional) and cashews or peanuts or shredded cooked chicken (from your freezer). If your nuts aren’t toasted, toast them first in a dry skillet, watching closely to make sure they don’t burn.
Crack your eggs and mix with a fork. Add oil to pan and heat til it shimmers. Add eggs and scramble them up. Remove the eggs to a large bowl. Add new oil to pan and the chopped onions. When they are almost to your liking, add the garlic. When they look done to you, add the peas and carrots and heat through. Remove to the bowl with the eggs. Add oil again to the pan and put your rice in. You may have to cook the rice in multiple batches or it will steam instead of crisp. To the last batch of rice, add some tamari/soy sauce. Dump the bowl in with the last batch of rice, plus the cashews/sesame seeds/chicken or whatever you are using and heat through. Serve.
This is a very forgiving recipe. Only one egg? Chop it fine when scrambled. Hate onion? leave it out. Ham instead of chicken? go for it!
Here is another recipe we tried recently that was delicious! My kids had no idea the ‘noodles’ were actually a vegetable. They loved it!
Chicken Pad Thai made with Spaghetti Squash
http://stuffweate.blogspot.com/2012/01/chicken-pad-thai-made-with-spaghetti.html
This looks so good! I’ve been using a fried rice recipe I pulled out of a Real Simple magazine forever ago. It’s a little different but SO delicious. I use EVOO and don’t even use as much as the recipe calls for. It’s great with fresh basil from the garden in the summer.
http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/fried-rice-10000000640855/index.html
Can’t wait to try your recipe!
Love fried rice for quick meals when were all exhausted after work. Great time to use up extra or leftover chicken too. I’m all for shortcuts and convenience!
Thanks for sharing a simple, easy & yummy recipe suggestion & very similar to what we do occasionally here! I’ve enjoyed your site, which I recently found when looking for a home-made, simpler (without all the additives), pedialyte recipe.
I really appreciated the selection of frozen organic vegetable options Cascadian Farms offers and they’re easy for me to find even living in “the sticks”. But, I stopped purchasing them when I found Cascadian Farms was one of the organic/natural companies who worked and contributed to block Proposition 37 this last year, which would have helped label genetically modified foods. Not sure if you feel that’s an issue, but I’m so overwhelmed by all the ways they’ve snuck genetically modified products into our food supply that I feel one of my few recourses is to NOT buy anything from those who are trying to keep that information under wraps.
Hi Heather. That is interesting. Not sure why an organics company would not support labeling… ~Amy
I made fried rice last night. I had checked your site for a recipe, but didn’t see one. So glad you added one. I did one with frozen edamame and carrots. It was yummy!
Some frozen veg is better than others. For example, I use frozen sweetcorn/corn on the cob and peas, but prefer fresh carrots. Frozen cauliflower and broccoli florets are handy, but I’d never use frozen mushrooms (they just never taste right). Frozen fruits are great for making smoothies – just take out a however many you need and whiz them with your fruit juice or yoghurt to whatever recipe you like best, and you have an ice-cold smoothie in seconds (and you don’t risk losing your fresh berries etc to going off before you get round to using them). Again, some fruit freezes better than others – raspberries, blackberries, cherries and rhubarb are great, but strawberries are definitely better fresh.
It’s always convenient to keep a few frozen fruits and veggies in your freezer for those days when you haven’t had a chance to nip to the store and pick up fresh, or you’re coming to the end of the month and are short of cash. It means you can still have a healthy, produce-filled diet without spending a fortune. Win-win! :)
I also have a supply of frozen veggies on hand especially for the winter. However, make sure you check the country of origin. I do not buy if it is outside the U.S.
My husband and I made stir-fry last week and I made organic farro instead of rice. It’s texture is like brown rice (or a light barley) but cooks in about 15 minutes.
It was delicious!
Good for you. I’ve been using frozen for years and knew they were picked at the peak. Your right that it’s super easy and fast and I love it too. I buy as much fresh and sometimes just buy a few bags of frozen for a back up. Also good for soups and stews, just through in at the last minute. Thanks for the recipe.
Also consider coconut amines in place of soy sauce, tamari or Braggs. No, not the same but really great for people with soy sensitivity or trying to stay away from soy products in general.
I have a super similar recipe that i love. Instead of the sesame oil and other oil I use olive for those good fats and it gives a little extra richness to the flavor. I also add organic chicken that I bake with olive oil and a few seasonings and chop it up and throw it in. One of our faves! Next time I’m going to add cashews and pineapple.
Due to arsenic concerns in brown rice we’ve switched to organic white jasmine
Would you consider that a “real” food?
Just a side note to Elizabeth….you may want to do some research into Braggs Liquid Amino Acids…..What makes it more healthful? (Is it really? What is this stuff exactly? For instance, what gives it that yummy, salty flavor?) I heard about Braggs last year and got all excited thinking the same thing as you. But then I began wondering how they made it, and did some research and found out some pretty dismaying things. I’ll leave you to find out your own information, but suffice it to say that I am back using a healthful, low-sodium, quality soy sauce.
Amber, can you direct me to where to read what you found out? I use Braggs Liquid Amino Acids to avoid wheat and gluten. There is also a coconut liquid amino acids on the market now. Thanks for the assist.
Hi Amber,
Would you please let me know where you found this info about Braggs? I would really appreciate it!
Thanks!!
Well, to answer your questions, Kat & Kristin…..
it’s been about a year since I researched it now, so I’d have trouble giving you exact websites without spending that time again researching it myself. At the time I found enough that disturbed me and convinced me personally to switch back to Soy or Tamari (a QUALITY, low-sodium, non-GMO, NATURALLY FERMENTED brand is important. And as Jason Leake mentioned above, Tamari is also wheat/gluten free for those who are trying to avoid that). And I still only use it sparingly.
I think it’s important that people do their own research so that they can make their own informed decision, but I can tell you that what I did was search on Google for Braggs Liquid Aminos and spent days reading everything I found about it. Of course,Bragg’s own website makes you feel good about the product. However, as I continued to research, I began to find many controversies surrounding this product. I did not even believe the controversies at first, because I was determined to like Braggs! But the main issue for me was regarding the way the product is created. From what I could understand, it’s basically the same as cheap soy sauce. Instead of being naturally fermented over a period of months, as quality soy sauces are, (and naturally fermented foods are very good for your body’s health from what I had previously read), Braggs Liquid Aminos product is made in a matter of days by soaking the soy beans in hydrochloric acid. This is how cheap soy sauce is made also….And, as a side note, it does produce free-radical MSG. (Braggs was finally forced by the FDA to remove the “NO MSG” claim from their label due to this). I am just touching on the main issues that stand out to me as I recall them. In the end, I felt deceived by Braggs and made the decision I did.
I am not a health expert, so again, everything I just stated was from my own personal resarch and conclusions. I just thought that others might like to know that there are controversies out there, so they can make their own informed decisions. Hope this helps you.
Thank you for your reply Amber. I have a serious health issue/problem and am trying to eat as well as possible! I am so happy that you posted this. I’m sure that I spend way to much time doing product research, but will be looking in to Bragg’s. I have a bottle of Gluten free San J and will use that until the verdict on Bragg’s comes in! I will be asking my ND about it also. Have a wonderful day!!
Earthfare used to have a liquid amino. Check Vita-cost for another brand.
For a healthier alternative to tamari or soy sauce we use Braggs Liquid Amino Acids (at Health Food Stores)…my husband and son have no idea I switched ;-)
Elizabeth, a friend JUST told me about liquid amino acids. I’m trying that soon! Thank you for reinforcing that plan.
Also try their organic apple cider vinegar. Its good for everything.
Hi Elizabeth – I’m curious, why do you feel Braggs Liquid Amino Acids is healthy? I did some cursory research on it and it looked pretty suspect to me. We use San-J low sodium organic Tamari. It happens to be wheat/gluten free (not that we personally avoid gluten…just FYI).
Funny…probably should not have used the dreaded “healthy” word….I personally can not tolerate the salt in low salt Soy Sauce nor low salt Tamari…it burns my tongue…so for me Braggs works.
I’m certainly not disputing your palate Elizabeth, by just FYI for other readers a tablespoon of Bragg’s Amino Acids has 960 mg of Sodium whereas low salt Tamari has 700 mg. The Tamari also has 2g of protein vs Bragg’s has 1.9g (We don’t typically analyze nutrition labels, but it seemed relevant here). That being said the listed serving sizes are not the same.
Hi, I use Bragg’s Liquid Aminos instead of Soy or Tamari also. Simply because it is Non-GMO. It comes from soybeans, just like soy or Tamari, but does not list Alcohol for a preservative like the Tamari does. I took the info below from the Bragg’s website. My ND also recommends it over Soy or Tamari.
Thanks for a GREAT recipe!! I will be trying it soon. It has been so nice to find 100 Days of Real Food!!
Bragg Liquid Aminos is a Certified NON-GMO liquid protein concentrate, derived from healthy soybeans, that contains the following Essential and Non-essential Amino Acids in naturally occurring amounts:
16 Amino Acids
Alanine
Arginine
Aspartic Acid
Glutamic Acid
Glycine
Histidine
Isoleucine
Leucine
Methionine
Phenylalanine
Proline
Serine
Threonine
Tyrosine
Valine
Lysine
FYI the San-J organic Tamari is also Non-GMO.
I buy Trader Joe’s Reduced Sodium Soy Sauce. It is affordable, has only 460 milligrams per tablespoon and is naturally fermented(we avoid non-fermented soy whenever possible). Plus, since it is Trader Joe’s brand, it is non-GMO and MSG free. It does have wheat though.
I’ve definitely learned that *dry* cooked rice is so much better for fried rice. If you cook it and fry it right away, the water repels the oil and it doesn’t fry well. So yes, use leftover rice or drain it well and pour it onto a towel or something to get out the moisture.
Thank you for this recipe. I think even I can make this, and I know my family will love it!
Well, duh, why didn’t I think of that? Thanks for the inspiration. With my husband, the vegan, I’ll skip the egg and sub some tofu.
I buy Cascadian Farms frozen veggies and fruits every week. I also use their hash brown potatoes along with a frozen veggie mix, and scramble some eggs, wrap in a tortilla and dipped in a mild salsa for a quick dinner sometimes.
We tried a similar recipe out there right now where finely chopped cauliflower is substituted for the rice. Even my ‘kid who won’t eat many veggies’ kid ate it up no problem. Amazing substitution to try!
This recipe looks amazing. And easy. So easy. Which makes it perfect.
Thanks for sharing! :)
Your rice dish sounds yummy! I really enjoyed reading In Defense of Food as well.
Have you read ‘Locavore’? It is also a very interesting read and changed many of our current eating habits.
http://www.amazon.ca/Locavore-Farmers-Gardenshow-Canadians-Changing/dp/1554684188
Hi Carrie. We are definitely advocates for local eating. Animal Vegetable Miracle, which inspires local and home grown food, is one of our favorites . ~Amy